Companies set to work to make indoor sports and sporting events fully and safely accessible for athletes and the public again
The winners of the SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) Sports Events and the SBIR Sports Accommodations have been announced. These are innovative products and services from 14 entrepreneurs who contribute to making sport safe and accessible in the times of Covid-19. The SBIRs were carried out by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) on behalf of Sportinnovator and the ministries of EZK and VWS.
The winning innovations at SBIR Sports Accommodations focus on the challenges surrounding hygiene and air quality in indoor sports accommodations. The winning innovations at the SBIr Sport Events focus on triage (including quick tests) and risk management with regard to visitor flows (tracking and tracing).
During a digital meeting, the winners received their certificate and a budget of 25,000 euros to carry out a feasibility study. Based on this feasibility study, entrepreneurs can submit a proposal for the further development of their innovation. A total of 2,000,000 euros is available for phases 1 and 2. The winners can now get started with their innovations. Due to the exceptional situation, the total turnaround time for phases 1 and 2 is a maximum of 5 months.
Background
Sports innovator and the ministries of EZK and VWS have started this innovation competition because innovations can contribute to the current social challenges in sport. Moreover, many parallels can be drawn between the audience and athletes at sports competitions and the audience and artists at theaters, festivals and other performances. So solutions that come about within these SBIRs also apply to the entire event sector and possibly also to education and the hospitality industry.
Fieldlab Events
This innovation competition is in line with the Events Fieldlab that has been established by the events sector in collaboration with the government. The goal of Fieldlab Events is to investigate how safe and responsible events can be organized that are commercially viable. The various SBIR innovations will preferably be tested in practice in designated test locations and, in coordination with Fieldlab Events.
Winners
| Aanvrager | Projecttitel |
| SuWoTec B.V. | CATS luchthygiënesysteem |
| ABT B.V. | Simulaties en metingen voor een gezonde en veilige luchtkwaliteit |
| Cloudgarden Sentronics B.V. | Gezond binnenklimaat bij binnensportaccommodaties inzichtelijk maken en tevens bewerkstelligen |
| VFA Solutions B.V. | i-VENTION, het responsive luchtsysteem van de toekomst |
| Calculus (Eywa B.V.) | Beheerplatform voor veilige (sport)evenementen |
| Signify Netherlands B.V. | Hoge capaciteit luchtdesinfectie voor binnensportaccommodaties |
| Ninthway C.V. | CB2 Token Crowd Management System |
| Detact Diagnostics B.V. | CoviTact |
| Embedded Acoustics B.V. | Event Tracking Tag |
| ECsens B.V. | ATLEET |
| Semiconductor Ideas to the Market (Itom) B.V. | CrowdBand |
| Hestia CSC B.V. | Smart Acces |
| Dexels B.V. | CWSC |
| Pro-Health B.V. | FTSE |
Martin Olde Weghuis, member of the Topteam Sport, was chairman of the jury for these SBIRs. In addition, the jury consisted of representatives from NOC * NSF, NLActief, KNVB, Ahoy, Mojo, Breda University of Applied Science and the municipality of Vlaardingen.
More information
For more information about the SBIRs, visit the RVO website, www.volginnovatie.nl. For more information about Sportinnovator, visit www.sportinnovator.nl. You will also be kept informed of the progress of the innovations via this website.
