IK4-TEKNIKER and the University of Cantabria sign a collaboration agreement

Cooperation between institutions of reference in the field of scientific research is key for the development of high added value projects, the generation of technical knowledge and the transfer of technology to the business fabric.

With the objective of strengthening ties between the academic sphere and research entities, the IK4-TEKNIKER Basque Country Technological Centre and the University of Cantabria (UC) have, this morning, signed a collaboration agreement which will allow them to develop joint R&D projects in the field of optics and photonics, amongst other scientific branches.

The agreement, which is of an indefinite nature, was initialled this morning at the headquarters of the technological centre in Eibar by the Managing Director of IK4-TEKNIKER, Alejandro Bengoa, and the Vice Chancellor of Research and Knowledge Transfer at the UC, Ángel Pazos Carro, as the highest representative of the university.

The agreement establishes collaboration in different disciplines, but will especially focus on the optics group of the Department of Applied Physics at the UC.

As well as the execution of joint projects, this partnership facilitates the collaboration of IK4-TEKNIKER researchers in postgraduate courses and other second-level degree courses organised by the UC, such as the University Masters Degree in Science and Light Engineering, which will be launched next year.

Furthermore, both parties commit to offering seminars to students, organising guided visits, tutoring end-of-master projects and facilitating placements of between three and four months for students at IK4-TEKNIKER.

The agreement formalises the cooperative relationship which has existed between the two entities since 2002, which has materialised through different mechanisms, such as the development of doctoral theses or the implication of joint research projects.

Specifically, the UC and IK4-TEKNIKER participate in the SENTIR initiative, a project which seeks the early detection of tumoral metastasis, as well as improving the monitoring of previously diagnosed patients. This objective is addressed by the detection of biomarkers in blood by means of the development of innovative biosensors.