On 24 November 2026, the EU IDEALIST project community will come together in Lyon and online for a day focused on how European SMEs can anticipate change, adapt to new challenges and transform for the future. More than a final conference, co-organised by the EDEN and CARA clusters, this event will be a day to turn three years of collaboration into practical insights, new connections and concrete opportunities for European SMEs, clusters and innovation actors from three differenz ecosystems: Energy intensive industries, Aerospace and Defence, Mobility, Transport and Automotive. Save the date and request for more information contacting us: office@gkz-ev.de.

We were pleased to contribute to the conference “Raw Materials Policy as a Key to Sovereignty and Prosperity”, hosted on 28th of September by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in cooperation with the European Initiative for Energy Security in Berlin. Managing Director GKZ Wolfgang Reimer participated as an invited speaker. The event brought together representatives from politics, industry, academia and international partner countries for an exchange on the future of Europe’s raw-materials policy. Thank you to the organisers and all participants for the invitation and the valuable dialogue. Photo: KAS/Jens Jeske

Dr Wolfgang Reimer, Managing Director of GKZ Freiberg e.V., delivered the keynote speech and presented the awards at the ERCI–ELCA Joint Hack&Match 2026 during InnoTrans in Berlin. The European Lighting Cluster Alliance (ERCA) and EURailClusters (ERCI) implemented the Hack&Match whilst Dr Reimer was part of the jury. Held under the title “Design the Future, Hack the Waste: The Full-Lifecycle Mobility Challenge”, the initiative connected challenge providers, solution providers and experts to develop innovative approaches for circular material use in the mobility sector. Four international teams involving participants from the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland and Türkiye took part in the competition.

Main award for “The Scrap Digi-Pass” The main ERCI–ELCA Hack&Match award was presented to Team 3 for its project, “The Scrap Digi-Pass”. The winning team brought together:

  • İrem Düzenli, FARPLAS Otomotiv A.Ş., Türkiye, as challenge provider;
  • Junaid Lakhmir Korejo, Poly Process Bureau, Italy, as solution provider.

The concept addresses a central requirement of a circular industrial economy: ensuring that secondary materials can be identified, characterised, traced and reliably integrated into high-value manufacturing processes.

Coup de Cœur award for AI-driven process optimisation The Coup de Cœur award, recognising the second-ranked team, went to the project “AI-Driven Process Optimization for High-Quality Recycled Plastic Components”. The team consisted of:

  • Séverine Sibade, VASI by Nature Inject, France, as challenge provider;
  • Sylwester Staszak, Aplex sp. z o.o., Poland, as solution provider.

Its solution focuses on the application of artificial intelligence to improve processing conditions for recycled plastics, helping manufacturers manage material variability and achieve consistent component quality.

From circularity targets to industrial reality

In his keynote, Dr Reimer highlighted that recycling must be understood not only as waste management, but as a strategic industrial capability for Europe. In quality- and safety-critical sectors such as rail and automotive manufacturing, recycled materials must meet demanding requirements for consistency, traceability, processability and performance. Secondary materials can vary between batches in composition, contamination, ageing behaviour, viscosity and additive content. Such variations may lead to defects, scrap, downtime, requalification requirements and delays in customer approval. According to Dr Reimer, Europe therefore needs to move beyond a volume-based understanding of recycling towards a quality- and data-based approach to circular materials.

The projects presented during the Hack&Match demonstrate how this can be achieved through:

  • Material intelligence to understand the actual properties of incoming material streams;
  • Process intelligence to adapt production to material variability;
  • Digital trust through traceability, data integrity and auditable quality evidence;
  • Industrial testbeds where innovations can be validated under real manufacturing conditions;
  • Better scale-up conditions, including finance, standards, approvals, skills and early customers.

The ERCI–ELCA Hack&Match showed that circularity, competitiveness and strategic resilience are mutually reinforcing objectives. For Europe, the key challenge is to ensure that promising technologies do not remain at pilot stage, but are validated, financed and manufactured at industrial scale within Europe.

The two-day meeting brought together ETP SMR members and stakeholders from across Europe to review current activities, discuss strategic developments and set priorities for the coming period. Participants also had the opportunity to gain first-hand insight into RHI Magnesita’s integrated operations—from magnesite extraction at the mine to the production of refractory materials and caustic magnesia for use in animal-feed supplements.

Strategic priorities for Europe

A key part of the meeting was a workshop on ETP SMR’s future actions, communication needs and the annual update of its Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) for the future Raw Materials research work programme. The agenda also covered FP10, the next EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, and the proposed European Competitiveness Fund. Both are expected to shape future support for research, industrial transformation and the scale-up of strategic raw-materials solutions.

Looking ahead

Participants also discussed preparations for Raw Materials Week 2027 and a potential joint EGS–ETP SMR event at PDAC, underlining the importance of international cooperation and visibility for Europe’s raw materials sector.

Through its work, ETP SMR connects industry, research organisations, universities, clusters and other stakeholders committed to sustainable mineral resources. The 18th General Meeting demonstrated the continued need for a coordinated European approach that combines responsible resource development, circularity, innovation, skills and industrial competitiveness. GKZ Freiberg e.V. values its engagement in this European network and looks forward to contributing to the Platform’s future activities, strategic discussions and collaborative initiatives.

What does day-to-day production look like at the Vereinigtes Schleenhain opencast mine, and how far has MIBRAG’s transformation process progressed in light of the politically driven phase-out of coal by 2038? These questions and answers made the visit to MIBRAG an exciting day for the 25 or so participants. Alongside the technical presentations, the tour of the opencast mine, taking place right up close to the large-scale machinery, was particularly impressive.

In mid-June, the 5th Learning Expedition took place as part of the EU IDEALIST project, in which GKZ is a partner. The event was organised by the French cluster ALBATROS Gie,, which hosted the gathering in Nantes. The focus was on advanced manufacturing, composite materials, hybrid manufacturing processes and 3D printing. The aim of the two-day event was to facilitate an exchange with companies, research institutions and clusters from across Europe specialising in the three core areas of the IDEALIST project: energy-intensive industry, mobility, and aerospace. As with previous Learning Expeditions, companies not involved in the project were able to take part in the meeting, thereby gaining insights into current technological developments and industrial applications through site visits and discussions with representatives of the project partners. To this end, the GKZ once again provided travel vouchers worth 500 euros. The Dresden-based company simfacture GmbH took advantage of this opportunity and returned with valuable insights not only into the cooperation partners but also into the European cluster. For us at the Freiberg Geoscience Competence Centre, alongside our member, the Bavarian Chemicals Cluster – which was also present in Nantes – these are important building blocks for identifying new impetus, partnerships and ideas for our cluster work and our members. Many thanks to the IDEALIST consortium and ALBATROS Gie for the excellent organisation and the inspiring discussions!

The webinar, jointly organised by GKZ, the European Digital Innovation Hub Saxony (EDIH Saxony) and the Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Chemnitz explored how SMEs and research institutions in Saxony can make practical and responsible use of AI today, including:

  • An introduction to EDIH Saxony as the central contact point for digital innovation in Saxony – with "test before invest" infrastructure, training offers, competence building and access to European networks.
  • Input from Mittelstand-Digital Zentrum Chemnitz on what the EU AI Act's competence requirements (Article 4) mean in practice and how companies can build the necessary skills for safe and compliant AI use.
  • A very hands-on legal session on copyright risks when using AI-generated text and images, typical pitfalls in marketing and communication, and how SMEs can protect themselves.
  • A best case from Smart Systems Hub GmbH on AI-based predictive maintenance in semiconductor production in Dresden, showing how more than 800 automated guided vehicles are monitored using sensors, acoustic analysis and AI to increase efficiency, reduce downtimes and stabilise production.

The webinar was organised by GKZ Freiberg as part of the HORIZON EUROPE IDEALIST project, which supports SMEs in three strategic industrial ecosystems – energy-intensive industries, aerospace and mobility/transport – in strengthening their resilience and technological adaptability, including through AI and digitalisation.

In Mid-May we hosted an IDEALIST Horizon Scanning webinar on hydrogen – co-organised by GKZ and its member ChemieCluster Bayern e.V. (CCB) – and the insights are still shaping our work today. Exchanging our minds with representative of Industry, Cluster, Administration, Intermediaries was anything but "business as usual". Together with two strong cluster keynotes from the Saxon HZwo hydrogen cluster and the Zentrum Wasserstoff.Bayern H2.B cluster, we explored early signals for how the hydrogen transition is really unfolding on the ground – beyond strategy papers and headlines.

Among others:

  • Emerging "project realism" in parts of the industry – postponements and down-scaling instead of outright cancellations.
  • Early specialisation of stakeholders in very narrow H₂ niches (import logistics, offshore-linked electrolysis, individual corridors).
  • The role of EU rules (additionality, temporality) in shifting location advantages within Europe.
  • Global "clean hydrogen" growth as a potential export window for specialised German suppliers in plant engineering, measurement and safety technology.

In small group exercises, SMEs worked through three very practical questions for each signal:

  • What would be your first decision or action to adapt?
  • What do you already have that could be optimised?
  • What do you wish your company already had in place but doesn't yet?

This webinar was part of the HORIZON EUROPE IDEALIST project, which supports European innovation clusters and SMEs by using Horizon Scanning to identify early signals, drivers and strategic options in key transition areas such as hydrogen.

The result is a compact set of insights we can now feed back into cluster strategies, project pipelines and risk management – and cross-check against the IEA Global Hydrogen Review 2025.

IDEALIST is an EU-funded Horizon Europe project in which GKZ participates as a partner. It aims to strengthen small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in three key industrial ecosystems – energy-intensive industries, aerospace & defence, and mobility, transport & automotive – by increasing their resilience and supporting the uptake of advanced technologies. The latest IDEALIST newsletter presents ongoing activities, first results and opportunities for companies and clusters to get involved.

As a partner in the EU IDEALIST Project, we invite GKZ Freiberg e.V. companies and innovative players to work together to solve specific challenges facing the manufacturing industry – quickly, focused and entirely online. On 1–2 April 2026, we will bring together industrial companies with technology-driven start-ups, SMEs, research institutions, technology centres and EDIHs to work in teams on real-world challenges from three key ecosystems: energy-intensive industries, aerospace/defence and mobility/automotive. Whether you are a company with an acute manufacturing problem or an organisation that can offer a solution using advanced technologies, this Hack&Match is your chance to build new partnerships, develop concrete solutions and network across Europe.

How does it work? As a challenge provider, you can submit your challenges until 13 February 2026; as a solution provider, you can apply for the published challenges between 16 February and 20 March 2026. The joint kick-off will take place on 1 April, followed by intensive collaboration sessions and the presentation of all solutions to a jury on 2 April – the best teams will be honoured at an award ceremony on 15 April 2026.

Participation is free of charge for challenge providers and an excellent opportunity for solution providers to showcase their expertise, attract potential customers or partners, and position themselves early on in European value chains.

Interested? You can find more information here.