University Spin-off Creation by Spanish Researchers in Agricultural Engineering

This paper describes how a team of university professors and graduate students created a technology-based company (spin-off) to as a means to deliver their research findings to the agricultural sector. The spin-off company was based on the use of new methodologies, equipment, instrumentation and sensors initially developed for various research projects. Successful field tests and positive feedback from farmers initially prompted the development of the spin-off. The spin-off progress has been observed and recorded from the idea phase through the company start-up until the second round of financing (October 2007 to January 2010). Since limited time scales are commonly found in agriculture, the spin-off company provided a way to deliver timely research results to the agricultural community. Although university research results may eventually end up in the agricultural sector, in many cases this process requires a lot of bureaucracy and time. Spin-off companies can be flexible tools to transfer this knowledge and technology to the agricultural sector, as well as providing direct career opportunities for graduate students and PhD students.