PhotonHub & EIC Scaling Club

Scaling up deep-tech innovations requires tailored support, de-risking, and strong ecosystems. PhotonHub Europe accelerates photonics adoption through open-access facilities, mentoring, and investment readiness, while the EIC Scaling Club connects top scale-ups with global investors and partners.

Scaling up deep-tech innovations requires tailored support structures that bridge the gap between research, market entry, and industrial deployment. PhotonHub Europe and the EIC Scaling Club provide complementary approaches to accelerating the commercialisation of breakthrough technologies across various sectors, offering insights relevant to forest-based innovations.

PhotonHub Europe is a pan-European one-stop shop for photonics innovation, providing co-funding and open access to a range of cutting-edge photonics expertise, equipment and technologies available from the best facilities throughout Europe for the purpose of carrying out collaborative innovation projects.

PhotonHub’s innovation support covers the entire value chain from early-stage concept and prototyping (TRL3-4) to piloting (TRL5-6) and manufacturing (TRL7-8). Selected small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) receive investment readiness support, business mentoring and connections to accelerate their access to fundraising, partnering, and customers. PhotonHub enables faster prototyping, de-risking investment decisions, and facilitates market adoption of photonics-based solutions – key lessons for scaling advanced bio-based technologies.

The EIC Scaling Club, backed by the European Innovation Council, operates as an exclusive network that supports Europe’s most promising deep-tech scale-ups in securing strategic investments and partnerships. It provides high-potential companies with tailored matchmaking, access to global investors, and ecosystem-building opportunities, helping them transition from pilot stage to large-scale commercial success.

Key takeaways for scaling up forest-based innovations:

• Tailored support structures: Providing a mix of technical, financial, and business support services is critical for facilitating scale-ups to grow to full industrial deployment.
• De-risking investment: Access to pilot facilities and demonstration sites combined with tailored training and business support, as seen in PhotonHub, is essential to lowering technological risk for investors and industry adopters.
• Strategic ecosystem building: A soft infrastructure for streamlined business support and a curated network of investors, corporates, and scale-ups, as practised by the EIC Scaling Club, ensures that innovations gain the necessary momentum to scale across markets.

Applying these principles to the forest bioeconomy can accelerate the commercialisation of innovations.

Learn more

The Forestry Hub of Catalonia is an initiative supporting innovation in forestry value chains. Its facilities for research, development, transfer, facilitation and training.

The Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (BBEPP) is a leading open-access facility supporting the scale-up of bio-based innovations from lab to industrial scale.

CMPC Ventures’ Venture Client supports start-ups through partnerships, pilots, and direct investment. Launched in 2024, the CMPC has completed 15 pilots, including two forestry-focused projects.

The Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) is a key promoter of sustainable growth and competitiveness in Europe.

ECBF is the first private venture capital fund exclusively dedicated to investing in growth-stage companies within the European bioeconomy.

Biocastanea upcycles chestnut burr waste into certified eco‐cosmeceuticals via green extraction of antioxidants. Biocastanea promotes zero‐waste valorisation and scalable bioeconomy.

Strong by Form develops Woodflow, a biomimetic, digitally-designed timber composite replacing steel, concrete, plastics via strategic partnerships, phased financing, deep-tech planning.

Biocon’s reductive catalytic fractionation transforms lignocellulose into lignin oil, pulp, and sugars at pilot scale.

With a strong track record, GAV shares lessons on avoiding the “Valley of Death” and supporting start-ups to scale successfully.

Read the cases presented at the Workshop: Scaling up forest-based innovations in Europe on 15 May 2025 in Brussels, Belgium.

• Category: Resources, Factsheets
• Tag: workshop, scaling up forest innovations factsheet