What is a Product Track team?

The regional Product Track teams are part of the Foundation for Finnish Inventions' Product Track service, which offers free-of-charge expert assistance to private persons and those planning to set up a business on their own. Product Track's primary mission is to evaluate the potential of ideas and inventions to generate profitable business.

The Product Track teams provide an initial evaluation of the commercialisation potential of new ideas and inventions, and offer recommendations for further development. The teams are located throughout Finland, and are led by the Foundation for Finnish Inventions' innovation advisors who operate in the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY centre). The members of the Product Track teams are experts in the development and commercialisation of ideas and inventions. This allows the initial evaluation of ideas to be carried out as objectively as possible, taking different perspectives into consideration. The evaluation is also uniform throughout the country.

Innovative ideas and inventions that are considered to have the potential to become a growth venture, and particularly those that have the potential to achieve international success are guided to the Product Track‘s second stage within the Foundation for Finnish Inventions. Ideas that have local business potential are steered towards other operators offering funding and assistance with the development work.

The strength of the Product Track teams lies in its extensive network consisting of universities, universities of applied sciences, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation TEKES, Avera, the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment (ELY Centres), business start-up centres, business incubators as well as companies and private consultants. The network actively seeks out new, innovative ideas in their area and submits promising ideas to the team for evaluation. The network also strives to create opportunities and incentives in their own area to develop still more new ideas and inventions.

Anyone who believes they have developed a good idea or invention can submit it to the Foundation for Finnish Inventions' Product Track for evaluation. You can find the contact information of your regional Product Track team leader here.

Product Track's start-up activities have been funded by Tekes's Workplace Development Programme Tykes. In future, funding for the activities will be provided by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy. The practical steering of operations is the responsibility of the Foundation for Finnish Inventions.