The ALICE – Alliance for Logistics Innovation through Collaboration in Europe – network is a European platform for the development of comprehensive research, innovation and market launch strategies in the area of logistics as well as supply chain management in Europe, launched as a "European Technology Platform" (ETP).
It was set up within the scope of the European project WINN (European Platform Driving KnoWledge to INNovations in Freight Logistics) with the assistance of the "European Green Cars Initiative" and EIRAC – the European Intermodal Research Advisory Council.

Launched in June 2013 and officially recognised as the ETP for logistics by the European Commission, ALICE's primary aim is making a contribution to achieving a 30% optimisation of comprehensive end-to-end logistics solutions by 2030. The network also supports, promotes and advises the European Commission with regard to the implementation of the EU research programme Horizon 2020 in the area of "Logistics". The MoWiN.net and the region of North Hesse benefit from the participation in ALICE; on the one hand, from the dialogue regarding this subject with international logistics industry stakeholders and on the other, from the fact that regional issues are placed in an international context.

The Federal Logistics Association (Bundesvereinigung Logistik - BVL) is a network for logistics and supply chain management with more than 10,000 experts and managers from industry, trade, services and science. It provides stimulus and impulses for industry-spanning and future-oriented logistics concepts in order to secure the competitiveness of companies domestically and abroad.

The BVL is the podium for national and international exchange of thought and experience between experts and managers through contacts to similarly oriented organizations. It optimizes logistical awareness thanks to its wide variety of services.

The committees of the BVL are top-class and represent a cross-section of logistics functions from the economy and science. All committee members are voluntary participants.

With the BVL Campus, the BVL provides lifelong learning for economics and logistics: The seminars department, the German Foreign Trade and Transport Academy as well as the University for International Economy and Logistics offer seminars, courses and study programs for every phase of a professional career under the roof of the BVL Campus.  

There are now more than 30 regional groups of the BVL in Germany. At the end of 2012, MoWiN.net entered into a cooperation with the BVL Regional Group of North Hesse. This step made sense, as there is overlap between the two parties. It is planned to organize joint events and to profit from collected experience.

More information can be found at http://www.bvl.de/nordhessen.

The DVWG (Deutsche Verkehrswissenschaftliche Gesellschaft) currently has about 2,700 individual and corporate members. It maintains a variety of national and international exchange memberships with important associations and institutions in transport science and logistics. An important goal of the Society is the improvement and development of transport carrier-spanning and interdisciplinary exchange between science, economy and politics in all transport concerns. It is a neutral platform for the transfer of knowledge and experience between theory and practice of transport development and is oriented toward sustainable transport development. The DVWG organizes scientific events - about 200 annually - which concern current transport issues, but also strategic developments in transport to an increasing degree. The DVWG has addressed transport science subjects for more than 100 years, unifying tradition and innovation.

 The DVWG particularly works to promote young talent via the Youth Forum. 

On the European level, it is dedicated to uniting transport experts from all European states under the roof of a European Platform for Transport Sciences (EPTS).

EASN (European Automotive Strategy Network) is mainly active in establishing Europe-wide consortia and the development and delivery of EU projects. Thereby the focus of EASN lies on accelerating the implementation of sustainable mobility, electric mobility as well as smart mobility (ITS) and on strengthening industry (SME) competitiveness in the involved areas.

In 2008 EASN has been established as a platform for European automotive regions and clusters as well as their companies, institutes and authorities.

EASN aims at:

• Identifying opportunities for improving industry and SME competitiveness in the EU automotive industry

• Identifying opportunities for collaboration, enabling co-operation & joint EU projects

• Facilitating EU project development and supporting the development of EU funding applications

• Via the results of the EU projects, contributing to policy making at EU and national level 

Via its clusters and other partners, EASN promotes:

• In-depth knowledge of the regional situations,

• Access to the Automotive industry, institutes and universities in the respective regions;

• Close contacts to SME companies in these regions;

• Access to local, national and EU government

In short, it is a powerful network connecting the main automotive regions and clusters in Europe.

More Information can be found at www.easn.eu

The most important logistics metropolitan regions in Germany work together in developing logistics in Germany. To do so, the large and established regional logistics networks regularly interface in the "Consortium of German Logistics Initiatives." 

The ten regional logistics networks in Baden-Württemberg, Bayern, Berlin-Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Leipzig-Halle, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Nordhessen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, RheinMain und Schleswig-Holstein coordinate their common issues and measures with cross-regional significance in the Consortium and exchange experiences. Their basic tenet is: "Think globally, act locally." 

The Consortium has the goal of further strengthening Germany as a logistics location. It is particularly a contact partner for politics, advisors, ideas generators and partners for the regional implementation of programs. At the same time, the Consortium advances topics of national and international significance on the basis of its regional anchoring.
 

The focal points of the collaboration fall into four fields of action: 

• • - National and international marketing for Germany as a logistics location
  • - Continued development of transport infrastructure
  • - Human resources and qualification
  • - Innovations in logistics

The regional economy, politics as well as science and research are brought together in the respective regional logistics networks to promote the regional logistics locations. The networks operate an active cluster management and work closely together with regional partners such as unions and associations in logistics.
More information can be found at www.logistik-initiativen.de.

Germany has many high-performing regional innovation clusters. For a good reason, as numerous companies and research institutions have already realised that in the long term, they can achieve more together. The basis for a successful cluster is a professional cluster management.
The "go-cluster" programme is the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy's cluster policy programme for excellence and helps cluster management organisations to develop their innovation clusters further.

Added values offered by the programme
Membership in a "go-cluster" offers many advantages to innovation clusters, their stakeholders and partners who support clusters such as, for example:
•          Cluster management organisation quality and capability confirmation through standard evaluation criteria based on the European quality standards
•          Funding application entitlement
•          Integration into and increased visibility in German government economic policy initiatives
•          Increased national and international profile with decision-makers from a political, business and local government background
•          Networking activities with the best-performing German and European innovation clusters

Facts and Figures:
Almost 13,000 cluster stakeholders from around 100 innovation clusters are involved in the "go-cluster" programme.
The 13,000 cluster stakeholders include more than 8,500 companies (including more than 7,100 small and medium-sized enterprises), more than 800 individual university and university of applied science faculties and institutes and approx. 770 non-university research institution departments and sub-departments.

The "German Partnership for Sustainable Mobility" (GPSM) initiative serves as a roadmap for sustainable, future-oriented transport and "green" logistics originating in Germany. As a platform for exchanging information, expertise and experiences, the GPSM assists developing and newly industrialising countries with the transition towards sustainable transport and logistics. In this context, the initiative equally welcomes input from businesses, public institutions, researchers, the civil society and stakeholder alliances. Two German government ministries, the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Federal Environment Ministry, are involved in the initiative as partners.
The GPSM's activities include the initiation of contacts with German transport and logistics experts as well as the promotion of dialogues that encourage businesses, public institutions, researchers, the civil society and stakeholder alliances to network.
As a "German Partnership for Sustainable Mobility" partner, the MoWiN.net intends to develop regional transport business synergies further in order to establish networks. At the same time, the initiative also acts as a driver for an innovatively designed transport and logistics landscape in the region of North Hesse.

The Open ENLoCC network (European Network of Logistics Competence Centers) originally arose from the "ENLOCC" project. It is a European network which unifies regional logistics competence fields. The goal of the network is the exchange of experience of its international partners as well as cooperation with European institutions. The members work together on a wide variety of projects in order to collaboratively solve regional infrastructural, organizational or technical problems. Their activities furthermore also serve for project development of cluster and research institutions. 

The establishment of the network was subsidized with INTERREG IIIc funds from the European Union and it is now financed by membership contributions and donations. It consists of 19 members from various European countries.

MoWiN.net joined the network at the end of 2012. The goal is stronger integration in the competence field of logistics on the European level, in order to also present MoWiN.net internationally.

More information can be found at www.openenlocc.net.