Tools to get your research collaborations off to a good start

Guides to download

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Contract templates to download

The confidentiality agreement (also called "NDA" for non disclosure agreement agreement) is a contract by which two or more partners undertake, within the framework of a project, to keep a certain amount of important and sensitive information for one or both parties strictly confidential.

The confidentiality agreement guarantees to the owner of the information that the information he is about to make available to the beneficiary will not be disclosed to third parties.

Download the confidentiality agreement template

The material transfer agreement (also called "MTA" for material transfer agreement) is a contract that governs the transfer and use of research material(s) or data provided by its owner to another entity that wishes to use the material(s) or data for its own internal research purposes.

Document coming soon

A collaborative research contract is a contract for the purpose of carrying out a joint research program between one or more partners to generate new knowledge. Within the framework of a collaboration, the research is conducted jointly by the partners assigning dedicated R&D resources.
Within the framework of a collaborative project, only an obligation of means is engaged, i.e. the partners must bring all their care and their capacities to achieve to execute their obligation.
The co-ownership of the results obtained jointly within the framework of a collaboration must be defined between the partners as well as the use and exploitation of said results.

Download the Avignon University collaboration contract template without financial flow
Download the CIFRE collaboration template
Download the Avignon University collaboration contract template with financial flow (coming soon)

A consortium agreement is a cooperation agreement framing collaborative research projects, i.e. projects involving public and private partners, without financial flow between the parties, each party being subsidized for the realization of the project (for example, an ANR). The major issue in this type of agreement is to define access to the project's own knowledge and research results. Its duration is that of the activity for which its funder has foreseen it.

Download the consortium agreement template (coming soon)

The study contract (also called service provision) corresponds to the commitment of a partner to provide a service to another partner for a fee. It is formalised by a service provision contract.
The provision of services corresponds to the implementation of know-how or expertise of the service provider for the benefit of another partner, without involving any inventive activity.
In principle, an obligation of result is imposed on the service provider: the service provider is obliged to achieve a given result within a given timeframe.
In return for the payment of the total cost of the service, the commissioning partner is the owner of the results and can exploit them freely.
The know-how implemented by the laboratory and its possible improvements remain the property of the university.

Download the contract template for the provision of services

What funding is available?

The aim of the CIFRE (Conventions Industrielles de Formation par la Recherche) is to encourage the development of public-private partnership research and to place doctoral students in employment conditions. The CIFRE system was created by the State to enable companies to stand out through innovation. In concrete terms, it brings the public and private spheres closer together by contributing to the financing of the salary of a doctoral student supervised by an academic laboratory on a company's problem. For the company, it is a way to access knowledge and scientific and technical skills of the highest international level. For the laboratory, it is an opportunity for real application and validation fields for a finalized research.

Download the CIFRE brochure
Download the CIFRE collaboration model

Extract from the article written by Stéphane Fiorillo, sales engineer at IESA

This scheme allows for the financing of up to 30% of eligible expenses incurred in research or development.

The Research Tax Credit applies to all activities declared by companies as of right (source: Ministry of Research):

• 25% to fundamental and applied research.
• 75% to experimental developments of new products, processes...

Collaboration between a university research laboratory and a company's applied research or experimental development enables a company to benefit from this very attractive scheme.

In particular, it can contribute to the costs associated with the personnel expenses of a doctoral student, an employee attached to the research, the collaboration contract with a university laboratory or the expenses of intellectual property... The CIR can also be combined with other financing mechanisms by subsidy.

Click for more details

 

During the thesis

It is possible and even recommended to claim both the direct aid (ANRT grant for CIFRE scholarships) and the indirect aid (Research Tax Credit). It is not necessary to pay tax, it is enough to be taxable (and not necessarily taxed).

To find out how this combination of direct and indirect aid behaves in terms of cash flow over the period of the PhD, contact us (pierre.aumont@univ-avignon.fr).

• Annual expenses

Real gross salary of a PhD student: 23 484 €.

Employer's charges ~ 11 k€

Typical collaboration contract with a hard science laboratory: 15 k€/year

Total annual expenses: 49 K€

• Annual grants

ANRT grant: 14 K

Research Tax Credit (CIR): 20 K€.

• Final net cost for the company

Annual 15 K€, or ~ 1 300 € per month

That is to say an average financing rate of 75%.

 

After the thesis

By hiring a doctor on a permanent contract, the company makes profits during 24 months*.

"At the end of the thesis, if the young doctor is recruited on a permanent contract by the company, the company can then benefit, for the calculation of the CIR, from the particular advantage linked to the recruitment of young doctors: the salary is doubled and the operating costs are increased to 200% of the salary during the 24 months following the first recruitment."

This device aims to encourage the hiring of new PhDs in companies.

• Annual expenses

Average gross salary of a doctoral student on a permanent contract: 30 k€.

Employer's charges ~ 12 k€

Total annual expenses: 42 K€

• Annual grants

Research Tax Credit (CIR): 50,4 K€

• Net gain for the company

8.4 K€ per year for 2 years

That is to say a financing rate of 120%.

*(under certain conditions such as being 100% allocated to R&D activities, please contact us for details).

A service contract or R&D collaboration with the University costs 40% of its real price!

This item of expenditure relates to expenses incurred with approved public bodies. It aims to strengthen and stimulate partnerships with public research laboratories.

The invoices for R&D expenses entrusted to University laboratories are taken into account for double their amount in the CIR base.

For a €10k contract, the associated Research Tax Credit is €6k (i.e. 30% of the eligible base, which is therefore increased to €10k x 2 = €20k).

• Net cost for the partner company: 4k€.
  

The laboratory notebook is a tool that ensures the traceability of research and innovation. Developed by the CURIE network and the Ministry of Research, in collaboration with INPI, it enables staff (teachers-researchers, engineers, technicians, doctoral students, post-doctoral fellows, trainees, etc.) to record their research activities in an evidential manner.

The laboratory notebook is a decisive tool. It ensures the conservation and transmission of knowledge. It guarantees, on the one hand, the reproducibility of results and, on the other hand, avoids having to repeat experiments for lack of sufficient memory. By making the tests explicit, it guarantees the continuity of the work.
Within the framework of partnerships, the laboratory notebook makes it possible to trace the origin of inventions and thus to determine the rights relating to these advances. It is useful for determining the author of the first invention and establishing the co-inventors. It is a proof of ownership of the results.

In Europe, when several people are working on the same research subject, the patent right belongs to the first applicant, i.e. the one who has proceeded first to the filing formalities. In the United States, the right to a patent belongs to the first inventor, i.e. the first applicant who can prove it (date and witness).

The Research Support Office is at your disposal to give you a laboratory notebook referenced by us.

The toolbox

Pierre Aumont
Research Support Office
Economic Development Engineer and Partnership Officer
Tel. 04.90.16.28.47
Mob. 07.60.58.04.21
pierre.aumont@univ-avignon.fr

By entering your request on this contact form, you accept that we keep your data for the time necessary to provide you with an answer. The person in charge of the processing is Mr. the President of Avignon University and you can exercise the rights conferred to you by the General Regulation on Data Protection by contacting the Data Protection Officer: dpo@univ-avignon.fr.