Norwegian Centers of Expertise

The Norwegian Centers of Expertise (NCE) program is relatively young, having been implemented in 2006 by the country’s three main innovation agencies: Innovation Norway, Research Council of Norway, and Industrial Development Corporation of Norway (SIVA). The program is funded by two ministries: the Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development. The NCE program aims to enhance sustainable innovation and internationalization in the most dynamic and growth-oriented Norwegian clusters. The program supports long-term development in the clusters based upon collaboration between industry, R&D and the public.

An industrial cluster is a local or regional concentration of companies within the same industry or field of technology, as well as relevant knowledge operators. The purpose of a cluster is to start dynamic interaction among the companies which provide growth, regional development, and improved profiling. Over the last ten years, cluster development has become an increasingly important part of innovation policy both in Norway and elsewhere.

To date, 12 clusters have been selected to be given status as an NCE project.

• NCE Maritime is a world leader in the design, building, equipping, and operation of advanced vessels for the global oil industry
• NCE Systems Engineering Kongsberg comprises knowledge-based companies active in the subsea, maritime, automotive, aircraft, defense, and aerospace industries
• NCE Raufoss is involved in the manufacturing of products in lightweight materials by automated production primarily for automotive and defense industries
• NCE Instrumentation represents expertise in the field of sensor technology and advanced control and communications solutions
• NCE Micro and Nanotechnology, which includes companies in the Norwegian electronics and ICT fields
• NCE Oslo Cancer focuses on developing new cancer treatments and diagnostics
• NCE Aquaculture focuses on creating value and innovation associated with commercial production of farm-raised fish and seafood
• NCE Culinology’s objective is to strengthen the knowledge and innovation in gastronomy and culinary differentiation for the benefit of Norwegian food production
• NCE Tourism’s objective is to make the Fjord region a leader in themed tourism
• NCE Node operates within four niches: offshore drilling; offshore loading and unloading; mooring and anchoring; and active heave-compensated cranes
• NCE Energy and Emissions Trading is dedicated to tackling changes in business conditions, market designs and policy instruments that pose significant challenges for the energy industry
• NCE Subsea focuses on markets for maintenance, modification, and operation as well as innovative and leading edge technical products.