PARTNERS

CENTRO REGIONALE DI ASSISTENZA PER LA COOPERAZIONE ARTIGIANA

Participant Name   Centro regionale di Assistenza per la Cooperazione Artigiana, Società Cooperativa Unione Provinciale Artigiani - Confartigianato Padova Università degli Studi di Padove - Dipartimento di Processi Chimicidell'Ingegneria GFE Energy Management SRL Chambers' Group for the Development of Greek Isles SC Chiminform Data SA MID Wales Energy Agency Ltd Narodowa Agencja Poszanowania Energii S.A. Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Setubal Universidad de Valladolid Escan, S.A. Centre for Renewable Energy Sources Fundaciòn Cener-Ciemat (Renewable Energy National Center) Fundation Cartif Fundacion Asturiana de la Energia

Description of the organisation

CRACA. is a company set up on the initiative of FRAV – Confartigianato (Craftsmen’s Trade Union) of Veneto in 1978. The latter represents an employers’ trade union which takes about 70,000 enterprises into partnership in Veneto.

Its shareholders are more than eighty consortia and cooperatives of craftsmen companies based in Veneto, whose activities range from export to production services, from collective joint purchases to order acquisitions. CRACA was set up in order to promote and introduce “associations” among craftsmen companies and support the consolidation and the social and economic growth of cooperatives, consortia and cooperative associations operating in the sector of Venetian craftsmanship. That mission is continuously pursued in ways and activities developing through the years. The CRACA structure is composed of a Board of Directors, a Chairman and a Managing Director. At present CRACA has 7 employees.

Since 1999 CRACA has been certified UNI EN ISO 9001 as to the following services: “Managementof business easy-terms loans. Planning and allocation of training courses. Management and development of innovative projects on technology, regulations, organization and promotion.

Nowadays CRACA operates in the several lines (Research & Development, Organization, Innovation and quality culture, Institutional and standardization sectors, Public policies, Cooperation, Promotion and Internationalization, Sustainable development, Computerization and information technology).

Craftsmen’s association and cooperation. Through the years CRACA has developed its activities in this area from a merely legal- administrative aid to its partners in the various stages of their social lives to advice on how to obtain grants provided on a national, regional and EEC scale.

Communication and spreading of carried out activities and achieved results occur via the Internet at http://www.craca.net/.

The staff of CRACA inspects dozens of firms a year verifying the needs for compliance with the compulsory laws or technical rules, the adoption of voluntary international rules, certification of process and product and technological innovation.

Besides, CRACA is invited to participate in special projects such as Veneto Net ELTW which aimed at developing online work (Telework) through a network of computer operators of e-learning for telework (Innovative action item 7.2 of the programme named “accelerating development and spreading of the Veneto Regional Authority’s online services”). On that occasion CRACA carried out monitoring on work in progress and cooperated in spreading the results of the project on behalf of Veneto Innovation Ltd.

Every year CRACA confirms its presence in Brussels thanks to its “domiciliation” at Veneto Chamber of Commerce Union in Brussels. Its presence proves to be indispensable for facing problems related to interpretation and application of EEC legislation and standardization and for setting up partnership with other economic/productive situations of EU member states.

Business promotion in Italy and abroad. This activity, which also pervades the above mentioned sectors, is various and demanding because it presumes constant updating, coordination among different productive worlds, constant search for new contacts and partners on a regional, national and EEC scale, and promotion of various initiatives.

The Veneto Regional Authority remains the fundamental interlocutor and CRACA continues to attend various promoted roundtables to safeguard its network of cooperatives and sector service centres.

CRACA is launching a new Web portal strongly oriented to services meant for company promotion in particular to create a point of contact between supply and demand.

Quality and innovation. Since 1997 CRACA has acted on behalf of the Veneto Regional Authority to approve projects presented by small and medium company concerns in order to obtain grants. CRACA has dealt with over 4,000 cases and distributed approximately 14 million euros grants. It is understood that the service, obtained through awarding a public contract, shows CRACA’s requisites in terms of organization, professionalism and finance.

These themes lead CRACA to work on various initiatives directly, setting up or participating in specific partnerships.

The deep knowledge and professional experience acquired by CRACA over the years has been placed at the disposal of companies’ associations and their enterprises, creating appropriate professional training courses.

List of most relevant projects

Since 1993 CRACA has already taken initiatives of European value such as the European projects Interprise, Euromanagement, Comett, Pertra and Force.

Nowadays the experiences dealing with the management of EEC funds are the following:

FESR – DOCUP OB. 2 2000/2006 . Since 1997 CRACA has operated on behalf of the Veneto Regional Authority for the approval of projects presented by small and medium companies in order to obtain grant-in-aids and EEC grants. C.R.A.C.A dealt more than 4,000 cases with more than 13 million euros loans allocated.

“ Research on production process and knowledge management in small and medium company concerns in the district of the goldsmith art of Vicenza to develop efficiency and competitiveness” (in progress), has been financed by the Veneto Region (DOCUP Ob.2 2000/2006). Project objects are: adjusting an analytical methodology for the knowledge audit; identification of production settlements and use of the knowledge of analysed “excellent” SME concerns; the first identification of a proposal in order to favour the adjustment of processes of acquisition and outsourcing of knowledge. CRACA is the direct beneficiary, responsible for carrying out the plan as regards planning, coordination, management and consulting.

FEOGA- LEADER + - “Ges.T.A. Project – Environmental and territorial management. When environmental policy sets value ”(in progress). The project, arranged by LAG “The low lands once ancient doge’s land”, corresponds to the action “The promotion of environmental and territorial management systems in compliance with Reg. CE 761/2001 EMAS” and it is meant for promoting environmental and territorial policies and strategies to exploit the resources of LAG area. CRACA is the direct beneficiary responsible for carrying out the plan as regards planning, coordination, management and consulting.

“MIGREST Project” Project (www.migrest.net) (in progress). It is a transnational initiative co-financed by the European Commission – Widening General Management. The project has been presented by the Veneto Region and it is oriented to strengthen the local and regional authorities’ ability to deal with problems related to the increase in the flow of immigration because of the widening of the EU. CRACA is involved as a partner of the project and deals with technical coordination, administration, participation in work shops, Web portal updating and development, information and transfer.

FSE PO Ob.3 measure C1 – “Development of services and means of self-evaluation as to critical states” , (almost finished). CRACA has played an active role as a partner dealing with planning, coordination and management. The project has developed means of analysis and self-evaluation meant for gathering information, verifying the quality standards, identifying professional training to develop the necessary skills to improve the management abilities of the entrepreneurs and their collaborators.

“Development of e-service for the economicand financial planning in medium and small company concerns” (in progress). This initiative is the prosecution of the project “Development of services and means of self-evaluation as to critical states”but focuses on the setting up of software facilities which are able to supply services supporting companies. CRACA is an active partner carrying out planning, coordination and management.

“Development of methods of knowledge & learning audit supporting innovation in small and medium company concerns”, (in progress). The initiative meets the trend to interpret and intervene in the competitive dynamics to improve knowledge whose merit is to identify the basic resources to meet the demand and competition trends. A lot of small and medium company concerns present numerous limits. Therefore the project aims at aggregating subjects which are strictly associated on the territory (network of partnership), developing methodologies which awaken companies to the problem of knowledge acquisition and management, identifying areas where needs for knowledge are more critical so as to create the basis to plan the necessary training courses. CRACA is an active partner carrying out planning, coordination and management.

FSE Equal EEC initiative Stage II. “Environments of hyper-knowledge for the continuity of small company concerns and business networks” (in progress). The transnational initiative is due to the awareness that small company concerns of Veneto present risks of alienation or even expulsion from the market. First it depends on their drawing little attention to training which prevents them from the participation in globalization dynamics and, therefore, in innovation processes. Thus the aim of the intervention is “setting up environments of hyper-knowledge in small company concerns and business networks which promote learning to guarantee the survival of companies, also in periods of great discontinuity such as generational transition. CRACA is an active partner carrying out planning, management and experimentation.