“We did work a long time with the University of Northampton to detect and develop a number of potential areas of mutual interest and advantage for both parties involved in the project and their own clients. We are going to grab valuable opportunities, deriving from such cooperation. Our aim is to take advantage of them while acting in accordance with a collaborative, consistent, open and transparent attitude”. Graziano Balducci, president of SSIP (Stazione Sperimentale per l’Industria delle Pelli e delle materie concianti, the Italian Leather Research Institute), well stated his comment about the agreement, recently signed, between the Italian institute and the British university. More specifically, it is going to be a protocol agreement that aims, as pointed out by SSIP, “to implement, develop and support a profitable collaboration to gain mutual benefits as to education and research”. In fact, both institutes “will liaise with each other to exchange material and information, while enhancing a common cooperation, and progressively ensure a more and more qualified provision of services, in terms of quality, in their own fields. The protocol agreement will be valid for three years; parties will meet up, on a regular basis, to tell each other about their improvements”. Training will be an essential issue in the agreement: “We aim to further enhance the Polytechnic of Leather and its peculiar role”; hence, “we are planning to promote a highly technical training addressed at the next professionals and managers actively engaged in the leather tanning industry, while mostly focusing on a qualified professional training and expertise. The University of Northampton and the Italian Leather Research Institute will manage to cooperate and share their staff as well, according to their interests and needs”.
SSIP signs a protocol agreement with the University of Northampton to start research, sharing and synergy
