{"id":36242,"date":"2026-08-11T11:49:24","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T08:49:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clusters.org.ua\/?p=36242"},"modified":"2026-08-11T11:49:26","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T08:49:26","slug":"beyond-deliverables-how-idealist-helps-better-map-the-ukrainian-industry-5-0-ecosystem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clusters.org.ua\/en\/news-en\/beyond-deliverables-how-idealist-helps-better-map-the-ukrainian-industry-5-0-ecosystem\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond Deliverables: How IDEALIST Helps Better Map the Ukrainian Industry 5.0 Ecosystem"},"content":{"rendered":"

Almost every application to European grant programs includes a separate section dedicated to the sustainability of the project\u2019s results. We describe plans for disseminating results, utilizing them after funding ends, engaging new users, developing partnerships, and scaling up the project. Donors quite rightly expect that the tools, methodologies, and knowledge developed within the project will continue to be used after the grant ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In practice, however, we have all repeatedly observed a different reality. Most projects successfully fulfill their formal obligations. Work packages are completed, deliverables are prepared, training programs are conducted, digital platforms are created, and final reports are accepted by the donor. If we evaluate the project using classic project management criteria, everything looks exactly as planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But a year or two passes\u2014and a significant portion of these results practically disappears from everyday practice. Project websites are no longer updated. The platforms that were created lose their active users. Methodologies remain as PDF files but are not integrated into actual services. Expert networks gradually fade away. And new consortia often start researching problems all over again that were already thoroughly addressed several years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have also encountered this repeatedly in our own work. One of the most telling examples is our attempt to apply the findings of the European ADMA project while implementing digital transformation initiatives in Ukraine\u2019s light industry. Despite the high quality of the materials produced, a significant portion of the practical tools were already unavailable or unsupported, which significantly limited their potential for reuse. As for our clusters\u2019 own projects, according to estimates by the UCA Executive Directorate, more than 70% lack sustainability.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have observed a similar situation in recent years in dozens of projects related to Industry 4.0\u20135.0\u2014their results are practically never used, or are completely unknown to members of our community. This problem of fragmentation and low sustainability can be loosely termed \u201cgrant islands.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, it\u2019s worth asking ourselves a simple question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Why do even high-quality European projects so rarely lead to lasting change?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The more we work with various international initiatives, the more we become convinced that the problem does not lie in the quality of the results themselves. On the contrary\u2014most of them are professional, well-structured, and entirely suitable for practical use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The problem lies elsewhere: We\u2019ve become very good at producing project outcomes, but we pay far less attention to how these outcomes should become part of the ecosystem\u2019s fabric once funding ends.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is precisely why the IDEALIST project has become much more to us than just another European project. In fact, it is one of our most significant projects, where we are completely transforming our approach to sustainability. Instead of constantly monitoring deliverables<\/strong>, we began asking, \u201cWhat will happen to these results after the project ends?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past year, the APPAU team has deliberately integrated select IDEALIST tools and approaches into the development of Ukraine\u2019s Industry 5.0 ecosystem\u2014specifically, into the practices of the UCA clusters and the new European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) Kyiv Hitech. We applied some of them almost unchanged. Others had to be significantly reimagined in light of Ukrainian realities\u2014war, energy instability, a shortage of skilled workers, new business requirements, and the need for rapid digital transformation of industrial enterprises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accordingly, this article is not about the IDEALIST project itself. It is about how the results of a European project can be implemented as sustainable practices across entire industrial ecosystems.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Context of the APPAU’s Inclusion in IDEALIST<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Joining the IDEALIST project in 2023 marked APPAU\u2019s first\u2014and much-anticipated\u2014engagement with Horizon Europe. After all, it was the second year of the war, and our team was in dire need of such partnerships. We would like to immediately express our gratitude to the French CIMES cluster, thanks to which this collaboration came about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The project offers a whole range of tools and working formats across the four areas shown in Fig. 1, which have proven effective in European countries and are greatly needed in Ukrainian markets. These include strategic and technological foresight initiatives, specialized study tours to share experiences on the dual transition of SMEs, advanced hackathons and brokerage events (Hack&Match), programs for import substitution of critical materials, access to the AGORA platform (EIT Manufacturing), and more. <\/strong>All of this is aimed at three major market segments (Automotive and Mobility, Aerospace and Defense, and Energy-Intensive Industries) and involves strong inter-cluster collaboration among 13 participants from six EU countries.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Fig. 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

However, the APPAU\u2019s involvement in the project turned out to be more complicated than we had expected. Restrictions on overseas business trips for APPAU and SME leadership\u2014our members\u2014for which a budget had been allocated, immediately and sharply limited Ukrainian participation. And without in-person presence and exchanges, the overall effectiveness of cooperation drops dramatically. <\/strong>We also faced our own resource constraints, and it later became clear that, for our SMEs, exchanging expertise on innovative developments amid wartime conditions is no longer considered particularly valuable. Or, rather, it is very difficult to promote. So, there are many reasons for the low engagement of participants in our ecosystem, but to summarize\u2014it comes down to a complex set of factors related to the wartime economy, with the shortage of qualified specialists for such innovation-development missions standing out as the primary issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IDEALIST as a Catalyst for Ecosystem Development<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The situation began to change when we were able to attend the consortium meetings. In fact, starting in October 2025, the value of the tools offered by the project became even clearer, and since then we have been working tirelessly to adapt and implement them into the Ukrainian Industry 4.0\u20135.0 ecosystem and market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, we\u2019re talking about:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. The implementation of strategic foresight techniques<\/strong> into APPAU\u2019s practices, which was a mandatory requirement of the project. However, in addition to doing its \u201chomework,\u201d APPAU proposed extending this practice to all clusters within the Ukrainian Cluster Alliance (UCA). By integrating this technique into the broader theme of resilience, in November the UCA presented its vision of \u201cResilience DNA\u201d as part of the holistic \u201cShaping Resilient Future\u201d concept.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Later, the UCA set the implementation of resilience practices as a goal for 2026, and the APPAU released its UA Automation Resilience Stack<\/a>\u2014a set of strategic directions where technologies and new models of collaboration can contribute to increasing the resilience of entire sectors<\/strong>\u2014Fig. 2. This shift marks a change in the focus of foresight sessions. Factors that today determine the competitiveness of Ukrainian industry\u2014such as energy security, labor shortages, supply chain resilience, and military risks\u2014have been added to the traditional technological drivers. As a result, foresight becomes not only a tool for predicting technologies but also a tool for strategic resilience planning for all participants in our clusters.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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    Fig. 2<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

    2. Hack&Match\u2014hackathons that are also matchmaking events<\/strong>, where the project first collects challenges on specific topics, and then solution providers step in. IDEALIST has hosted five such online events, and each one is of great value to APPAU participants\u2014they provide a clear picture of the landscape of needs and solutions among European innovators. Here\u2019s what we\u2019ve done to adapt this tool to our ecosystem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n