VTT’s annual report 2018 is now available online. It includes a GRI-based corporate responsibility report and is accompanied by reports on VTT’s tax footprint, administration, salaries and remunerations, as well as VTT’s financial statement and a review of the organisation’s operations.
“The year 2018 was a good year for VTT”, says President & CEO Antti Vasara. VTT’s most notable achievements during the year included the launch of eight new innovation ecosystems, a boost to the organisation’s finances and a 12% increase in income from customer projects.
Solid finances are vital for VTT to be able to focus on its core mission: solving global problems by means of applied science and technology. VTT prospers when its customers prosper. “We served a total of 1,510 customers during the year, the majority of whom were private businesses based both in Finland and abroad”, Vasara says. A staggering 94% of VTT’s customers said that they had experienced a boost in knowledge and competence thanks to cooperation with VTT. The annual report also includes a feature on one of VTT’s long-standing customers, ABB.
Innovation ecosystems have proven the most effective way for VTT to collaborate with businesses, and the fact that eight new innovation ecosystems were launched in 2018 was one of the highlights of the year. Significant business-led partnership networks have already emerged around the new innovation ecosystems, which are striving to turn research findings and innovations into international business in close cooperation with researchers.
The annual report also includes a GRI-based review of VTT’s efforts to promote corporate responsibility. After all, VTT’s core mission is to develop sustainable solutions for its customers and society. Corporate responsibility and sustainability are therefore integral to everything that the organisation does.
“I am pleased to say that last year gave a considerable boost to our ability to continue carrying out meaningful research and help our customers. The fact that our annual government grant was permanently increased by EUR 7 million as of the year 2019 is proof of our success”, Antti Vasara says. “I would therefore like to thank all of our customers and partners and especially VTT’s staff for our excellent year, which puts us in a great position to work even harder towards an increasingly bright future.”
