Bridge the Gap & Shift to Progress
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Empowering automotive regions to bridge gaps and shift toward smarter, greener manufacturing.
Bridge & Shift is a European interregional cooperation project that strengthens collaboration and knowledge exchange between advanced and less-developed automotive regions to accelerate industrial transformation. The project brings together some of Europe’s key automotive regions from Aragon (Spain) and Heilbronn (Germany) to Ostrava (Czech Republic), Nitra (Slovakia), and Rzeszów (Poland).These regions are located in five countries — Germany, Spain, Czechia, Slovakia, and Poland — which together account for nearly two-thirds of Europe’s total passenger car production
Funded by the European Union’s Interregional Innovation Investments (I3) programme, B&S connects key regional clusters, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to foster innovation, sustainability, and competitiveness across the European mobility value chain.
The project focuses on transferring best practices, building capacity in SMEs, and developing regional action plans and strategic roadmaps that support the shift toward green, digital, and resilient manufacturing. Through joint learning, policy alignment, and practical implementation, B&S aims to create a blueprint for how European regions can bridge development gaps and collectively drive the transition toward the future of mobility.
Work Packages
- WP1: Project management and coordination – AUTOKLASTR
- WP2: Dissemination and Sustainability – EITM
- WP3: Interregional Twinning with Cluster Managers’ skills Enhancement – EITM
- WP4: Benchmarking of Partner Regions – WFG
- WP5: Regional GAP Analysis – WFG
- WP6: Input for Regional Innovation Strategies – MSIC
- WP7: Interregional Value Chains – CAAR
- WP8: Action Plans and Policy Recommendations – EAA
- WP9: Funding Actions – INOVATO
Twinning Visits
In January 2026, Bridge & Shift partners carried out three twinning visits across Central Europe, aimed at exchanging good practices and jointly addressing challenges related to industrial and automotive transformation at regional level.
- ? Bratislava, Slovakia – INOVATO, ŠVEC GROUP and EIT Manufacturing East
The visit focused on manufacturing processes, ecosystem development, and regional readiness for changes in automotive mobility. Partners reviewed production facilities, discussed innovation support structures, and exchanged views on electromobility and broader transformation trends.
- ? Tarnobrzeg, Poland – Stowarzyszenie Wschodni Sojusz Motoryzacyjny and Clúster de Automoción y Movilidad de Aragón
The twinning activities centred on practical knowledge transfer through workshops and structured discussions. Participants worked on concrete organisational and regional topics, drawing on each other’s experience to identify transferable approaches and potential next steps.
- ? Ostrava, Czech Republic – Autoklastr, MSIC – Moravskoslezské inovační centrum and Wirtschaftsförderung Raum Heilbronn GmbH
During two days of workshops and bilateral exchanges, partners explored how to support industrial transformation in their regions. The sessions resulted in concrete ideas, shared perspectives, and inputs for future cooperation within the project framework.
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