Technopark, Incubator or R&D Centre? Choosing the Right Model

Technology entrepreneurs and companies doing R&D often confuse the concepts of technopark, incubator and R&D centre. These three are not alternatives to one another; they are tools serving different growth stages.

Incubator

It is designed for start-ups that do not yet have a company or are in their first years. It offers shared workspace, mentoring, training and access to first customers. The aim is to turn an idea into a validated product and business model. The duration is generally 6-18 months and participation is often low-cost or free.

Technopark

It is for companies that have a product or prototype, continue R&D activity and want to grow. It offers ready infrastructure, tax and social security advantages, shared laboratories and a relationship with the university. The company rents an office in the zone and carries out its activity there. The duration is unlimited, but the company is expected to maintain its R&D focus.

R&D centre

It is a certification model, generally for corporate companies with a sufficiently large R&D staff that do R&D at their own sites. A certain R&D staff threshold is required and the company operates in its own facility. It does not provide a physical location like a technopark; it is an incentive system.

Transitions

Many companies begin in an incubator, move to a technopark as the product matures, and obtain an R&D centre certificate in their own facility when they reach a certain size. At Ufuktek, 62 per cent of Girişim Evi graduates have continued as technopark companies.

Which should you choose?

• If there is no company and the idea is at an early stage: an incubator
• If you have a product or prototype and an R&D team of at least two or three people: a technopark
• If you have a large, established R&D staff and your own facility: an R&D centre

If you are not sure which stage you are at, you can take our eligibility test and have a free preliminary meeting with our zone specialists.

Points to watch

When choosing a model, look not only at the advantages but also at the obligations. In a technopark the R&D activity must be carried out in the zone and regular reporting is needed; in an R&D centre certain staff and expenditure thresholds must be maintained; in an incubator the programme calendar and participation conditions are binding. We recommend assessing the flexibility and limits each model brings together with your team size and product roadmap.

A sample roadmap

For example, a two-person software start-up can validate its product at Girişim Evi in the first year, move to a ready office in Block A in the second year and grow its team to ten, and lease a floor in Block B in the fifth year. At each transition the zone management eases the contract and relocation processes.

Conclusion

The right model is determined by your company's current stage and its goals for the next two years. Before deciding, you can have a free preliminary meeting with our zone specialists to compare all three models against your own team size and budget.