26. Emphasises that a strategy for innovation, efficiency and new technology, including technology for sustainability, together with new business models, creativity and advanced manufacturing has the potential to regenerate and modernise the EU’s industrial base, increasing its regio
nal and global core competitiveness; believes that innovation needs to be promoted across the board, taking into consideration all stakeholders ranging from shop-floor and non-technical innovation to high-tech RD in research labs; notes, in this context, the importance of involving employees pro-actively in the innovation process stimulating innovative comp
...[+++]anies that are leaders in economic, social and environmental terms; emphasises the need to create a propitious environment and considers it fundamental to ensure conditions under which businesses can operate and be competitive; considers it necessary to strengthen Europe’s knowledge base, reduce fragmentation by promoting excellence in science and education, create conditions for transforming good ideas into marketable products and increase access to funding by innovative businesses, creating an innovation-friendly environment and eliminating social and geographical inequalities by publicising throughout Europe the benefits of innovation; stresses, in this context, that particular account should be taken of the Commission’s annual report on innovation (‘Innovation Union Scoreboard 2013’), which shows how innovation affects the enhancement of lasting competitiveness and which provides a comparative assessment of the performance of the Member States with regard to research and innovation, and indicates the relative strengths and weaknesses of their research and innovation systems; ...