The “Distretto”, develops and promotes the laboratories, research facilities and strategical assets of its partners as a network:

• over 60 high-tech Research Laboratories belonging to the three Sicilian Universities, the National Research Council and the National Institute of Astrophysics;
• over 12 international high-tech research and industrial manufacturing poles established as a network by the industrial structures (STMicroelettronics, IBM, SIFI, ENG, Infracom, Italtel);
• a high performance IT calculation cluster provided by COMETA;
• over 11 industrial Research Laboratories provided by the consortium and by the Scientific and Technological Park of Sicily;
• a network of associate Universities within the National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems.

The “Distretto” promotes, in Sicily, new models of sustainable growth and responsable competition, based on local territorial systems, creating innovative social value based on the concepts of responsabilty and of sharing material and immaterial assets which are provided by public and private agents of science, technology and entrepreneurship networking both nationally and internationally.

In order to achieve these goals, the “Distretto” makes use of the assets and competences of its partners, but also of a team of direct resources, provided with distinctive competences in the project management area, whose task is to manage highly complex projects.

The large enterprises have an outstanding role since they guarantee high advanced research competences in the micro and nano technology sector, as well as a considerable potential in terms of assets (e.g. laboratories, licences), international relations and credibility at disposal of the “Distretto”.

Small and medium-sized businesses are just as important to the “Distretto”. The leaders present on the territory can be valorized and potentiated furthermore by intergrating them with the other operators and identifying markets which would otherwise be precluded.

The research bodies and universities are the centre of technological research since they intergrate with other bodies which are present on the territory in order to increase and develop industrial research.