UTB in Zlín Wins the Neuron Award 2025 for Connecting Science and Business
2. April 2026Tomas Bata University in Zlín, through its Transfer Technology Center, participated in the prestigious Neuron Award 2025, which is awarded annually by the Neuron Foundation. This award supports exceptional Czech scientists and talented students and at the same time connects the academic sphere with leading business figures. Since 2010, the Neuron Awards have been considered one of the most prestigious scientific awards in the Czech Republic. The laureates are selected by the scientific council, which annually awards the main Neuron Award.
The TBU Technology Transfer Center in Zlín nominated the university’s scientists in two categories – the Neuron Award 2025 for the transfer of science to business and the Neuron Award 2025 for excellent young scientists.
In the Neuron 2025 Award category for connecting science and business, TBU in Zlín received a Certificate for advancing to the finals for the project “Liquid plant gold: Alternative natural-based excipients for the food industry”. The project was participated by the research team of doc. Ing. Jiří Pecha, Ph.D. from the Faculty of Applied Informatics of TBU in Zlín and the team of Ing. Miloslava Gembická from Devro s.r.o.
The project represents a successful example of the effective transfer of an university research into practice. Devro s.r.o., a global manufacturer of edible collagen casings, has long been looking for an alternative to ciliary oils used in the key production operation of ciliary. These oils fundamentally affect the properties of the product when applied in meat production. With gradually tightening regulations in important European markets, the company was threatened not only with the loss of market share, but also with significant economic impacts.
The breakthrough came only after independent research carried out at Tomas Bata University in Zlín. The innovative ciliary oil developed by the university’s research team met all production and legislative requirements. Devro s.r.o. subsequently, as an investor, ensured the demanding process of transferring the university solution to industrial production in close cooperation with TBU.
In 2024, the technology transfer was completed with the introduction of stable production of the new ciliary oil. This was subsequently used in the production of approximately half of the company’s collagen casing production, which represents approximately 3.2 billion sausages. In addition, the new oil enabled the deployment of an innovative type of collagen edible casing, which, thanks to its quality and universal use, can help Devro s.r.o. strengthen its position as a global leader in this segment.
“The development of the new ciliary oil was the result of long-term cooperation between the university and an industrial partner. Thanks to the combination of scientific know-how and practical experience from production, we managed to create a solution that stood up to both technological and legislative requirements,” said Assoc. Prof. Ing. Jiří Pecha, Ph.D., head of the research team from the Faculty of Applied Informatics of TBU in Zlín.
The management of the TBU Technology Transfer Center also points out the importance of technology transfer. “The project’s progress to the final of the Neuron Award is confirmation that the results of research conducted at TBU in Zlín have real potential for application in practice. Cooperation with industrial partners allows us to transfer innovative solutions from laboratories to real production and thus bring concrete added value to the economy and society,” added Ing. Ivana Bartoníková, director of the TBU Tranfer Technology Center in Zlín.
The Neuron Foundation awards the Neuron Award to scientists who, through their discoveries or long-term activities, have significantly contributed to the development of science, strengthen the good name of the Czech Republic in the world, and are an inspiration for future generations of researchers. The award also emphasizes the importance of transferring research results into practice and their real application in industry and society.