Abstract:To improve university and commercial ties with industry, many universities operate a technology transfer office (TTO) as a vehicle to support the creation of spin-off companies. Run effectively, the TTO can define roles and responsibilities, structures and processes that support the creation and development of new ventures. The challenge for universities is to create TTOs with the right skill set. This paper aims to analyze the TTO activities to support transforming research outputs into commercialization in the context of the University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine from Cluj-Napoca, Romania (UASVMCN). Throughout this paper, different commercialization channels, the roles of technology transfer offices and multiple associative structures are further discussed with a special focus on agricultural open innovations and technologies. This study contributes to sustainable development of both Academia and agricultural Industry research, development and commercialization activities by illustrating current innovation and technology transfer activities produced by UASVMCN and its own TTO as a catalyst entity, a new model in Romania, so that the Academia-TTO-Economy partners association draw a functional and productive triple helix. In order to assess the sustainability of using the above-mentioned TTO, the methodological tools involving analysis are implemented. Finally, this paper states that correct operating of a university TTO is a real opportunity for technology transfer, both from the perspective of an alternative to research funding or entrepreneurship, and from the cultural perspective of the university correlation to the current trends in research, innovation and technology transfer, on a unique and entrepreneurial European market.

The main objective of this paper is to evaluate the yield potential of 25 different varieties of oat as a reaction to seeding distance and fertilization for improvement of crop technology and identification of the most adapted varieties. Based ANOVA test, the main influence on yield is due to climate, followed by the amount of fertilizers. The sowing distance reveals its influence when combined with the fertilization, this aspect pointing out the differences between studied varieties. The triple interactions gradually reduce the influence of the factors, their combination being very significant in the case year X sowing distance X variety. The spatial comparative analysis of the three experimental years presents an overlap in the median area of the PCA ordering of the 12.5 cm sowing distance, fertilized with N50P50 with the 25 cm sowing distance fertilized with N100P50. There are differences between the oat varieties regarding the reaction to the nitrogen fertilization, highlighting especially the Mureşana variety where comparable yields are obtained on both levels of fertilization: 5.18 t ha−1 (N50P50) and 5.59 t ha−1 (N100P50).

Ecoclimatic conditions have a great influence on grapevine growth and development. Favourable conditions (solar radiation, temperature, humidity etc.) are important and have a positive effect on the growth and fruition. Critical conditions have negative influences resulting in low grape production and wine quality.

Certified organic food production aims at creating sustainable agricultural systems, balanced and diversified through the protection of natural resources but also to human health. The quality of agricultural production represents a competitive advantage for agricultural producers from Marin village, Salaj County, Romania, contributing to the cultural and gastronomic heritage of the area. This paper aims to investigate the socio-territorial indicators, economic indicators and indicators of traditionalism of Marin buffalo cheese certification allowing the area to get a group of organic and local certification products, in order to increase the agricultural potential of the area through a quality approach. In this study is used the IDEA method, a method suitable for organic certifications and traditional attestation, individual or for a group of farmers. After a complex analysis of the specific indicators, results show that the product Buffalo cheese of Marin, brings together the criteria relating to organic certification respectively traditional attestation, according to the European Regulations. The overview conclusion of this study is that local certification could major contribute to the sustainable development of rural area, preserves the last hundreds of years of tradition and protects the Romanian native values, these being often the only way to increase the rural areas.

The quality of mountain products represents a competitive advantage for the area of Bistra village, Alba county, Romania. Each mountain product comes as a result from raw materials from mountain areas and in the case of processed products, processing takes place in the mountain region. This paper aims to investigate ways to obtain mountain certification for products from this area, so it could promote agro-food products as a lever for sustainable development, that ensure economic activity. This study randomly analyze several farms in Bistra village in terms of specific indicators for mountain certification. The method used in this study is analyzing in terms of socio-economic, territorial, environmental and economic indicators. After a complex analysis of the specific indicators, results show that the Bistra village, brings together the criteria relating to mountain certification, according to the European Regulations, improving the sustainable development of the area. The main conclusion of this study is that in the current economy it is necessary to create added value for mountain products as part of a narrower niche, in order to preserve high competition and higher prices on the market, so that these farms could face competition over time.