Strengthening Coordination for Joint Technology Development in Research Infrastructures

To maintain Europe’s global leadership in science and technology, large-scale research infrastructures (RIs) must continuously develop advanced technologies not available off the shelf. Without this, Europe risks to lose ground in domains vital for its competitiveness and sovereignty.Europe’s RIs excel in discovery science, yet their potential to strengthen industrial competitiveness and technology sovereignty is not used to full advantage. Current efforts remain fragmented, short-term, and siloed, limiting synergies, constraining SME participation, and leaving critical technologies underdeveloped. To secure leadership in an era of global competition, Big Science and DeepTech must join forces in a long-term innovation framework.COORDINA-INNOV tackles this by laying the foundation for a European Co-Innovation Ecosystem that systematically connects RI communities, Technology Infrastructures, funders, industry, and SMEs. Anchored in Horizon 2020 INFRAINNOV-04-2020 physical sciences communities and complemented by life sciences leaders, it will pilot a broader systemic transformation.COORDINA-INNOV will establish robust mechanisms for joint technology development: a taxonomy of RI technologies, foundations for shared roadmaps, governance models, roadmap-based funding strategies, and coordination tools. Integrating the industrial perspective, COORDINA-INNOV will lower barriers for SMEs, facilitate aligning RI technology planning with European priorities, and enable interoperable innovation pathways.In its first phase, COORDINA-INNOV will foster collaboration in areas such as advanced detectors and sensors, sustainable accelerator components, novel optics, superconducting technologies, robotics, AI-assisted tools, and data platforms. It will serve as a testbed for pan-European co-innovation, paving the way for a sustainable ecosystem that translates scientific excellence into industrial strength and global competitiveness.