Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ReMade-at-ARI (RECYCLABLE MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT at ANALYTICAL RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURES)
Reporting period: 2023-09-01 to 2025-02-28
ReMade-at-ARI was launched in response to the EUs urgent need to transition from a linear to a circular economy, as outlined in the Circular Economy Action Plan and the European Green Deal. Achieving this transition requires innovation in material design and reuse—yet many sectors still lack access to the infrastructure and expertise needed to develop materials that are both high-performing and recyclable. ReMade-at-ARI addresses this challenge by creating a coordinated, challenge-driven ecosystem that opens access to 49 of Europe’s leading analytical research infrastructures.
The project’s overarching goal is to empower researchers, SMEs, and industry innovators to advance circular materials solutions. It does this through a harmonised academic transnational access scheme called ReMade-TNA, and through two tailored industrial schemes: ReMade-IND, which supports established companies, and ReMade-SME, which lowers entry barriers for small and medium-sized enterprises. These schemes enable users to access analytical techniques, regardless of their prior experience with research infrastructures.
In parallel, ReMade-at-ARI offers expert support through the Smart Science Cluster, embedded training opportunities, and a pre-proposal assistance service, ensuring inclusivity and capacity building across sectors and regions.
By aligning scientific services with real-world circular challenges, the project strengthens EU policy implementation and helps accelerate material innovation across key sectors including packaging, electronics, textiles, and energy. ReMade-at-ARI’s model not only supports current CEAP goals but also provides a scalable framework for future research infrastructure policy—fostering sustainable innovation, improving access equity, and enhancing Europe’s strategic autonomy in materials science.
The project’s overarching goal is to empower researchers, SMEs, and industry innovators to advance circular materials solutions. It does this through a harmonised academic transnational access scheme called ReMade-TNA, and through two tailored industrial schemes: ReMade-IND, which supports established companies, and ReMade-SME, which lowers entry barriers for small and medium-sized enterprises. These schemes enable users to access analytical techniques, regardless of their prior experience with research infrastructures.
In parallel, ReMade-at-ARI offers expert support through the Smart Science Cluster, embedded training opportunities, and a pre-proposal assistance service, ensuring inclusivity and capacity building across sectors and regions.
By aligning scientific services with real-world circular challenges, the project strengthens EU policy implementation and helps accelerate material innovation across key sectors including packaging, electronics, textiles, and energy. ReMade-at-ARI’s model not only supports current CEAP goals but also provides a scalable framework for future research infrastructure policy—fostering sustainable innovation, improving access equity, and enhancing Europe’s strategic autonomy in materials science.
After 2.5 years of development and implementation, ReMade-at-ARI has made significant strides in its scientific and technical goals, supporting circular materials research across Europe.
While the Transnational Access (TNA) programme remains the largest and most wide-reaching element of the project, the standout achievement to date has been the success of ReMade-at-ARI’s tailored industry access schemes—ReMade-IND and ReMade-SME. Together, these schemes are supporting over 25 industry-led projects, providing streamlined access to advanced analytical facilities for companies tackling real-world challenges in sustainable materials, recycling, packaging, and energy systems. Through these routes, ReMade-at-ARI has demonstrated a strong ability to engage industry—an area often considered difficult to reach through research infrastructure initiatives.
At the same time, the academic TNA programme is supporting 288 user projects, with over 20,000 TNA hours across more than 49 facilities. It remains the foundation of ReMade-at-ARI’s mission, enabling cross-border, multi-technique research that advances circular materials science.
High-quality support for users has been ensured through the Smart Science Cluster (SSC). The cluster, consisting of 19 Junior Scientists, provides hands-on guidance from proposal preparation to experiment execution and data analysis. Their involvement has been instrumental in helping users navigate complex setups and extract meaningful data from advanced techniques.
Training is fully integrated into the user journey through a flexible combination of structured and on-demand support. Two major workshops have been conducted, offering interactive learning and practical exposure to techniques relevant to the circular economy. These were complemented by 23 webinars introducing ReMade-at-ARI’s tools and capabilities, some of which have reached over 1,500 views on YouTube.
As the ReMade-at-ARI platform has evolved, projects are becoming more advanced and interdisciplinary. This shift highlights ReMade-at-ARI’s success in delivering coordinated access, expert support, and practical training—pushing the boundaries of circular innovation in Europe.
While the Transnational Access (TNA) programme remains the largest and most wide-reaching element of the project, the standout achievement to date has been the success of ReMade-at-ARI’s tailored industry access schemes—ReMade-IND and ReMade-SME. Together, these schemes are supporting over 25 industry-led projects, providing streamlined access to advanced analytical facilities for companies tackling real-world challenges in sustainable materials, recycling, packaging, and energy systems. Through these routes, ReMade-at-ARI has demonstrated a strong ability to engage industry—an area often considered difficult to reach through research infrastructure initiatives.
At the same time, the academic TNA programme is supporting 288 user projects, with over 20,000 TNA hours across more than 49 facilities. It remains the foundation of ReMade-at-ARI’s mission, enabling cross-border, multi-technique research that advances circular materials science.
High-quality support for users has been ensured through the Smart Science Cluster (SSC). The cluster, consisting of 19 Junior Scientists, provides hands-on guidance from proposal preparation to experiment execution and data analysis. Their involvement has been instrumental in helping users navigate complex setups and extract meaningful data from advanced techniques.
Training is fully integrated into the user journey through a flexible combination of structured and on-demand support. Two major workshops have been conducted, offering interactive learning and practical exposure to techniques relevant to the circular economy. These were complemented by 23 webinars introducing ReMade-at-ARI’s tools and capabilities, some of which have reached over 1,500 views on YouTube.
As the ReMade-at-ARI platform has evolved, projects are becoming more advanced and interdisciplinary. This shift highlights ReMade-at-ARI’s success in delivering coordinated access, expert support, and practical training—pushing the boundaries of circular innovation in Europe.
ReMade-at-ARI has established a transformative access and support ecosystem for circular materials research, advancing beyond existing models of research infrastructure collaboration in Europe. Key results include:
- ReMade-TNA: A centralised and standardised TNA scheme offering a unified entry point to 49 analytical research facilities across Europe. This model streamlines access to complementary techniques via a single, coordinated call and sets a new benchmark for harmonised infrastructure access in circular materials development.
- ReMade-SME: A dedicated access route providing simplified procedures for SMEs that often lack the resources or technical familiarity to engage with large-scale research infrastructures. By reducing entry barriers, this scheme enables SMEs to benefit from advanced analytics and foster innovation in circular solutions.
- ReMade-IND: A pioneering industry access model connecting companies with targeted R&D needs to the analytical capabilities of 49 European facilities. This pilot initiative bridges infrastructure potential with industrial innovation demands, offering use-case-driven access supported by expert guidance.
- ReMade-at-ARI Webinar Series: A structured educational package featuring webinars and training materials that cater to a wide range of users—from researchers to industrial stakeholders—helping them navigate and exploit the full potential of ReMade-at-ARI facilities.
- Technique Catalogue: A digital, user-friendly catalogue published on the project website, offering clear overviews of ReMade-at-ARI’s instrument portfolio and their applications. Organised by technique category, it enables users to navigate the platform with ease and engage more effectively with its capabilities.
- ReMade-TNA: A centralised and standardised TNA scheme offering a unified entry point to 49 analytical research facilities across Europe. This model streamlines access to complementary techniques via a single, coordinated call and sets a new benchmark for harmonised infrastructure access in circular materials development.
- ReMade-SME: A dedicated access route providing simplified procedures for SMEs that often lack the resources or technical familiarity to engage with large-scale research infrastructures. By reducing entry barriers, this scheme enables SMEs to benefit from advanced analytics and foster innovation in circular solutions.
- ReMade-IND: A pioneering industry access model connecting companies with targeted R&D needs to the analytical capabilities of 49 European facilities. This pilot initiative bridges infrastructure potential with industrial innovation demands, offering use-case-driven access supported by expert guidance.
- ReMade-at-ARI Webinar Series: A structured educational package featuring webinars and training materials that cater to a wide range of users—from researchers to industrial stakeholders—helping them navigate and exploit the full potential of ReMade-at-ARI facilities.
- Technique Catalogue: A digital, user-friendly catalogue published on the project website, offering clear overviews of ReMade-at-ARI’s instrument portfolio and their applications. Organised by technique category, it enables users to navigate the platform with ease and engage more effectively with its capabilities.