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The Metrology Partnership enters next stage after adoption

The European Partnership on Metrology was approved by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union in mid-November.

European Partnerships are a key implementation tool of the European Commission’s Horizon Europe; an ambitious research and innovation programme, running from 2021 to 2027.

With the Partnerships the EC aims “at speeding up the transition towards a green, climate neutral and digital Europe, as well as strengthening the resilience and competitiveness of the European industry” as stated in a recent news release.

“The Metrology Partnership will bring together the measurement science community and stakeholders to deliver on global challenges including health and climate, support the European Green Deal, and underpin innovation in industry through collaborative research”, comments Jörn Stenger, EURAMET Chairperson. “We are delighted to see the adoption of the Partnership by EU’s Parliament and Council.”

Metrology, the science of measurement, is a building block for an industrialised and increasingly globalised and digital society: Reliable measurements are essential for innovation in industry, research, trade and regulation. New societal challenges and emerging technologies increase the need for accurate, precise, and trustworthy measurements and thus for novel measurement capabilities.

The Metrology  Partnership builds on the progress achieved under the previous European Metrology Research Programmes, and aims to break new ground by contributing to the development of self-sustaining, coordinated metrology infrastructures, with the capacity to continue joint research and innovation after 2030.

“The development of the Metrology Partnership now enters a new stage. We will closely collaborate with the EC, for example to strengthen participation of industry and to support the Green Deal”, explains Mikko Merimaa, EURAMET General Secretary. “Further details will be negotiated and there is still a lot to do, including set-up and implementation.”

Next steps include the publication of the regulation in the Official Journal before it comes into force.

Goals for the European Partnership on Metrology include:

• The establishment of sustainable European Metrology Networks in highly competitive and emerging areas, able to compete with the top global performers. The networks will have a strong focus on stakeholders and their needs and a key role in the development of the strategic research and innovation agenda of the Metrology Partnership.
• The funding of joint research projects that increase and accelerate innovation using metrology solutions, capabilities and infrastructure; resulting in European turnover from new or significantly improved products and services.
• Increasing and coordinating the role of metrology in the design and implementation of regulation and standardisation to foster evidence-based decision making and underpinning public policies.
• Engagement with stakeholders along the metrology value chain to maximise uptake of emerging technologies and contribution to addressing major societal challenges.

The Metrology Partnership will be co-funded by the Member States and the EU with an expected budget of over 700 million euro. The expected impact of the European Partnership on Metrology is manifold, as it will support a wide range of policies, commerce and key European challenges.

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