Through this call for applications, Centrale Lille and Université de Lille wish to continue their support and financial backing for all types of platforms (technical or software), in line with the research themes supported by Centrale Lille and including the ‘technological’ and ‘engineering’ dimensions.
The aim of this 2023-2024 certification campaign is to encourage platforms to renew – or apply for – their certification, thus enabling them to enhance the scientific excellence of their researchers and laboratories, boost the visibility of their scientific and technological skills, optimise their operations and extend their partnerships and research and innovation projects.
The call for applications is open from 16 October 2023 to 15 February 2024, for platform managers from public institutions and organisations. Applications should be sent by email to Anne-Valentine Duffrène for the Centrale Lille certification and/or Antoine Le Rouge for the Université de Lille certification. It is common to both supervisory bodies. Via the same application, a platform can request its certification from the Université de Lille and/or from Centrale Lille. For the Centrale Lille certification, the platform must involve at least one of the following 7 units: CRISTAL, IEMN, L2EP, LAMCUBE, LMFL, UCCS, UMET.
The awarding of the certifications will be confirmed in June 2024, following a separate appraisal phase between the Université de Lille and Centrale Lille, based on criteria specific to each supervisory authority. The certification will be awarded for 2 years for Centrale Lille and for 4 years for Université de Lille, with interim reviews. The same platform can hold both certifications.
An annual grant will be offered in line with the needs expressed and the progress of the indicators. The same platform can receive both grants.
In addition to the grant, the platform will benefit from the support services of Centrale Lille and/or Université de Lille for:
- Setting up partnership contracts and providing services in accordance with the site agreement;
- Developing the platform on the basis of the needs expressed in the application file, where the needs are communicated to the dedicated bodies;
- Enhancing visibility through referencing and websites.
The scientific and technical managers will provide an interim assessment after 1 year and a full assessment after 2 years. Moreover, they will sign a charter, monitor the indicators, and invite the support services and representatives of Centrale Lille and the Université de Lille to steering committee meetings.