EU-wide Advantages & Opportunities of the CSA “Open grounds for pre-commercial procurement of innovative security technologies” (HORIZON-CL3-2025-01-SSRI-03)

1. Full Alignment with EU Security & Innovation Policy

• Directly contributes to the EU Security Union Strategy, the European Agenda on Security, and the Horizon Europe Civil Security for Society objectives.

• Embeds Pre-Commercial Procurement (PCP), a flagship EU instrument to modernise public services, accelerate market uptake of R&D and strengthen the European security industrial base.

• Complements the Digital Europe Programme (cybersecurity capacity building) and the Green Deal (resilient, climate-proof critical infrastructure).

2. Single Market Access (450+ million citizens & > €200 bn security market)

• CSA aggregates demand across at least three Member/Associated States, creating a pan-European lead market that de-risks suppliers’ investments and shortens time-to-market.

• Common functional requirements defined in the CSA become de-facto EU reference specifications, easing later commercial roll-out and enabling vendors (especially SMEs) to scale once, sell everywhere.

3. Cross-Border Collaboration & Aggregated Demand

• Mandatory involvement of ≥6 end-user organisations & ≥3 public procurers from ≥3 countries ensures built-in multinational partnership.

• Joint open market consultations in ≥3 countries foster knowledge exchange with academia, clusters and SMEs across Europe, nurturing a transnational innovation community.

• Synchronised procurement calendars and shared validation sites reduce duplication of testing costs and speed up TRL advancement.

4. Regulatory Harmonisation & Standard Setting

• CSA will interpret and apply the EU Public Procurement Directive (2014/24/EU) PCP provisions uniformly, helping partners avoid 27 different transpositions.

• Early harmonisation of privacy-by-design, AI ethics and data-protection requirements facilitates GDPR-compliant security solutions deployable EU-wide.

• Outcomes feed into CEN/CENELEC and ETSI working groups, boosting European standard leadership in border surveillance, C-UAS, digital forensics, etc.

5. Synergies with Flagship EU Funding Instruments

| EU Instrument | Complementarity |

| --- | --- |

| Internal Security Fund (ISF) | Transition from R&D to large-scale deployment purchases. |

| European Defence Fund (EDF) | Dual-use spin-offs; shared tech roadmaps for civil-security & defence. |

| Digital Europe & CEF2 Digital | Interoperable data platforms, 5G/6G secure connectivity for field trials. |

| LIFE & RescEU | Climate-resilient disaster-response technologies co-procured after PCP. |

| ERDF / REACT-EU | Regional co-funding for testbeds and living labs created under the CSA. |

6. Access to Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem

• Leverages 3 000+ security-oriented SMEs identified in the European Cluster Collaboration Platform and national defence/security clusters.

• Connects with Joint Research Centre (JRC) testing facilities (e.g., Ispra for border technologies) and the Community of European Research & Technology Organisations (EARTO) for specialised labs.

• Enables collaboration with European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT Digital & EIT Urban Mobility) for AI and public-space protection use cases.

7. Economies of Scale & Impact Potential

• Consolidated procurement volumes create price-volume efficiencies up to 30 % (est. based on previous EU PCPs such as BROADWAY and PREVENT).

• Accelerates TRL 4→7 in ≤36 months (CSA + follow-up PCP), compared to >60 months under fragmented national schemes.

• Facilitates EU-wide deployment through joint follow-up PPI or national procurements, amplifying societal resilience and citizen trust.

8. Strategic Competitive Edge for EU Industry

• Creates an EU home market advantage that helps European vendors gain critical references before facing global competition.

• Encourages participation of high-tech start-ups via PCP’s IPR framework (suppliers keep IPR, buyers receive free-wide licences), lowering entry barriers.

• Supports the Open Strategic Autonomy goal by stimulating indigenous supply chains for key security capabilities (sensors, AI analytics, quantum-safe crypto, etc.).

9. Practical Recommendations to Maximise EU Value

1. Map and invite at least 10 additional observing procurers (regions, agencies) to broaden future PPI market beyond the minimum consortium.

2. Embed a Standards & Certification task-force to interface with DG HOME, ENISA and CEN/ETSI early on.

3. Align CSA milestones with upcoming ISF 2026-2027 calls to ensure fast deployment funding after PCP.

4. Use EIC Accelerator & European Investment Fund networks to attract venture-backed SMEs to the open market consultation.

5. Integrate gender & societal impact assessment workshops with end-users to future-proof solutions and score higher in Horizon evaluations.

Bottom line: Conducting this preparatory CSA at EU level turns fragmented national security needs into a single, investor-friendly, standards-aligned market—amplifying innovation speed, industrial competitiveness, and societal resilience across the Union.