Physical and cognitive augmentation in advanced manufacturing (Made in Europe Partnership) (RIA)
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for Physical and cognitive augmentation in advanced manufacturing (Made in Europe Partnership) (RIA) offering max €45.0M funding💰 Funding Details
Funding Description
Call identifier: HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-02
Topic: Physical and cognitive augmentation in advanced manufacturing (Made in Europe Partnership)
Type of Action: HORIZON-RIA — Lump-Sum
Indicative EU contribution per project: up to €45 million (100 % of eligible lump-sum costs)
Expected number of projects funded: 2–4
Project duration: 36–48 months
Proposal deadline: 23 September 2025 (single stage)
What the Grant Funds
* Research and innovation activities (TRL 3 → 5/6) that create break-through physical or cognitive augmentation solutions for workers in discrete manufacturing.
* Development and validation of prototype systems, including sensing, AI reasoning, mechatronics, photonics, human-machine interfaces, digital twins and assessment methodologies.
* Social Sciences & Humanities (SSH) studies exploring ergonomics, trust, safety, gender/age/disability aspects, new job profiles and organisational change.
* Creation of test beds or living labs inside real factories for piloting and demonstration.
* Activities leading to standards, skills programmes, business models, exploitation and market uptake (incl. training material scalable via ESF+).
* Optional voluntary data contributions to JRC platforms (INCITE, EIGL).
Eligibility Snapshot
* Consortium: Minimum 3 independent legal entities from 3 different EU Member States or Associated Countries; industrial participation is expected.
* Who can apply: Universities, RTOs, large industry, SMEs, technology providers, social partners, standardisation bodies, OSH institutes, clusters.
* Ineligible entities: Chinese entities cannot receive EU funding in Innovation Actions—this topic is an RIA, therefore Chinese participation is allowed but not automatically funded; however, check national co-funding schemes.
* Budget model: Single pre-defined lump-sum per project; no cost reporting—deliverables & milestones trigger payment.
* Ethics & security: Proposals must address ethics (e.g., worker data, AI bias) and, if applicable, foreign interference screening.
Key Policy Links
* Contributes to Industry 5.0, Net-Zero Industry Act, Made-in-Europe Partnership SRIA and ERA Industrial Technology Roadmaps (circular & low-carbon).
* Must align with Destination 1 impact pathways: climate-neutral, circular, digitised and human-centric value chains.
🎯 Objectives
📊 At a Glance
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🇪🇺 Strategic Advantages
EU-Wide Advantages & Opportunities for the Call “Physical and cognitive augmentation in advanced manufacturing” (HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-02)
1. Single Market Access – 450 + Million Consumers & 25 Million Enterprises
• Pan-EU deployment of augmentation technologies (exoskeletons, AI-assisted cobotics, digital-twin-based HMI) can be commercialised simultaneously in 27 Member States without customs or technical barriers, shortening time-to-market by up to 18 months compared with sequential national roll-outs.
• Harmonised CE-marking and Machinery/Product Safety legislation cut duplicate certification costs (average €150 k per market) and speeds adoption in automotive, aerospace, electronics and other discrete manufacturing clusters dispersed across the EU.
2. Cross-Border Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange
• Grant rules require at least three legal entities from three countries, inherently funding trans-national consortia that integrate:
- high-tech SMEs with niche mechatronics/photonic components (e.g. Germany, Austria, Finland);
- leading RTOs with human-centred design labs (e.g. VTT, Fraunhofer, Tecnalia, CEA);
- end-user factories from diverse value chains (e.g. Italian fashion, Polish white-goods, French aerospace).
• Access to European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) Manufacturing test-beds and Made in Europe KIC networking events accelerates piloting and cross-fertilisation of best practices.
3. Alignment with EU Flagship Policies
• Industry 5.0 / Twin Transition: topic directly operationalises the human-centric pillar of Industry 5.0 and supports the Digital Compass target of 75 % of EU firms using advanced AI and cloud by 2030.
• European Green Deal & Net-Zero Industry Act: reducing worker fatigue and error rates lifts overall process efficiency (5-10 % energy/material savings), contributing to climate-neutral value chains.
• EU Skills Agenda & Pact for Skills: mandatory worker-manager co-creation and training modules dovetail with ESF+ up-skilling pathways; projects can later upscale training content via Erasmus+ and Digital Europe Programme.
4. Regulatory Harmonisation & Standard-Setting Influence
• Consortium-level engagement with CEN/CENELEC TC 122 (Ergonomics) and ISO/TC 299 (Robotics) positions EU actors as de-facto global standard setters for augmentation safety and ethics.
• Early compliance with forthcoming AI Act, Machinery Regulation and Accessibility Act provides first-mover advantage once legislation becomes fully applicable in 2026-2027.
5. Access to Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem
• 3 000+ relevant Horizon 2020/Europe projects (e.g. “DIH-World”, “BetterFactory”, “WEARPLEX”) create a rich repository of open-source datasets, middleware and ethical guidelines that can be reused royalty-free.
• Digital Innovation Hubs (over 150 EDIHs) offer subsidised test before invest services, lowering TRL jump costs for SMEs by 25-40 %.
6. Funding Synergies & Leverage Potential
• Cascade funding from clusters such as I4MS (€35 m open calls) can finance additional pilots beyond the core consortium.
• European Investment Bank InnovFin and the new Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) can co-finance scale-up lines post-TRL-7.
• Regional ERDF funds (2021-2027) earmarked for smart specialisation in advanced manufacturing can match Horizon lump-sum budgets, particularly for infrastructure or demo sites.
7. Scale & Impact at EU Level
• Workforce ageing & labour shortages: 2.1 million manufacturing vacancies projected by 2030 across EU-27; augmentation solutions developed under this call can address at least 20 % of the gap if rolled out in critical sectors (metal, transport equipment, electronics).
• Pan-European reference architectures & open interfaces reduce vendor lock-in and create a €4–6 bn market for interoperable augmentation modules by 2030.
• Societal impact: inclusive design criteria (gender, age, disability) position EU as global benchmark for equitable tech adoption, supporting SDG 8 (“Decent Work”).
8. Strategic Value of Acting at EU Scale vs. National Level
• Critical mass of interdisciplinary expertise unattainable within a single Member State (SSH + photonics + AI + occupational health).
• Risk-sharing: Horizon lump-sum model simplifies cost reporting and allows allocation of up to 20 % budget for SME partners, de-risking involvement of smaller actors.
• Visibility & lobbying power: EU-funded demonstrators showcased at Hannover Messe, World Manufacturing Forum, etc., enhancing downstream private investment.
Bottom Line: Leveraging the EU Single Market, aligned policy landscape, and integrated R&I networks multiplies the technological, economic and societal returns of projects funded under this call. Consortia that design for cross-border scalability, standardisation leadership, and policy synergies will maximise both evaluation scores and post-grant commercial impact.
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Ready to Apply?
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for Physical and cognitive augmentation in advanced manufacturing (Made in Europe Partnership) (RIA) offering max €45.0M funding