Towards human-centric, sustainable and resilient energy-intensive industries (Processes4Planet and Clean Steel partnerships) (CSA)
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for Towards human-centric, sustainable and resilient energy-intensive industries (Processes4Planet and Clean Steel partnerships) (CSA) offering max €45.0M funding💰 Funding Details
Funding Description
Overview
The call “Towards human-centric, sustainable and resilient energy-intensive industries (Processes4Planet & Clean Steel partnerships)” is a HORIZON Coordination and Support Action (CSA) financed through a *lump-sum* model. The European Commission foresees up to €45 million per grant to support activities that enable Industry 5.0 in energy-intensive sectors (chemicals, steel, cement, glass, non-ferrous metals, pulp & paper, etc.).
Strategic Focus
* Human-centricity – design workplaces and production processes around workers’ wellbeing, gender and age diversity, and inclusion of people with disabilities.
* Sustainability – reduce environmental and health impacts while embracing circular economy principles.
* Resilience – ensure robust, adaptable industrial value chains able to withstand shocks.
Eligible Activities (non-exhaustive)
1. State-of-play analyses on human-centric, gender-specific and sustainability preconditions.
2. Technology mapping (industrial wearables, human digital twins, XR interfaces, etc.) tailored to energy-intensive processes.
3. Multi-sector practical assessments (≥ 5 sectors) of current automation versus Industry 5.0 solutions.
4. Development of an Industry 5.0 framework with broad stakeholder engagement (labour authorities, social dialogue bodies, trade unions, SMEs, large industry).
5. Dissemination & communication targeting industry, policy makers, academia, civil society and the general public.
Financial Specifics
* Funding rate: 100 % of eligible lump-sum budget.
* Payment schedule: Pre-financing (up to 80 %), interim(s) linked to work-package completion, and balance after final report.
* No cost reporting: Payment is triggered by achievement of agreed deliverables/outputs validated during periodic reviews.
Geographic Eligibility
Participants from EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are automatically funded. Entities from other countries may participate at their own cost unless specific funding provisions exist. Always consult the National Contact Point (NCP) in your country for clarifications.
📊 At a Glance
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🇪🇺 Strategic Advantages
EU-Wide Advantages & Opportunities for "Towards human-centric, sustainable and resilient energy-intensive industries" (HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-39)
1. Strategic Overview
*The CSA offers a unique EU playground to co-design an Industry 5.0 framework that simultaneously serves 3 continental priorities: decarbonisation, digital leadership and social inclusion.*
2. Single Market Access (450 + million citizens, >23 million SMEs)
- Critical mass for deployment: Harmonised technical and safety standards (CEN/CENELEC, ISO) allow rapid roll-out of Industry 5.0 wearables, digital twins and XR across thousands of steel, cement, chemicals, glass, pulp & paper plants.
- Pan-EU procurement leverage: Aggregated demand lowers cost of human-machine-interface (HMI) tech and facilitates framework contracts compliant with the EU Public Procurement Directive.
- Market validation at scale: Data from multi-country pilots generates robust evidence for investors and regulators, shortening time-to-market for breakthrough solutions.
3. Cross-Border Collaboration & Knowledge Exchange
- Mandatory multi-actor consortia foster RTO–industry–social partner triangles in at least five sectors, accelerating mutual learning.
- Synergy with co-programmed partnerships (Processes4Planet & Clean Steel) opens >€2 billion of parallel R&I pipelines and 140+ existing member organisations.
- Inter-regional smart-specialisation (S3) platforms (e.g., Vanguard Initiative’s pilot on advanced manufacturing) offer living labs for replication.
- Mobility & skills: Erasmus+ and Marie Skłodowska-Curie support staff exchange, enriching the CSA’s training packages.
4. Alignment with EU Flagship Policies
- European Green Deal & Fit-for-55: Delivers on climate-neutral industry, Zero Pollution Action Plan and Energy Efficiency Directive targets.
- Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030: Contributes to the goal that “75 % of EU companies use advanced digital technologies” by integrating AI/IoT into heavy industry.
- Strategic Autonomy & Net-Zero Industry Act: Strengthens EU’s own supply chain for green & digital industrial equipment, reducing reliance on external suppliers.
- Gender Equality Strategy & EU Disability Strategy: Explicit demographic focus supports EU social inclusion benchmarks.
5. EU-Wide Regulatory Harmonisation Benefits
- Single set of OSH rules (EU Occupational Safety & Health Framework) simplifies certification of new HMIs and wearables.
- Forthcoming AI Act & Machinery Regulation provide predictable legal environment for trustworthy AI-driven process automation.
- Data Governance & Data Act: Enable secure EU industrial data spaces for cross-border digital twins, ensuring GDPR compliance.
6. Access to Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem
- 120+ European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) give SMEs low-cost test beds for XR, cobots and cyber-security.
- EIT Manufacturing & EIT Raw Materials offer acceleration, venture building and access to >70 pilot lines.
- Top RTOs (Fraunhofer, TNO, CEA, VTT, SINTEF) bring state-of-the-art labs and standardisation leadership.
- JRC Platforms (INCITE, EIGL) ensure policy relevance and visibility of project data.
7. Funding & Investment Synergies
- Innovation Fund (EU ETS revenues): Up to €40 % co-financing for first-of-a-kind decarbonisation demonstrators derived from CSA roadmaps.
- Digital Europe Programme: €1.3 bn for data spaces, AI testing and skills can upscale CSA results.
- ERDF / Interreg: Regional funds for physical pilot lines and worker retraining.
- ESF+ & Pact for Skills: Mainstream CSA training modules to close digital & green skills gaps.
- EIB & InvestEU: De-risk commercial deployment through green loans and thematic guarantees.
8. Scale, Impact & Long-Term Value
- Replicability blueprint: An Industry 5.0 framework co-validated in ≥5 sectors becomes a de-facto EU standard, ready for CEN Workshop Agreement or ISO TC adoption.
- Continental KPI dashboard: Harmonised metrics (CO₂ / t product, TRL/MRL progression, accident frequency) allow benchmarking across Member States, driving continuous improvement.
- Socio-economic dividends: Safer, more inclusive workplaces cut accident costs (currently €55 bn/yr EU-27) and raise talent attractiveness in heavy industry.
- Export potential: EU becomes reference market for human-centric industrial tech, boosting trade surplus in advanced manufacturing equipment.
9. Actionable Recommendations for Applicants
1. Build multi-country pilots covering at least Northern, Southern, Central-Eastern & Western EU to evidence geographic transferability.
2. Engage social partners early (IndustriAll Europe, CEEMET) to secure buy-in on worker empowerment aspects.
3. Plan formal links with running FP projects (e.g., Clean Steel ‘H2GreenSteel’, Processes4Planet ‘ReLieVe’) for data & knowledge exchange.
4. Design a policy uptake package aligned with ongoing revision of the Industrial Emissions Directive and AI Act implementing acts.
5. Include a funding-synergy work-package mapping Innovation Fund and Digital Europe opportunities for post-CSA scale-up.
10. Key Takeaway
Operating at EU level converts a coordination action into a *systemic change lever*: harmonised standards, pooled demand and integrated policy frameworks make it far easier—and faster—to mainstream Industry 5.0 across Europe’s energy-intensive industries than any fragmented national initiative could achieve.
🏷️ Keywords
Ready to Apply?
Get a personalized assessment of your eligibility and application strategy
See in 5 min if you're eligible for Towards human-centric, sustainable and resilient energy-intensive industries (Processes4Planet and Clean Steel partnerships) (CSA) offering max €45.0M funding