The Norwegian Research Council recently announced an investment of more than 2 billion NOK (approximately 210 million USD) to establish new centers for research driven innovation.

The goal is to bring together research institutions and industrial expertise to promote technological and competence development that will continue to drive the economy forward.  In tough competition with more than 70 applicants, 22 of the applying consortia were selected.  The new centers will begin activity in autumn 2020 and are expected to operate for a period of up to 8 years (funding is granted on a 5+3 years basis). The centers cover a wide range of fields including the Center for Geophysical Forecasting, the Center for Research-based Innovation in Mobile Mental Health and the Center for Cybersecurity in Critical Sensors. You can read the full list of all 22 centers here. 

Together with three research partners and eight national, primarily SMEs, and international enterprises, Arrowhead Tools partner Jotne formed part of a successful application to form the Center for Space Sensors and Systems (CENSSS). Hosted by the University of Oslo and supplemented by research capacity from the University of California (UCLA) and the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment the project is expected to generate 10-15 new PhD and Post-Doctoral positions as well as up to 50 MSc positions. Having worked extensively with interoperability in various settings including digital twinning for spacecraft, Jotne will be responsible for Program Lifecycle Management activities within the project. This is yet another opportunity for Jotne to further work with ISO 10303 standards for data sharing and a collaboration that will open up new horizons in research and industry.