- Unique Scientific and Technical Infrastructures are necessary for cutting-edge, top-quality technological research and development
The Scientific, Technological and Innovation Policy Council has approved the update of the Map of Unique Scientific and Technical Infrastructures (ICTS). The new Map is made up of 29 ICTSs that bring together a total of 59 infrastructures (56 operational and 3 under construction). This action is included in the Spanish Strategy for Science and Technology and Innovation as a planning and development tool for these infrastructures in coordination with the autonomous communities.
The Scientific, Technological and Innovation Policy Council, chaired by the Minister of Economy and Competitiveness, Luis de Guindos, and in which the Defense Minister, Pedro Morenés, has also participated, has representation from the Central Administration and the autonomous communities . Its purpose is to set the strategic direction of policies in this area, improving coordination between the different areas of the public sector.
For the updating of the Map, criteria of maximum scientific, technological and innovation quality have been taken into account, subjecting the candidate infrastructures to a rigorous process of independent evaluation. Furthermore, these infrastructures must have their economic sustainability guaranteed.
This new Map will allow planning and coordinating the application of regional, national and European financing, particularly the FEDER funds for the 2014-2020 programming period.
The ICTS Map is available to the scientific, technological and industrial community, national and international. These state-of-the-art scientific-technical infrastructures are unique in their kind and have a very high investment and operation cost.
In short, ICTS have three fundamental characteristics: they are publicly owned infrastructures, they are unique, and their use is open to the entire public and private sector research community. The 29 Singular Scientific and Technical Facilities have been planned from an operational point of view in eight areas.
Astronomy and Astrophysics: Gran Telescopio Canarias; Canary Observatories; Calar Alto Astronomical Observatory; 30M IRAM radio telescope; Yebes Astronomical Center; Javalambre Astrophysical Observatory, and Canfranc Underground Laboratory.
Marine, Life and Earth Sciences: Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands; Les Illes Balears Coastal Observation System; Spanish Oceanographic Fleet; Spanish Antarctic Bases; Doñana Biological Reserve; Aerial Research Platforms.
Information and Communication Technologies: Spanish Network of Extended Supercomputing – led by the BSC-National Center for Supercomputing – and RedIris.
Health Sciences and Biotechnology: Integrated Infrastructures for the Production and Characterization of Nanomaterials, Biomaterials and Systems in Biomedicine; Integrated Infrastructure of Omics Technologies; High Biological Safety Laboratory Network; Integrated Biomedical Image Infrastructure; Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Laboratory.
Energy: Almería Solar Platform and National Fusion Laboratory.
Engineering: Integrated Maritime Experimentation Infrastructure.
Materials: ALBA Synchrotron, Network of White Rooms for Micro and Nanofabrication; Integrated Infrastructure of Electronic Microscopy of Materials; Ultra Intense Pulsed Laser Center; National Center of Accelerators.
Socioeconomic Sciences and Humanities: National Center for Human Evolution.
