The JERICO Consortium offers Transnational Access (TNA) to a number of unique European Coastal Observatories and Calibration Facilities for international research and technology development.
Free-of-charge access to the facilities specified in the TNA context have been granted following the evaluation of proposals submitted by user groups for their utilization in response to three dedicated Calls during the lifetime of the JERICO project. A user group can be a single researcher (user) or a team of two or more researchers (users). The evaluation of submitted TNA proposals will have been conducted via a selection process assessing them for scientific excellence, innovation and eventual impacts on the state-of- the-art.
The access conceded included logistical, technical and scientific support by the access provider (or infrastructure operator), and any special training required by a user group to use an assigned infrastructure.
JERICO contributed to the travel and subsistence costs relating to visits by users, whenever necessary. A maximum of two travel grants have been assigned to each user group, depending on the length of the requested period of stay.
Eligibility of user groups
To be eligible, a user group must satisfy the following conditions (see also Annex 3 to the Grant Agreement):
a) the user group leader and the majority of the users must work in an institution (public or private) established in a Member State of the European Union or a State associated with the 7th Framework Programme.
a.1 – Associated States: Switzerland, Israel, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Turkey, Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Faroe Islands (other countries may become associated during the course of FP7, verify @ http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/who_en.html)
a.2 – Applicants who reside outside the European Union (member states and associated states) are supported by JERICO provided they are not the principal applicant, and that they are a minority (less than 50%) in the user group proposing the TNA project.
b) The user group leader and the majority of the users must work in a country other than the country where the legal entity operating the JERICO facility is established.
c) Only user groups that are entitled to disseminate the knowledge they have generated under the JERICO project are eligible to benefit from the free-of-charge access to the infrastructure.
Modality of Access
Unless otherwise specified, access to a specific infrastructure (or a specific installation that is part of an infrastructure) by a user group is to be intended as a concession granted to use the infrastructure to collect specific data following the implementation of a specific automated measuring system. A written contract or agreement between the “Access Provider“ or the “Infrastructure Operator” and the “End User” will delineate the actions to be undertaken, the resources that will need to be allocated, the length of planned user stays (if any), and the period of use. It will also define the rights and obligations of all the Parties involved, including eventual provisions for early termination of the conferred access.
The access can be
• remote: the measuring system is implemented by the operator of the installation and the presence of the user group is not required,
• partially remote: the presence of the user group is required at some stage (e.g. installing and un-installing),
• “in person/hands-on”: the presence of the user group is required / recommended during the whole access period.
Depending on the type of infrastructure/installation, access may be shared simultaneously by several user groups (with independent measuring systems). Note that, sometimes, there may already be at least one permanent user to be considered a priori: the operator of the infrastructure.
Unless otherwise stated, the measuring system shall be provided by the user group. EU funding may contribute to shipping costs if necessary but this will be evaluated case-by-case.
Whenever possible, the start and end of an access interval will be set to coincide with times scheduled for the ordinary maintenance of the installation in the interests of financial economy (e.g. limiting the costs of vessel-time, etc.).
It is mandatory that a user group verifies the particulars of access to the infrastructure/installation it wishes to utilize by contacting the relevant operator (see the “Accessible facilities” section on this website).
It is also strongly recommended that user groups interact directly with the managers of the infrastructures/installations they wish to use during the preparation of proposals. This will permit a better understanding of the feasibilities of the proposed projects by the very parties who will be working together if they are approved, while also fostering closer cooperation between them in addressing practical concerns.
