InfraBooster

Unlocking the hidden value of European research infrastructures

EIT InfraBooster is a modular training program for representatives of scientific organisations – universities and public research institutes that own research infrastructures relevant to industrial R&D. It builds capacity to design, market and sell infrastructure-based services to companies, opening a commercialisation pathway that complements traditional technology transfer and spin-off creation.

The CSRI, designs and delivers the program in cooperation with EIT Food and the cross-KIC Strategic Regional Innovations Cluster. InfraBooster scales up the methodology developed by CSRI in 2021-2022 within the RIS Research Infrastructure Network – an initiative that produced 16 commercially available services across Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Spain.

Why research infrastructures

Universities and research institutes hold equipment, expertise and know-how that industry needs but rarely accesses. InfraBooster reframes these assets as commercially relevant research infrastructures (RIs) and treats them as a third revenue and impact channel – alongside teaching and traditional research. The program targets what we call sleeping beauties: high-potential RIs whose value for industrial collaboration remains hidden, untapped or unarticulated.

How the program works

InfraBooster is structured as targeted audiences.

Foundation:

Entry-level online training accredited with the EIT Label. Open to scientists, technicians, technology transfer staff and other employees of HEIs and public research institutes. Foundation establishes shared vocabulary, introduces RI-based commercialisation and helps participants identify candidate infrastructures at their institution. Required as prerequisite for Practitioner.

Practitioner:

Advanced module for teams of 3–4 from a single institution, building on Foundation. Teams develop one infrastructure-based service end-to-end: market analysis, value proposition, marketing collateral, lead identification, pitch. The module combines online training, mentoring with experts from CSRI and EIT KICs, team assignments and a final in-person pitching session.

Government Executive Academy (GEA):

Government Executive Academy (GEA) – independent from Foundation and Practitioner modules a capability-building track for public sector representatives shaping Smart Specialisation Strategies (RIS3) and innovation policies. GEA addresses the policy side of the same problem: how regional and national authorities can support effective use of research infrastructures. GEA was delivered in 2025 in a new pilot form in local language editions, initialy in: Bulgaria, Poland and Romania.

Why should scientists join InfraBooster?

Commercially-oriented research: InfraBooster helps scientists use their research infrastructures for industrial R&D. Through training modules and expert guidance, you will learn how to identify market opportunities, understand the strengths of your research infrastructure and start offering research services for potential industrial clients. You will contribute to solving real-world problems and enhance the well-being of the society.
Collaboration and internationalisation: InfraBooster fosters partnerships between scientific institutions and industry, connecting scientists with a global network of innovators. You will gain valuable insights into the needs and challenges of relevant industries to better meet their specific demands. Working alongside participants from other countries, you will benefit from opportunities for knowledge sharing and new scientific partnerships.
Personal and professional growth: InfraBooster will equip you with the skills and knowledge that you need to succeed in the commercial world. You will develop your entrepreneurial mindset and communication skills, leading to personal and professional growth. Last but not least, the collaboration with industry will also offer opportunities to make money from research services.

InfraBooster is an invaluable resource for scientists seeking to maximize the impact of their research infrastructures and contribute towards a more innovative and prosperous society. By joining this program, you will transform your research potential into commercially viable services, strengthen collaboration and internationalisation and enhance your scientific career, while making a positive impact on the world around you.

InfraBooster is also attractive for managerial, technical and administrative employees of universities and research institutes (e.g. research officers, project managers, technology transfer, business development or marketing experts):

Streamlined commercialization processes: InfraBooster provides a structured and guided approach to making money from commercial use of research infrastructures. For your university or research institute, this can save valuable time and resources and increase the likelihood of commercial success. By making better commercial use of research infrastructures, you can accelerate the transfer of knowledge from the laboratory to the market, spurring innovation and societal benefits.
Enhanced institutional reputation: Participation in InfraBooster signals to the research community, industry, and society that your institution is committed to innovation and industrial collaboration. This can enhance your institution's reputation and visibility, promote entrepreneurial culture, attract top talents, acquire external funding and find industrial or international partners for future research projects. By commercializing research infrastructure services, you can better address societal challenges in alignment with your institutions's mission and strategic directions.
Increased revenue streams: InfraBooster helps universities and research institutes generating revenues from commercially oriented services, using research infrastructures. This can provide more financial stability and motivatation to pursue ambitious research initiatives, and also have a lasting impact on society, solve real-world problems and be a source of pride for the institution, its employees and graduates.

Why should public sector representatives join GEA?

InfraBooster, through its Government Executive Academy (GEA) track, is also attractive for representatives of public administration shaping innovation policies and Smart Specialisation Strategies (RIS3) at national, regional and local level (e.g. ministry officials, regional development agencies, innovation councils, marshal offices, technology transfer policy units):

Evidence-based policy design: GEA equips you with frameworks and analytical tools to design innovation instruments grounded in how research infrastructures actually function in your region. You will learn to assess the commercial readiness of publicly-funded RIs, identify gaps between supply and industrial demand, and design support mechanisms that match the maturity of institutions in your territory – moving beyond generic templates towards interventions calibrated to local conditions.
Improved use of public R&D investment: A significant share of national and EU research funding is invested in research infrastructures whose industrial uptake remains limited. GEA helps policy-makers design instruments – funding schemes, vouchers, framework agreements, regulatory simplifications – that increase the return on these investments by lowering barriers between public research and industrial partners. This translates into stronger justification for further R&D budgets and clearer accountability towards taxpayers.
Cross-regional learning and peer network: GEA national editions in Bulgaria, Poland and Romania run in local languages, allowing precise discussion of national legal and institutional contexts. At the same time, the program connects you with EU-wide expertise from EIT KICs and CSRI, and with peers from other regions facing comparable structural challenges. You leave the program with a working network of policy-makers and practitioners across Central and Eastern Europe, a resource for ongoing exchange, joint initiatives and benchmarking.

Key objectives

Identification of “sleeping beauties” - hidden values of research infrastructures and pockets of excellence in scientific organisations, enhancing their access to European markets
Establishing new commercialisation pathways for scientific institutions, complementing the traditional technology transfer and spinoff creation;
Increase in science-industry collaboration (universities and research institutes initiating collaboration with large industry players, startups/scaleups and international companies);
Innovative services, based on research infrastructures of scientific organisations, will be designed and offered to commercial clients (companies);
Improved efficiency of public investments in R&D / research infrastructures;
Implementing the EIT’s mandate to “increase the entrepreneurial and innovation capacity of higher education across Europe by promoting and supporting institutional change in HEIs and the integration of HEIs in innovation ecosystems”;
Synergies with regional/national smart specialisation strategies (RIS3) and EU-level programs aimed at increasing the effective use of research infrastructures, as well as international initiatives aimed at promoting long-term sustainability of research infrastructures (EU/OECD).

Impact

The interactive network maps the InfraBooster Practitioner service portfolio across 11 countries and 4 sector domains. Each line connects a country to a sector in which participating teams developed infrastructure-based services.

Hover over a country to see which sectors it contributed to and which services were developed there. Hover over a sector to explore the services grouped within that domain.

Services built on research infrastructures

Teams of scientists and support staff participating in EIT InfraBooster Practitioner developed infrastructure-based services through structured mentoring, market analysis and direct engagement with potential industrial clients.

Across three editions (2023–2025), 38 commercial services emerged from 11 countries with part of them already generating documented sales above €10,000, validating market readiness beyond the training context.

Broader impact

InfraBooster outcomes deliver measurable impact across science, industry, society and public policy, turning publicly-funded research infrastructures into structured services for industry, capacity for institutions, and evidence for policy-makers shaping innovation strategies across Europe.

Methodology

InfraBooster combines several teaching formats calibrated to the audience and level of each module: self-paced online learning, synchronous workshops, case studies, design-thinking exercises, individual and team assignments, mentoring, and a final pitching session in Practitioner. The methodology privileges applied learning over abstract theory.

Each module produces a tangible output:

Foundation: a personal portfolio of relevant research infrastructures identified at the participant's institution.
Practitioner: a fully developed infrastructure-based service that the team will market and sell to industrial clients.
GEA: a policy intervention proposal grounded in the participant's own region.

Mentoring by experts from CSRI and EIT KICs shapes these outputs throughout, rather than only at the end.

International cohorts (Foundation, Practitioner) run in English.

GEA national editions: Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, are delivered in local languages, which allows precise discussion of national legal and institutional contexts (RIS3 strategies, technology transfer regulations, public R&D funding instruments) that would lose definition in translation.

EIT Label accreditation

All three modules: Foundation, Practitioner and GEA, are accredited with the EIT Label, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology's quality mark for entrepreneurship and innovation education (https://learning.eitfood.eu/collaborate/accredit-your-training-with-the-eit-label). The Label is granted by the EIT Governing Board to programs meeting defined standards across learning outcomes, real-world experience, entrepreneurial mindset, EU dimension, openness and quality assurance, with periodic external review.

For participants, the certificate documents compliance with EU-level quality standards recognised across all EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities and by employers, funders and academic institutions across Europe.

Learning outcomes for each module are formally aligned with two competence frameworks: technology management and critical thinking. This articulation makes certificates interoperable with internal staff development systems at universities, research institutes and public administration bodies — increasingly relevant where competence-based pathways shape promotion and funding decisions.

SDG contribution

The InfraBooster Catalogues 2023–2025 bring together all 38 infrastructure-based services, the full network of participating institutions across 11 countries, methodology details and impact data from three editions of the Practitioner program in three publications.

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