ACTPHAST

ACTPHAST, which stands for Access CenTer for PHotonics InnovAtion Solutions and Technology Support, is a unique one-stop-shop access centre for photonics innovation support of European industry, funded by the European Commission under FP7-ICT-2013-11 which commenced in November 2013 with a 48-month programme of work.

Building on the previous actions taken at European level to create networks of excellence in different areas of photonics, ACTPHAST successfully took on the challenge of establishing a highly effective and efficient one-stop-shop access centre, which combines the state-of-the-art expertise and technologies of 23 of the top research institutes in photonics from across the different European networks (the ACTPHAST Partners), centrally coordinated by the Brussels Photonics Team (B-Phot) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and rolling it out in large-scale to the broad base of European-wide industry.

As a result ACTPHAST offers a single entry point into a fully integrated supply chain across the full spectrum of photonics technology platforms, and makes them available in a subsidized format to any European company – with a particular emphasis on SMEs – for the purposes of collaborating on photonics innovation projects which will have a substantial impact on the companies’ business growth and the digitization of European industry.

Why ACTPHAST?
Given the importance of photonics as a key enabling technology, it is essential that every European company looks at their own products and asks the question – “can my product be made much better by incorporating cutting-edge photonics”? Unfortunately for many companies, especially SMEs, this question poses significant obstacles because they don’t have the in-house expertise in photonics to properly explore the innovation potential for their products. This is where ACTPHAST comes in.