Networking and Coordination of National HPC Competence Centres and Centres of Excellence

Upon completion of the action, the European HPC ecosystem will be strengthened through an effective network of National Competence Centres (NCCs) supporting the adoption and use of HPC in particular by SMEs, but also by the private and public sector in general, and taking into account the specific needs of the local and national ecosystem. More advanced users and NCCs will benefit from access to the expertise, training and services provided by the European Centres of Excellence for HPC Applications (CoEs) through a single point of contact. The coordinated network will facilitate access to HPC resources and knowledge transfer horizontally and vertically within and between the NCCs and CoEs. The Coordination and Support Action will ensure the network of NCCs and CoEs will be embedded in the European HPC ecosystem with strong links to other European initiatives, for example, in the area of training in HPC.

Moreover, the action will result in

• Contributions to the realisation of the EuroHPC overall and specific objectives;
• Effective coordination and exchange of best practices and information among the network of NCCs and CoEs;
• Facilitated access to services and training offered at national level to interested NCCs and other potential users (from industry, academia or public sector);
• Maximised visibility and outreach of NCCs and CoEs, in particular to SMEs and industry;
• Improved coordination and increased availability of training activities on HPC across NCCs and CoEs and within the European HPC ecosystem.

Central objective of the Coordination and Support Action is to maximize existing European HPC knowledge and expertise across Europe. The tasks and services will provide a single focal point at European level, which will be responsible for the coordination of the National Competence Centres (NCCs) for HPC and the European Centres of Excellence for HPC Applications (CoEs), the exchange of best practices within and between the two initiatives, facilitating the sharing of applications, knowledge and information, networking and training across NCCs and CoEs. In order to accomplish these objectives, the selected consortium will also establish effective cooperations with other European initiatives, in particular regarding a coordinated European training programme on HPC.

Proposals should aim at coordinating the National Competence Centres (NCCs) for HPC and European Centres of Excellence for HPC Applications (CoEs). In particular, it is expected to establish a communication platform, facilitate dialogue, promote the objectives of the Centres and organize outreach events and workshops (on topics identified by the NCCs and CoEs). The activities should leverage on synergies and complementarity of the centres. It is expected to identify potential training solutions and tools available from the NCCs network and the CoEs to support and assist NCCs in addressing requests and/or needs of their constituencies and help networking of respective national and European activities, for example, through the provision of mentoring and twinning schemes.

The Coordination and Support Action should:

• Coordinate the activities and exchange of best practices across of the NCCs and CoEs.
• Assist the development of the NCCs/CoEs and coordinate the collaboration of NCCs and CoEs.
• Organize the sharing of existing HPC codes, libraries and facilitate access to upgraded HPC application codes.
• Attract new users and support the engagement of industry and SMEs in CoE’s activities, e. g. through the NCC network.
• Advise and support CoEs with the development of sustainability and business plans to diversify their funding sources.
• Educate, advise and support NCCs/CoEs on the adoption of state-of-the-art software development concepts to ensure sustainable, high-quality, reliable and reusable code and coordinate between CoEs and EuroHPC Hosting Entities to ensure applications are promptly available on EuroHPC systems with appropriate quality checks (results are reproducible).
• Provide knowledge and advice to NCCs/CoEs to develop credible and convincing plans for legacy code including the development of best practices and lessons learned.
• Educate and assist NCCs/CoEs regarding IP management and licensing policy.
• Enhance mobility of HPC specialists between communities, academia, public and private sectors.
• Define and monitor meaningful qualitative and quantitative KPIs for NCCs and CoEs to measure the impact of these initiatives on the European HPC ecosystem.
• Facilitate access to services and training offered at national level to interested HPC Competence Centres and other potential users (from industry, academia or public sector) and at European level by CoEs.
• Maximise visibility and outreach of NCC/CoEs, in particular to SMEs, industry and the public sector beyond academic and research institutions.
• Implement and promote a market place in close collaboration with the NCCs and CoEs for services specifically addressing the needs of SMEs and taking into account the diversity of the European ecosystem.
• Implement and coordinate technology transfer activities at European level and for the Digital Single Market.

It is expected that such an activity will be driven by the relevant actor(s) bringing in the required expertise and a solid and robust track record in offering services in the context of NCCs and CoEs to a variety of users including industry, as well as HPC-related training activities at European level.

The JU considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of up to EUR 3 million and a duration of 3 years would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting another duration or other amounts. Only one proposal will be selected.