DesignACT. Deliverable 4: Management and operation plan

Transcription

1 April 2008 version 1.0 DesignACT Deliverable 4: Management and operation plan Alexandra Neyts, Leif Magne Sunde, Matilde Chauton

2 Table of contents Table of contents... 2 Preface Summary Introduction Project motivation and objectives Services and products Management structure Ownership Board of directors Advisory group Collaboration Legal matters Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Operation plan (organisational) Running of full-scale research facilities Fish / shellfish farming operations Farming of salmon as a model species Organisation models Organisation structure Organisation form: alternatives and consequences Organisation form - Case study Limited liability, non-profit institution Limited liability, company-owned institution Risk analysis and contingency plan

3 Preface The management and operation plan is the fourth deliverable of the 6 th Framework Programme Design Study DesignACT, as specified in Annex 1 of the contract nr The report discusses different alternatives of how the new research infrastructure can be organised and the implications of the different structures. It also suggests a management and operation arrangement that fits the infrastructure s content, function and position in the European research area. The described management and operation plan is based on the needs for aquaculture engineering research (deliverable 1), on the draft sketches of the facilities on land and at sea (deliverable 2) and on the environment assessment plan (deliverable 3). The outcome of the management and operation plan is closely linked to the financial plan (deliverable 5) and therefore these were created in parallel. An evaluation of the plan was performed by the project International Advisory Group and Project Monitoring Group. Their comments and remarks were incorporated into the final version of the report. The report has been elaborated in collaboration with the company AquaCulture Engineering (ACE). 3

4 1. Summary The aim of this work has been to describe a management structure and operation plan for the future pan-european aquaculture engineering and technology research infrastructure. Objectivity and integrity in research and test activities have been identified as fundamental issues, and the goal has been to find the most appropriate organisation structure fitting these characteristics. Two different model alternatives have been analysed: a non-profit limited liability company and a limited liability company-owned institution. Evaluation of strengths and weaknesses led to the selection of a best fit organisation structure for the future research infrastructure. To some extent the financial sources and ownership will be decisive for the final organisation form. It is considered as a good solution to involve research institutions as owners. Many universities, such as NTNU, do not invest or engage themselves as owners of foundations. It is therefore natural to organise the future RI as a limited liability organisation. The use of R&D licenses for fish/shellfish farming excludes a commercial company owned research infrastructure, so a non-profit, limited liability organisation is the most probable organisation form at this stage. This project work has been initiated with assistance from both the International Advisory Group (IAG) and the Project Monitoring Group (PMG). Their advice has been to clearly define the services that will be offered and to focus on RTDI, leaving farming activities to a professional farming company. Outsourcing of fish and shellfish production activities will enhance the RTDI profile and reduce the risk in cases of biomass losses through e.g. escapees or diseases. It will also reduce the need for capital and investments, and will turn variable costs into fixed costs, making it easier to establish a foreseeable budget. The issue of ownership is fundamental for the direction of the future research infrastructure. Arguments can be found either to opt for research institutions as owners or to involve commercial companies into the infrastructure ownership. Developing a pan-european research infrastructure may require the invitation of international owners and users, and may include the establishment of satellites in different European regions. From the case study presented, a European dimension can also be safeguarded by including international members in the advisory group, in addition to international project collaboration and multinational activities. An outline of the suggested organisation plan for the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure and its optional satellites is provided. Europe is an important developer of technology to the aquaculture industry. The future research infrastructure will be an important tool towards further advances in aquaculture engineering. The new generation of sea-based aquaculture production will require, to a growing extent, knowledge from an increasing number of scientific fields. Fish production in more exposed coastal areas, for example, may largely benefit from developments and experiences made in the offshore petroleum industry. The research and development activities at the new infrastructure are expected to expand in the period following the initial construction phase. The suggested management and operation plan will allow the flexibility that is necessary in the expansion period. 4

5 2. Introduction Emerging challenges in sea-based fish and shellfish farming are to be met by advanced research, innovation and development within natural sciences and engineering. During previous activities performed under the DesignACT project, important infrastructure gaps were identified related to aquaculture engineering and technology research. A literature study 1 listed the major technological challenges in sea-based aquaculture, and described the main trends and their consequences for future technological developments required. This study pointed at growing societal concerns such as animal welfare, ethical production and environmental impacts from mariculture, and at technical challenges such as water quality, fouling problems, escapees and waste management. Other issues that were identified to be of increased importance are the working conditions for personnel, their competence levels, the efficiency of marine operations, including handling and transportation of fish. Some relatively new fields of interests also emerged, such as the demand for documentation and traceability of products at the customers end. Competition for the use of coastal areas with other sectors combined with the continuous search for sites giving optimal conditions for the farmed species has boomed the expectations related to open ocean aquaculture. Moving to more exposed areas, however, requires more robust sea-cages and associated equipment compared to what has been developed for traditional aquaculture systems in more sheltered localities. With the identified infrastructure gaps and research challenges in mind, the future aquaculture engineering research infrastructure should have the ability to serve a fast developing market, providing services ranging from basic scientific research to applied industrial activities. The facilities and test sites needed to fulfil these requirements were described through a preliminary sketch of the future infrastructure and a site assessment report 2. 1 DesignACT Deliverable 1: Inventory of infrastructure and knowledge gaps in aquaculture technology 2 DesignACT Deliverable 2: Infrastructure sketch, including preliminary cost calculations; DesignACT Deliverable 3: Site evaluation and assessment plan 5

6 2.1. Project motivation and objectives The DesignACT inquiry among representatives from the European aquaculture stakeholder s community led to a statement of some fundamental features of the planned research infrastructure: The infrastructure shall be unique, both in function and design. The infrastructure shall be truly pan-european. This can be reflected in ownership, board membership, use of the facility, general collaboration and in the establishment of mirror infrastructures in other European regions. A pro-active cooperation with existing complementary and similar research infrastructures through projects, networking and structuring activities will be encouraged. The infrastructure shall meet the research needs within aquaculture management and engineering ranging from basic research to technological development and testing. In a young and rapid changing sector such as aquaculture, this demands a high degree of flexibility. The infrastructure will need to have the ability to meet new service demands following evolutions in production processes or changes in standards or legal frameworks. The infrastructure shall guarantee an objective research approach, safeguarding integrity at all levels. The infrastructure shall be open to users from wherever they might be. Large-scale aquaculture test facilities are not readily available to European research teams. Access will be enhanced through active involvement in international exchange programs, mobility grants and collaborative projects Services and products The definition of critical challenges, infrastructure gaps and knowledge needs, was followed by discussions regarding the infrastructure s profile, and the kind of services it should offer. These should allow science, technological development and testing, in accordance with the priorities set in national, European and global strategic papers and legal frameworks. A special emphasis will be put on cross-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder collaborative research and innovation. The aim of the future infrastructure is to provide sites and facilities for large-scale testing of equipment and management systems, and of their interaction with the farmed organisms, the staff and the marine environment. The services will span from providing sites and facilities to research teams carrying out own experiments to project management, experimental design and set up, sampling and analysis, data management and reporting of results (Table 1). 6

7 Table 1. Planned services and products to be offered at the new research infrastructure (left column), and its potential end users and markets (top row). The expected relative importance of each service or product offered to the different categories of end users is graded on a scale where 5 = of high relevance and 1 = of limited relevance or not interesting. MARKET MATRIX FISH/SHELLFISH PRODUCERS EQUIPMENT SUPPLIERS UNIVERSITIES RTDI INSTITUTIONS AUTHORITIES NGOs INSURANCE COMPANIES/ OTHERS PROJECT EXECUTION 1) PROVISION OF FACILITIES 2) BENCHMARKING 3) KNOWLEDGE DEVELOPMENT 4) RISK ANALYSIS 5) DOCUMENTATION 6) USER GUIDE 7) CONSULTANCY 8) DATA SALES 9) FISH/SHELLFISH SALES 10) SPECIAL PRODUCTS 11)

8 1) Projects accomplishment includes: Project management Project design Sampling 2) Provision of facilities and services: Sites Parts of/whole facility 3) Benchmarking; assessment of: Suitability Cost/benefit balance 4) Knowledge development consists of: BSc and MSc-courses PhD courses Training of personnel 5) Risk analyses related to: Personal risk (e.g. health, safety) Environmental risk (e.g. escapees, predators, diseases, epidemics) 6) Documentation, covering data from: Environment (micro and macro systems) Bio-production 7) Technology User guide services includes: Description of form and content User friendliness Analyses of data Reporting of results Collaborative publications Bio-production Competence/Consultants Maintenance procedures Safety and security management Best practice demonstrations Courses on optimal use of equipment Maintenance courses Production risk (e.g. biomass loss, sexual maturity and quality deterioration, growth irregularities) Technical risk (e.g. breakdown, corrosion, fouling, system errors) Technology Operations Compliance with laws and regulations 8) Consultancy services are closely related to other products and services, e.g.: Developing tailor made user courses Participation in development of standards 9) Sales of data as an online service: Environmental data Production data Technical data 10) Sales of fish and shellfish: Salmon Cod Operational data Risk evaluation Data from statistical analyses Mussels Others (new species in the future) 11) Special activities/products will be developed, e.g.: Methods for large scale testing Special products for monitoring Showroom for producers 8

9 There will be a continuous logging of data on environmental variables such as currents, salinity, and temperature, in addition to biological parameters logged from fish. These data can be offered as a service. Such time-series may be valuable to users also outside the aquaculture branch, such as biologists, oceanographers, etc. Another service that may be offered is the production of documentation and development of standards, instructions or handbooks. In addition, the facility will provide a place for education of students on different levels and for lifelong learning of staff members from the aquaculture producing and supplying sector. It is also the aim to provide a place were people can come to see and learn about farming activities, such as politicians on educational trips or school classes visiting the area around the facility location. During the process of forming the service list of the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure, some issues have been identified as particularly interesting for projects to be performed at the facility. An example of a potential focus area is benchmarking and standardization of methodologies in aquaculture technology development whereas another topic is risk analyses. Such risk analyses may include studies of environmental impacts from farming activities and methods to minimize these effects, production processing risks and efforts to ensure an optimal end product, tests of equipment and any damage or breakdowns in order to improve and strengthen the equipment. Another area that is important for the aquaculture sector is the one of biomass losses. From an ethical point of view, this may relate to animal welfare issues, such as disease and escape prevention. From an economic perspective, biomass losses and damages have an important negative impact on the profitability of the fish and shellfish producing companies. 9

10 3. Management structure In order to achieve the research infrastructures scientific, operational and financial goals, a management structure must be set up. Its form may vary according to the tasks that will be performed, its type of ownership (by public or private organisations), and internal (e.g. organisation structure, hierarchical levels and working culture) and external matters (e.g. collaboration and communication outwards). The organisation should also be seen in relation to the surrounding climate of juridical, economical, technological, social and political characteristics 3. The organisational build-up of a company is defined by its strategic development plan and by the surroundings where it will operate 4. The operation plan is related to the organisation of the research and farming activities that will be performed at the infrastructure, and to the structure of the leading system involving the directing board, coordination and power structure. Regarding the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure, a management plan has been developed that will ensure a smooth transition from the planning to the operation phase. The management plan provides an assessment of possible structures for ownership and decision making, and is complemented by an operational plan describing the functionality of the future infrastructure. Along this process special focus is given to the infrastructure s international profile and its research, technical development and innovation profile Ownership Central elements of the management structure are ownership and directing organs. For a research organisation or company of the type that is described here, there are two main management structure alternatives: a shareholding company (either with or without profit) or a foundation. A shareholding company is owned by its shareholders, whereas a foundation does not have owners as such. In a commercial company, its owners play a major role in contributing to the company s financial backbone. They may define the desired level of revenue, and identify the company s long-term business objectives. It is also the role of the owners to choose a directing board 5. In the DesignACT planning process, several potential ownership constellations have been discussed. In comparable cases, the research facilities are typically owned by an institution such as a university, research organisation or foundation. A clear advantage of this structure is the close connection to a research environment and its scientific experts. It may, on the other hand, imply some distance to industrial needs and partners. Another possible owner is the state, either on a national level or on a regional level through municipality or county. There are several examples of European research infrastructures owned by a national organ serving the international market and hosting multinational research projects. The German research centre Deutches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY 6 ) receives 90% of its financing on national level (Federal Ministry of Education and Research) and 10% on regional level (the city of Hamburg and the federal state of Brandenburg). The research centre hosts more than Mary Jo Hatch. Organization Theory: Modern, Symbolic, and Postmodern Perspectives. Oxford University Press, Daft, Organization theory and design. South-Western College Publishing, Cincinnati

11 visiting scientists from 45 countries each year. Other similar examples are the independent research centre IMEC 7, Belgium, and the French government-funded technological research organisation CEA 8. If an infrastructure is owned by private companies, these may provide strong financial support for the necessary investments and operation costs. As owners, these companies will have a strong impact on the strategic choices of the infrastructure, and a potential conflict with the intention of being an open and objective RTDI facility may arise. The option to invite a few large commercial fish farming or supplying companies to invest in the facility development is therefore considered as incompatible with the basic principle of integrity and objectivity. In order to offer services and facilities to any users, from wherever they may be, in an optimal way, the future research infrastructure needs to be run on a non-profit basis. With its main objective to provide services and facilities for high quality RTDI, profit seeking investors can be excluded from the list of potential owners. The involvement of owners from different countries may contribute to the strengthening of the infrastructure s international profile. The DesignACT International Advisory Group strongly supported this strategy. When constituting the new research infrastructure, it is necessary to agree on a strategic document defining scientific aims and long-term goals. With this clearly described, new owners can be invited into the organisation on the given terms, and there is a reduced risk that a new owner will try to reshape the organisation in their own interest. The number and kind of investors involved in the RI is important, since these may affect different aspects of its operation. One dominant owner could be in conflict with the openness and integrity of the facility and with the intention to serve a broad range of users. A spread out ownership, i.e. a large number of minor owners, can again cause administrational problems. There is a risk that focus is lost on the way when many owners must be involved in the decision-making or that the majority of owners are not taking an active part in the infrastructure s development Board of directors The role of a directing board is to act as a supervisor in the strategic development of the company, as to guarantee a long-term view of the company s actions. It is also the board s responsibility to control the economic dispositions made by the management. The board should act on behalf of all stakeholders involved, maintaining their interests. The groups of stakeholders the new infrastructure should relate to are its shareholders, management team, employees, customers, suppliers, the governmental bodies, the aquaculture research community and industry at large and even the public. Board members are commonly representatives from the owners supplemented with persons adding a specific competence to the board. Although the board does not need to understand every detail of the activities performed they must be able to draw the long-term strategic lines for the organisation. Therefore, it is natural to assume that the board members are selected according to their specific expertise in relevant issues. In the case of the research infrastructure for aquaculture engineering, the board could consist of aquaculture research

12 engineers, technical directors of large aquaculture farms, representatives of equipment and instrument supplying companies, and experts in business management. The international profile of the infrastructure should be reflected by members coming from different European regions. Including international owners may be another way of creating a truly pan-european infrastructure. The lack of a European legal framework could make this option difficult to realise, although important progress is being made in this respect (see 3.5). For a world-leading research infrastructure in aquaculture engineering, it is crucial to have strong bonds with both the research branch and the industry, something which is emphasised by national and European research councils, aquaculture branch organisations and through the European Aquaculture Technology Platform (EATP 9 ) vision. This can be achieved through ownership or to involve representatives from both research and industry in steering organs as members of the directing board or the advisory group (see 3.3). The latter option will provide the research infrastructure with the necessary legitimacy towards the industrial needs without losing its integrity Advisory group In addition to a board of directors, whose role is to define the direction of the company s strategic and economic development, it may be very useful to establish an advisory group. This group will not be involved in any decision-making as such, but will act as advisors on scientific matters and industrial issues. Its principal tasks will be to define a long term research and development strategy for the infrastructure, and to prioritise the facilities and services to be provided according to the present and anticipated research needs. The strategy paper will be revised annually, as to reflect the changing needs in sea-based aquaculture engineering development. The advisory group should consist of a broad spectrum of representatives from e.g. fish/shellfish farming companies, equipment suppliers, aquaculture and related research organisations, authorities, NGOs, consumer organisations. They need to represent the concerns within the areas of research and development, technology and aquaculture industry innovation, but will be independent of the owners or financial supporters of the research infrastructure Collaboration The future research infrastructure will seek collaboration with national and international partner institutions through research project co-operation and networking activities. Potential partners can be classified as primary or secondary partners, depending on partnership mode and intensity. Some institutions may be encouraged to collaborate via intention agreements whereas others will be involved as partners on a case-by-case project partnership. Optimal use of the unique facilities through collaboration and networking demands an efficient organisation structure and a flexible system allowing partners to work together despite differences in nationality and working place. With focus on advancing the aquaculture towards a sustainable industry, it is natural to seek collaboration and synergies throughout Europe. There are many options, e.g. within networks such as the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) 10, where an important activity is the formation of a roadmap to research infrastructures in Europe. An

13 updated version is being produced and is expected to be published in Sea-based aquaculture research has been proposed as one of the new strategic areas with a European focus. More specifically, a proposal has been presented, with the future aquaculture engineering research infrastructure in a central position. The proposal was endorsed by the Norwegian Ministry of Research and Education and prepared under the guidance of the Norwegian Research Council. The initiative encouraged a holistic approach of aquaculture research by integrating different scientific fields that strongly contribute to advances in the marine production, such as engineering, health and safety, ICT, fish behaviour, genetics, automation and renewable resources. Some highly relevant collaboration forums are EATP, EUREKA 11 (a bottom-up, market-orientated European network for innovation), COST 12 (an intergovernmental network supporting co-operation among scientists and researchers) and the EUROSTARS 13 funding programme for SMEs Legal matters When establishing a new research facility with an international profile, there are a wide range of legal matters to relate to. Although of pan-european character, the creation and operation of a new research infrastructure will need to comply with the laws and regulations of the country of its location. The matters regulated under national legal directions relate to employment contracts, personnel safety, fish farming licenses, research involving animals, operation at sea, leasing of equipment, and outsourcing of part of the infrastructure activities such as the farming operations. ISO 9000 is a family of standards for quality management systems, maintained by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 14. The ISO 9001: 2000 has been firmly established as the globally implemented standard for the satisfaction of quality requirements and for the enhancement of customer satisfaction in supplier-customer relationships. Certification in accordance to an ISO 9000 standard does not, however, guarantee the compliance, and therefore the quality, of end products and services. Rather, it certifies that consistent business processes are being applied. The standard includes a set of procedures covering key processes in the business: monitoring processes to ensure effectiveness keeping adequate records checking impact of defects, with appropriate corrective actions where necessary reviewing individual processes and the quality system itself on a regular basis, related to effectiveness The ISO :2004 standard provides requirements for environmentally sustainable management systems. Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) is another system developed under OECD 15. Its primary objective is to ensure the generation of high quality and reliable data related to food safety related to industrial chemical substances. It also contributes to preparing the harmonisation of testing procedures for the Mutual Acceptance of Data (MAD). This embodies a set of principles providing a framework within which laboratory studies should be planned, performed, monitored, recorded, reported and archived. Many studies are undertaken to generate data for evaluating hazards and risks to users and the environment, caused by

14 pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, veterinary medicines, industrial chemicals, cosmetics, food and feed additives and biocides. GLP helps assuring regulatory authorities that the data submitted are a true reflection of the results obtained during the study and can therefore be relied upon when making risk/safety assessments. All experiments to be performed at the new research infrastructure will comply with the GLP standards. A proposal for a new Norwegian Act regarding animal welfare (The Norwegian Animal Welfare Action Plan) has been produced through cooperation between The Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food and The Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs 16. The proposed new act contains guiding principles for the consumer s attitude towards animals, including aquatic animals in culture with particular focus on salmon. There are also international regulatory aspects that will affect the operation of the future research infrastructure in its aim to become part of a pan-european research facility network. Then there is a question of how to regulate international collaboration and projects, and aspects of work involving international users. A process towards the establishment of a common European legal framework for international research infrastructures and collaborative actions has been initiated by the European Commission. The work is based on the Framework regulation for pan-european research infrastructures (Article 171 EC). An EC working group has been constituted to study the feasibility of a new European legal instrument for Pan-European Research Infrastructures. The group agreed that an application of national legal bases in combination with case-by-case international agreements was inadequate for new pan-european research infrastructures 17. The intention was therefore to set up a common EC regulation frame which at the same time maintains the necessary flexibility to adapt the rules to the needs of the specific infrastructures. The instrument will facilitate the construction and operation of cross-boundary entities in the European Research Area and will enable the necessary legal formats for conducting EC research programs. It will allow the establishment of legal entities that are directly organised under European law, including employees organised according to European regulations and social services. At the European Conference on Research Infrastructures (ECRI), Hamburg , the need for a new legal framework for pan-european research infrastructures was clearly expressed 19. The DesignACT project was informed that a proposal for an adaptation of the framework regulation was expected to be delivered by mid-july The Council decision could be assumed to be taken by the end of December 2008 at the earliest. The European legal instrument for Pan-European RIs was also discussed by a working group within the ESFRI forum in May Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) In research there is a strong tradition for knowledge sharing, and results are disseminated through publications in the form of reports, articles, posters, books, presentations, and web based material. Research results generated in the commercial sector, on the other hand, are 16 Update to White paper on animal welfare (Statsrådmelding nr. 12 ( ) Om dyrehold og dyrevelferd). 17 Report of the Working group on Feasibility study on the creation of a European legal instrument for Pan- European research infrastructures (F107_044) Mila_Bas_Sanchez.pdf 20 ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/esfri/docs/recommendation-specific-expert-group-2006_en.pdf 14

15 usually protected and available only for internal use. Open innovation is currently encouraged as a research form where scientific institutions and industry share information and knowledge with the aim to accelerate development. The act of sharing can be done through project collaboration where ideas and knowledge are exchanged along the process, or through buying and selling patented solutions or standards for further development. In order to promote the exploitation of research and development results, the data owners, mostly research institutions, must be given incentives to establish close collaborative links to the industry. A major hindrance to this is the difficulty to manage IPR in case of combined public and private research. This lack of consistent IPR management is now being treated at a European level. To ease the knowledge transfer, the European Commission has identified codes of good practice and models of knowledge sharing between the public research base and industry that will inspire further action at both EU and national level. Guidelines to the management of intellectual property are under development 21. The IPR-Helpdesk was formed as a Specific Support Action (SSA) under the 6 th Framework Programme (FP), financed by the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), DG Enterprise and Industry of the European Commission 22. A booklet was published on IPR in the 7 th FP 23, with the purpose of helping potential participants understand their rights and obligations. The information covers topics such as whether a participant is obliged to give access to its existing knowledge and who will own the new knowledge that is being produced within the project collaboration 24. Information on management of IPR can also be retrieved from companies that specialize on patent applications, trademarks and designs and on international practice of intellectual property laws 25. There are several useful examples on how to handle IPR management in research infrastructures offering facilities to a wide group of internal and external users. At IMEC, IPR is defined in a written agreement with their industrial partners before the start of each project 26. Management of property rights in the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure can apply graduated rights according to the following categories: R1 generic or methodological project results: co-owned by the facility provider and by its users R2 company-specific results or confidential information: exclusively owned by the facility users (mostly industrial partners) R0 fundamental technological results: exclusively owned the facility provider and its owners, available for licensing and providing full user rights for the facility users. The aspect of IPR in the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure will be particularly relevant when testing and developing standards and protocols, data and new technology tools. These will deal with royalties and with the protection of obtained results when used in other sites or projects A free copy of this publication is available upon request at ipr-helpdesk@ua.es 24 Improving knowledge transfer between research institutions and industry across Europe: embracing open innovation. COM (2007) 182,

16 4. Operation plan (organisational) The operation plan for the new research infrastructure gives an overview over the basic structural divisions in organising the infrastructure and over the roles and responsibilities of its staff members. Firstly, there is a clear distinction between the farming and the RTDI activities, based on their different character and objectives. Secondly, the way the sea-based facilities are operated differs significantly from how the land-based facilities are run. All administrative, project management and data processing activities will be taking place at the land-base facility. This will also be the main centre for meetings, visits and courses. Most of the experiments, tests and research activities will occur at one of the sea-based facilities, either at the Dedicated Operation and Management Sites (DOMS) or at the Dedicated Technology Test Sites (DTTS). The production of fish and shellfish will be limited to the DOMS, which will be used for technological research and development that requires the presence of farmed species. The DTTS are designed for testing of instruments, material and equipment without the biological link. The overall organisation is proposed to consist of two sections: Innovation and Farming, both located in the area of Valsneset (Mid-Norway). In order to strengthen technological development in the farming of other European fish and shellfish species, it is suggested to establish satellite facilities in different European regions, for species specific technology development. A potential establishment of similar facilities in third countries, specifically designed for certain species that are experiencing important aquaculture engineering challenges, can be considered on a long-term Running of full-scale research facilities The running of the planned facilities in full operation requires a personnel pool that can fill in the activities related to administration, project coordination, experimental design, technical support, result analysis, fish and shellfish farming routines, and maintenance. Because the infrastructure is planned to be constructed in three phases over time, not all of these positions will be needed at the start of its operation. Instead, the necessary competence will be hired in to supplement a limited core staff that is employed on a permanent basis. The infrastructure will thus rely on experts from associated universities and research institutes to work for a restricted time period at the site during the course of a particular project. This is found to be a suitable solution since both the level of project activity and of financial income may vary in time. The infrastructure s profile is focusing on RTDI in the field of aquaculture engineering, where the fish and shellfish farmed at the DOMS are necessary tools to develop new management and operation methods. The farming operations are therefore merely a side activity that can easily be outsourced to professional aquaculture producing companies. Regarding the operation plan of this particular RI, it includes a list of directors to supervise the activities of the different divisions: A Managing Director will have the overall responsibility, while the RTDI and Farming sections will be supervised by a Research Manager and a Farming operations Manager. A Technology Manager will have the responsibility for all technical installations, and a statistics expert will be given the responsibility of data management. 16

17 Some resources must be allocated to the ICT activities. A system must be set up for computing services such as data acquisition systems and communication with detection instruments on buoys, data analysis and storage systems. ICT is also a focus area of the EC FP 7 27, and e.g. under the Capacities programme they focus on e-infrastructures and the improvement of dedicated digital infrastructures that allow European researchers to work together or exchange results more effectively. In addition, a statistics expert will be employed to process the collected data. Furthermore, administrative support will be needed at some stage, to maintain the daily routines of the office functions and to coordinate the activities at the RI. Many of these functions can be maintained by Managers and other personnel as long as the activity level is not too high, but as the activity level increases it will be difficult to handle also the administrative routines. With increasing activity level it will also be necessary to hire someone to maintain the cleaning and general maintenance tasks, but these are also jobs that can be considered for outsourcing or bought as a service from some local company

18 4.2. Fish/shellfish farming operations It has already been emphasized that the main activities of the future infrastructure will be RTDI. The farming of fish and shellfish must be considered as an enabler for the research activities and as a tool to study the effect of technological innovations on the farming performances. The integration of research activities and farming operations in a smooth and efficient way will undoubtedly be a major challenge. The operation plan suggests outsourcing the farming of fish and shellfish to a professional aquaculture producing company. The research infrastructure will be divided into two separate, but interlinked divisions: Innovation and Farming. The manager of the latter will have the overall responsibility for the aquaculture production serving the research projects organised under the Innovation division. The success of this organisation plan will be a matter of thorough planning of projects and fish availability, of efficient integration of and communication between the innovation and the farming divisions and the overall management team, and of well formulated agreements. One of the agreements should define the responsibilities of the infrastructure s farming section regarding issues such as smolt provisions, feeding, slaughtering and management practices. Furthermore, the agreement should include a clear deal regarding profit control. It is suggested that a fixed profit share is being reinvested in the further development of the research infrastructure. In general, the agreements will aim to ensure that research objectives always are prioritised compared to farming objectives. The Norwegian centre for aqua-medical contract research, VESO Vikan 28, is organised in a similar way: research is performed on salmon smolt produced at the company s hatchery and farming operations are delegated to the fish farming company SalMar 29. Through the years of operation, this has proven to be very successful. Outsourcing of farming to a commercial company has several advantages. Firstly, the infrastructures and efforts can be concentrated on research, development and innovation, whereas the aquaculture production is in the hands of a professional and experienced fish/shellfish company. Secondly, the strongly variable costs of running a fish/shellfish farming division, related to the purchase of young fish/seeds, feed, and external services such as maintenance, veterinary services, are converted into fixed and foreseeable costs. Thirdly, the risks related to growth variations, losses and market price changes do not have to be taken by the research infrastructure itself, but are directly linked to the company taking care of the aquaculture production. Access to the necessary equipment for sea-based aquaculture will also be regulated through an agreement with the responsible fish farming company. The aquaculture engineering infrastructure s operation plan is based on the farming of the species Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), cod (Gadus morhua) and blue mussel (Mytilus edulis). These all experience excellent growing conditions in the dedicated area of Valsneset 30 and are considered as model species. A major part of the technological and managerial results generated from projects with these species will be directly transferable to other species. The farming of salmon is an experienced and highly technological industry. When looking for innovations in other branches and for the possibility to farm new species, experience and know-how from the salmon farming business is often used as a model. Cod farming is a relatively new and promising business with a high demand on the international market DesignACT, Deliverable 3, version 2: Site evaluation and assessment plan (April 2007) 18

19 However, problems with disease and escape make the production very challenging. The farming of mussels stands for a large share of the European aquaculture production, and engineering advances are highly desired. Potential satellite facilities, located in other parts of the world, will focus their research on engineering and managerial advances related to specific species that are typical for the region in question Farming of salmon as a model species The engineering research infrastructure will provide facilities and services at the salmon DOMS ranging from smolt to adult fish ready to be slaughtered. Smolt will be delivered either by a hatchery that is part of the fish farming company standing for the farming operations at the infrastructure or by an external hatchery. Smolt prices may vary in time, particularly at times of limited availability. At this life stage, the individual fish require special treatment, vaccination and monitoring, calling for supplementary human and financial resources. Young salmon are normally transferred to the sea cages during their first year. They then normally spend months in the sea farm before they are slaughtered. During the sea cage period all procedures are focused on maximising growth with limited feed resources and on avoiding diseases and malformations of fish. Fish welfare will receive special attention along the farming procedures, during which also professional veterinary services will be involved. At the end of the production process, adult fish will be collected by well boats and transported to a slaughterhouse. In Norway, the production of salmon for research and development purposes requires a special R&D licence. In order to safeguard the industrial applicability of the results, the scheduled facilities at the research infrastructure will operate with full-scale licences of 780 tonnes each. A complete production process for salmon necessitates 3 locations (one for smolt, one for adult fish and one on hold), with thus a total capacity of 2340 tonnes. Licenses In Norway, aquaculture activities need to comply with a number of laws 31. The start up of any fish farming activities requires certain permissions from the government prior to operation. In the case of the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure, licences for fish farming need to be acquired from the Directorate of Fisheries 32 and permissions to perform technological testing must be obtained from the Coastal Administration 33. The operation of fish and shellfish production units is subject to official requirements regarding environmental considerations, animal welfare and health, and food safety issues. For salmon farming, there are two different types of aquaculture licenses, commercial, and research & development licenses. The DesignACT project has initiated the work of obtaining the necessary salmon farming licenses. Suitable locations have been selected and applications for R&D licenses for salmon farming have been worked out and submitted. Final approval is anticipated to be in place before the end of Licenses were requested for a production of 3x780 tonnes (2340 tonnes) of salmon. Licenses for cod and shellfish farming are more readily obtainable and are expected to be in operation by The process of obtaining the necessary farming licenses 31 Akvakulturloven, LOV

20 is considered as very important for the continuation of the activities beyond the project period. 20

21 5. Organisation models 5.1. Organisation structure Organisations are goal-directed, social entities, designed as deliberately structured and coordinated activity systems 34. These systems are also linked to the external environment through networks of suppliers, customers, authorities, NGOs, competitors, partners, etc. The key elements of an organisation are its employees and their relationships. An organisation structure defines the formal reporting relationships between the different organisation levels, as well as how individuals are grouped together in teams or departments. The structure needs to ensure an efficient communication and coordination across the different departments. The organisation structure is commonly presented as an organisation chart, depicting the different divisions, their inter-organisational relation and placement and the overall hierarchical structure. In order to meet the demands from a broad user group including both scientists and industrial partners, the aquaculture engineering research infrastructure will require an organisation structure that allows a high degree of flexibility. This may also be necessary to be able to deal with societal and market changes, which in turn have implications on the focus of funding programmes and political decisions. Flexibility is also emphasized in the construction plan, where the research infrastructure is proposed to be built up module-wise 35. This will allow the set up of some initial modules at the start, with a subsequent increase in number of modules according to the intensification of the activities and the level of financing. Figure 1 illustrates the suggested organisation structure of the new aquaculture engineering research infrastructure. It describes the different units at the new research infrastructure with their respective positions in the company hierarchy, responsibilities, reporting duties and communication lines. The Board of directors, led by its chairman, is at the head of the company. Its main responsibilities are to define the overall goals and values of the company, and to summarise them in the business strategy. The Board will also supervise, on a regular basis, the activities of the Management team and the company s financial situation. The structure is based on two sections, Innovation and Farming, under a central management. 34 Daft, R Understanding the theory and design of organizations. Thomson South-Western, Mason (Ohio). 35 DesignACT Deliverable 6: Construction plan. 21