SIXTH FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME Research Infrastructures Action Guidelines for reporting for implemented as Specific Support Action This document can be found on the INTERNET at the following address: http://www.cordis.lu/fp6/infrastructures.htm Edition December 2004
Table of contents INTRODUCTION...3 A. ACTIVITY REPORT...5 1. PROGRESS REPORT...6 ANNEXES...8 EXPLANATORY NOTES FOR COMPLETING MS-ACCESS FORMS...9 B. MANAGEMENT REPORT (FINANCIAL INFORMATION)...12 1. JUSTIFICATION OF THE RESOURCES DEPLOYED...12 2. FORMS C - FINANCIAL STATEMENTS...12 3. SUMMARY FINANCIAL REPORT...13 C. REPORT ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE COMMUNITY FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION...14
Introduction These guidelines provide the Consortium with details for the preparation of the project reports mentioned in the Contract (see Art. II.7). The main purpose of these project reports is to allow the Commission to monitor progress of the contract against its stated objectives. Their approval is an essential requirement for the periodic and final payments to be made by the Commission. Therefore, the reports must be clear, concise, meaningful and comprehensive. Annual Report The Annual report covers each successive period of 12 months from the contract start date. It is composed of the following parts: A. an activity report B. a management report (financial information) including: - a justification of the resources deployed, - the Form C Financial Statement (which may require an Audit certificate if provided for under Article 7.2 of the contract), The Annual Report must be prepared according to the templates (cover page, table of contents, ) starting on the next page. Please follow the instructions indicated between [square brackets and in italic characters]. Final Report In addition to the annual report for the last reporting period, the consortium shall submit a Final Report to the Commission after the end of the project. This report summarises the project s activities over its full duration. It includes the following parts: A. a final activity report, covering the main aspects of the work, objectives, results and conclusions, including a summary of all these aspects. B. a final management report consolidating the claimed costs of the contractors in an aggregate form covering the entire duration of the project. C. a final report on the distribution of the Community s contribution consolidating the funding distributed to each contractor over the entire duration of the project. The format and instructions to prepare the Final Report will be given at a later stage. Reports must be submitted by the Co-ordinator within 45 days from the end of the reporting period (60 days for Part C of Final Report), in one unbound paper copy and one electronic version to the address and the electronic mailbox specified in the contract (or to any other addresses later communicated by the Commission to the project coordinator). The paper copy must be sent by registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt. The text files should be in RTF (Rich Text Format) or PDF (Portable Document Format). The contents and the date of reception of the paper copy prevail over the electronic version.
[1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc ] Annual Reports [Project Acronym] [Project Full Title] implemented as Specific Support Action Contract number: [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Project coordinator: [name] Project website: [ ] Reporting period: from [dd/mm/yyyy] to [dd/mm/yyyy] Project funded by the European Community under the Structuring the European Research Area specific programme Research Infrastructures Action
[Insert a table of contents according to the format below] 1. PROGRESS REPORT... 1.1. Summary of the activities and major achievements... 1.2. Management overview... 1.3. Description of the publicity concerning the new opportunities for access... 1.4. Description of the selection procedure... 1.5. activity... 1.6. Scientific output of the users at the facility... 1.7. User meetings... 1.8. Update of the non-confidential Project information... ANNEXES Annex 1 - Composition of the Users Selection Panel Annex 2 - List of User-Projects Annex 3 - List of Users Annex 4 - List of publications Annex 5 - Updated non-confidential Project information FP6 Research Infrastructures 5 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
1. Progress report [This section should start on a new page] 1.1. Summary of the activities and major achievements [Give a short overview of the project activities and achievements in the reporting period, e.g. type and number of supported user-projects and users, important scientific results from the userprojects, number of panel and user meetings, etc. Highlight the impact of the project on the European scientific community.] 1.2. Management overview [Indicate any significant management tasks carried out during the reporting period, e.g. conference attendance, co-operation with other projects/programmes if any. Specify the contribution of the involved contractors with sufficient details to allow, in an unambiguous way, to justify the costs declared, by each participant, in part B management report of this annual report.] Describe any major deviations from the work planned in the contract, any difficulty you may have encountered in the execution of the contract, or any other point you would like to make in relation to the management of the contract (e.g. actions on promotion of gender equality, etc.).] 1.3. Description of the publicity concerning the new opportunities for access [In the first annual report describe the measures taken to publicise to research teams throughout Europe the opportunities for access open to them under the contract. In the following annual reports indicate only additional measures and changes.] 1.4. Description of the selection procedure [In the first annual report describe the procedure used to select users: organisation of the Selection Panel, selection criteria 1 employed by the Selection Panel, etc. Specify if feedback is given to rejected applicants and in which form. In the following annual reports indicate only changes to the existing procedure. Indicate date and venue of the selection meetings, Give in Annex 1 the list of the Selection Panel members in the reporting period. If the Selection Panel composition has been modified during the reporting period indicate here the changes. ] 1 See the special clause in art. 9 of the contract regarding Eligibility and selection of the user groups, point 6. FP6 Research Infrastructures 6 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
1.5. activity [Give an overview of the supported user-projects 2 and users in the reporting period indicating their number, their scientific fields and other relevant information. In addition you must provide: - in Annex 2 ( List of User-Projects ) the list of user-projects for which costs have been incurred in the reporting period. For each user-project give acronym, title, objectives, main achievements and difficulties encountered, and the amount of access granted to it on each installation in the reporting period. - in Annex 3 ( List of Users ) the list of users in the reporting period. List only the following categories: the group leaders of the user-projects listed in Annex 2, the users who have visited the infrastructure and have had access to its installations; and the users who have used the infrastructure through remote access (if applicable). Do not include users internal to the infrastructure and user group members, other than the group leader, if they have not made direct use (physically or remotely) of the infrastructure.] 1.6. Scientific output of the users at the facility [Give highlights of important research results among the user-projects supported under the contract. Give in Annex 4 the list of publications that have appeared in peer-reviewed journals during the reporting period (or peer-reviewed conference proceedings) and resulting from work carried out under the present contract. List only publications that acknowledge the support of the European Community - Research Infrastructure Action under the FP6 Structuring the European Research Area Programme. For each publication indicate the acronyms of the user-projects that have contributed to the publication itself. If the publication is available on Internet indicate its Web address.] 1.7. User meetings [If any user meetings have taken place in the reporting period, please indicate for each of them the date, the venue, the number of users attending the meeting and the overall number of attendees.] 1.8. Update of the non-confidential Project information [The non-confidential Project information (Initial Database Report), published on the Commission Web-sites, will be updated and enriched with information on project achievements after each reporting period. For this purpose, give in Annex 5 ( Updated non-confidential Project information ) an updated version of the project description and achievements.] 2 A user-project is a proposal submitted by a user group to the infrastructure and approved by the infrastructure selection panel FP6 Research Infrastructures 7 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
Annexes [Some of the annexes should be produced by completing the relevant forms in the reporting MS Access 2002 Database that each co-ordinator has received by e-mail from the Commission (see the Explanatory Notes for completing the MS-Access Forms in the following pages). A printed copy of the forms must be inserted in the paper copy of the Annual Report. The data provided in the database will be used by the Commission to monitor the Research Infrastructure programme and its impact on the various European scientific communities.] Annex 1 - Composition of the Users Selection Panel (section 1.4) [Use the Selection Panel form in the above mentioned MS Access Database.] Annex 2 - List of User-Projects (section 1.5) [Use the List of User-Projects form in the above mentioned MS Access Database.] Annex 3 - List of Users (section 1.5) [Use the List of Users form in the above mentioned MS Access Database.] Annex 4 - List of Publications (section 1.6) Annex 5 - Updated non-confidential Project information (section 1.8) [Use the Database Report form in the above mentioned MS Access Database.] FP6 Research Infrastructures 8 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
Explanatory Notes for Completing MS-Access Forms Please note that the information contained in the MS-Access file will be uploaded automatically in our internal database. Therefore, do not modify the format of the tables and provide all the information requested. Do not leave any field empty if not explicitly allowed. The list of fields is not exhaustive, only fields that need instructions have been mentioned below. Selection Panel Form (Annex 1) Only Selection Panel members active at the end of the reporting period should be declared in this form. Reporting Period: AR1, AR2, AR3, according to the actual reporting period: 1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd, (e.g. all Selection Panel members reported during the first reporting period have AR1 specified in that column). Infrastructure Short Name: select from the drop-down menu the infrastructure where the Panel member served on selection of user groups. Family name and First name(s): write them in an identical way throughout all Annual Reports. Use plain text (avoid all capital letters style) and if the name is composite separate the different words with a single blank space or, when required, a hyphen (e.g. Family Name: Lopez Ferrero, First Name(s): Jean-Luc ). Home Institution Name: indicate the name of the institution where the panel member works and, between brackets, his/her position in the institution. Additional information: use this optional field for any additional information you would like to provide on the selection panel member (e.g. thematic or installation subpanel membership, activity period if different from the reporting period, ). List of User-Projects (Annex 2) Only user-projects approved by the selection panel and for which costs have been incurred in the reporting period should be declared in these forms. A user-project can use more than one installation and infrastructure; list them in the Installation Use section. Reporting Period: AR1, AR2, AR3, according to the actual reporting period: 1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd, (e.g. all user-projects reported during the first reporting period have AR1 specified in this column). User-Project Acronym: it is the user-project identifier and must be unique inside the contract. The same user-project should always be referred to with the same acronym over its lifetime within the contract when it appears over more than one reporting period. Avoid any special character and write it always in an identical way. The length cannot exceed 20 characters. User-Project Title: indicate the title of the user-project. Use no more than 255 characters. Main Scientific Field: select from the drop-down menu the general discipline that describes the field of science of the user-project. FP6 Priority or Specific Discipline: select from the drop-down menu the FP6 priority, if any, otherwise the specific discipline the User-Project relates to. FP6 Research Infrastructures 9 Explanatory Notes
User-Project Objectives: write the objectives of the User-Project using the information provided by the Group Leader. Use no more than 250 words. User-Project Achievements: describe the main achievements obtained and difficulties encountered during the execution of the User-Project using the information provided by the Group Leader. Use no more than 250 words. Installation Use Infrastructure Short Name, Installation ID and Installation Short Name: select the installation used by the User-Project from the list installations in the drop-down menu. Amount of Access Delivered: give the amount of access delivered to the user group on the specific installation during the reporting period. List of Users (Annex 3) Only external users that have made direct use (physically or remotely) of the infrastructure during the reporting period and group leaders should be declared in this form. Do not include other user group members. A user can participate in more than one user-project and will have a different record for each of the user-projects he joined. A user can also have access, under the same user-project, to more than one installation. Reporting Period: AR1, AR2, AR3, according to the actual reporting period: 1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd, (e.g. all users reported during the first reporting period have AR1 specified in this column). User-Project Acronym: select the acronym of the User-Project in which the user participates from the list of those indicated in Annex 2. Family name and First name(s): they are the user identifiers and must be written in an identical way throughout all Annual Reports. Use plain text (avoid all capital letters style) and if the name is composite separate the different words with a single blank space or, when required, a hyphen (e.g. Family Name: Lopez Ferrero, First Name(s): Jean-Luc ). Birth Year: use the format yyyy. Research Status: select from the drop-down menu one of the following codes: UND= Undergraduate, PGR=Post-Graduate (student with a first University degree or equivalent), PDOC= Post-doctoral researcher, TEC= Technician, EXP=Experienced researcher (professional researcher). Scientific Background: indicate the scientific background of the user. It is possible to select, from the drop-down menus, up to three scientific fields in priority order (Sci. Field 1 is the main one). Home Institution Type: select from the drop-down menu one of the following codes: UNI= University and other higher education organisations, RES= Public research organisation (including international research organisation as well as private research organisation controlled by a public authority), SME= Small or Medium Enterprise, PRV= Other Industrial and/or profit Private organisation, OTH= Other organisation not fitting in one of the above categories. Group Leader: specify if the user is the Group Leader of the specific User-Project (Y: yes or N: no). New User: indicate yes (Y) only if the user has never visited or used remotely the infrastructure before the specific User-Project, otherwise write no (N). Remote User: indicate if the user has had only remote access to the infrastructure (Y: yes or N: no). FP6 Research Infrastructures 10 Explanatory Notes
Number of Visits: indicate the total number of visits to the infrastructure made by the user for the specific User-Project. Write 0 for remote users. Duration of Stay: indicate the total duration, in days, of time spent by the user at the infrastructure or the specific User-Project, including weekends and public holidays. Write 0 for remote users. T&S Reimbursed: specify if travel and subsistence costs have been/will be reimbursed and have been/will be claimed to the contract (Y: yes or N: no). Write N for remote users. Database Report (Annex 5) As an update of your Initial Database Report (non-confidential Project information), fill in the appropriate fields with data to be published on the Research Infrastructures website (http://www.cordis.lu/infrastructures/projects.htm). Reporting Period: AR1, AR2, according to the actual reporting period: 1 st, 2 nd, Project Objectives: if the text already provided in the previous version of the Database Report needs to be updated, summarize the objectives of the project together with a brief general description of the infrastructure emphasising the aspects that make it unique in Europe (no more than 200 words). If no changes are required, leave the field empty. Access Modalities: if the text already provided in the previous version of the Database Report needs to be updated, give a short explanation on how to apply for access (no more than 200 words). If no changes are required, leave the field empty. Project Achievements: give an overview of the achievements of the project since the beginning of the contract until the end of the current reporting period, in terms of type of supported user projects and users, important scientific results from the user projects, and other qualitative comments. Highlight the impact of the project on the European scientific community (no more than 500 words). Eligible Proposals: give the number of user group proposals considered eligible for scientific evaluation in the reporting period. Do not count the user group proposals which do not fulfil the eligibility criteria indicated in the contract (e.g. a proposal with a group leader working in the same country of the infrastructure operator). Selected Proposals: indicate the number of proposals selected for support in the reporting period. FP6 Research Infrastructures 11 Explanatory Notes
B. MANAGEMENT REPORT (FINANCIAL INFORMATION) 1. Justification of the resources deployed [Indicate the size of the human effort (person/months), if any, deployed during the period that will be charged to the contract, excluding the effort charged under the user fee if the UF cost model is used.] [Give, in a tabular form, a detailed list of the eligible costs claimed to the contract during the reporting period, per budgetary post 3 and per implemented activity (management, proposal selection, user access to the infrastructure, ). Show (e.g. in an additional column) that each item of expenditure corresponds to, and is justified by a specific work carried out by the contractor. Please, make sure that all the costs claimed are consistent with the figures given in the Form C - Financial Statement (see section 2).] [Justify any major deviations with respect to the planned budget.] 1.1 Justification of cofinancing for AC contractors [If the Additional Cost model (AC) is used for reporting costs, indicate the total human effort in person/months deployed during the reporting period (including the permanent staff) and a global estimate of the total cost (not just the additional eligible costs which are reported in the financial statement).] 2. Forms C - Financial Statements [This section should start on a new page.] [Provide, for each contractor, the Form C - Financial Statements 4 (Appendix 1). Audit certificates must be submitted with the Forms C if required for this period in Article 7.2 of the contract 5.] 3 According to the usual accounting principles of the participant. No predefined eligible cost categories are established. 4 For instructions on the correct completion of the Form C see the FP6 Financial Guidelines on Cordis: http://www.cordis.lu/fp6/find-doc.htm#modelcontracts 5 For more detailed information on Audit Certificates see the FP6 Financial Guidelines on Cordis: http://www.cordis.lu/fp6/find-doc.htm#modelcontracts FP6 Research Infrastructures 12 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
3. Summary financial report [This section should start on a new page.] [When the contract is multipartner, provide a Summary financial report (Appendix 2) consolidating the costs claimed by each contractor for the reporting period] FP6 Research Infrastructures 13 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report
C. REPORT ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE COMMUNITY FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION [When the contract is multipartner, provide the Report on the distribution between contractors made during the reporting period of the Community financial contribution (Appendix 3)] FP6 Research Infrastructures 14 Contract Number [RITA-CT-200X-XXXXX] Annual Report