CIPRNet has begun! The grant agreement between the EU Research Executive Agency (REA) and Fraunhofer acting as the CIPRNet consortium coordinator was signed on 1 March 2013. The duration of the project shall be 48 months (2013/2017).
The CIPRNet kick off meeting will be held from 21 – 22 March 2013 in Germany at the Fraunhofer premises.
CIPRNet is an EU collaborative Project/Network of Excellence, under the SEC-2012.7.4-2 work programme: networking of researchers for a high level multi-organisational and
cross-border collaboration.
The Critical Infrastructure Preparedness and Resilience Research Network (CIPRNet) will establish a Network of Excellence in Critical Infrastructure (CI) Protection R&D for its stakeholders.
CIPRNetwork will provide concrete and long-lasting support from the CIP research communities to the initial audience, enhancing their preparedness for CI-related emergencies, and provide knowledge and technology to other stakeholders for improving the understanding and mitigation of the consequences of CI disruptions.
The objectives are to implement new capabilities for supporting more effective responses to disasters that affect or originate from multiple CI. In particular, create added-value decision-support capabilities for national and multi-nation emergency management and CI owners based on integrating technologies available at CIPRNet partners. Also to support the secure design of Next Generation Infrastructures, demonstrate timely, actionable, risk-informed CIP analyses and strategies for authorities (both nationally, cross-border, and EU-wide) and CI owners.
CIPRNet will reinforce and extend the existing cooperation and integration of the CIPRNet core partners and will turn it into a long-lasting integration.
The CIPRNet consortium represents experiences with over sixty CIP-related research projects from all of the major EU funding lines. This constitutes an unprecedented assembly of excellence and top expert knowledge in the CIP research area.
UIC has participated and is participating in EU projects on Security Research within FP7, including RESTRAIL (Reduction of Suicides and Trespasses on rail property), PROTECTRAIL (protection of railway infrastructures against various threats), SECRET and TRIPS (Transport Infra-structure Protection Systems).
In CIPRNet UIC is an end-user in the railway infrastructures sector. Additionally, UIC will actively contribute to dissemination activities to its members, within CIPRNet, and more. UIC will also add end-user perspectives from the railway transport domain on the joint research activities, the VCCC, and the definition of realistic scenarios. UIC will host one of the CIPRNet workshops with end-users.
1 - The European Council Directive 2008/114/EC ([ECI08], hereafter: ‘The Directive’, defines CI as “an asset, system or part thereof located in (a) Member State(s) which is essential for the maintenance of vital societal functions, health, safety, security, economic or social well-being of people, and the disruption or destruction of which would have a significant impact in a Member State as a result of the failure to maintain those functions.”
