Needless to say, such an experimental facility will place the Rhône-Alpes region at the forefront of innovation in the domain of aeronautics and energy. By grouping all its scientific competences, it will probably be the only region capable of breaking through the current scientific and technological frontier. The strength of the local fabric of SMBs, the Aerospace Cluster ACIRA (Aerospace Cluster In Rhône-Alpes), the presence of AREVA and the SEPTEN (EDF) in the city of Lyon, and the driving force of a network of laboratories making it Europe’s 4th strongest power in R&D (Aeronautics and Space) are all elements that favour setting up such an experimental facility.
These scientific and technological stakes cannot be tackled without the participation of private companies operating in the sector. The partner laboratories have long experience of working with companies in the framework of contracts, especially in the field of rotating machines. Although the involvement of regional SMBs is a strong asset, the involvement of large corporations such as SAFRAN and EDF is vital to mobilise synergy between future scientific development and the technological innovations required so that these companies become the spearhead of French expertise in the sector of rotating machines. This experimental facility will rely on existing public-private partnerships such as MAIA (SAFRAN, LTDS, LAMCOS, MATEIS, etc.), INCA (SAFRAN, LMFA, EPFL , etc.), and IROQUA (SAFRAN, AIRBUS, LMFA, etc.) and thus ensure the experimental facility’s perpetuation and its evolution in coherence with scientific, economic and societal needs.