partners collage

Partnerships & Collaborations

Thirteen Founding Member nations, around 40 European in-kind partners and more than 130 global institutions are all cooperating to build the world's next-generation neutron source.

In-Kind Contributions

As a large and advanced science facility, the European Spallation Source requires expert competences represented by professionals from all over the world. The technical design work already represents one of the largest and broadest European collaborations of its kind.

In-Kind Contributions

Many of our partner research institutes, universities, and laboratories are individually responsible for leading one or several work packages, each containing multiple work units, with leadership distributed among all participants. ESS's partners are actively engaged in scientific and technical research and development, manufacturing, delivery and installation in the project to build ESS. Around 30% of the project will be realised through in-kind contributions.

ESS Technical Design Collaborations

The ESS Technical Design Report (TDR) from April 2013 is the guiding document for the construction of ESS. It was developed over several years through a collaboration process including around 60 partner laboratories worldwide and the ESS staff in Lund. The work was organised into the Accelerator, Target Station, and Neutron Scattering Systems collaborations. The TDR, as well as the preceding Conceptual Design Report, can be found on our publications page.

ESS and Skanska

Skanska is the construction partner for the civil works construction of the European Spallation Source. The collaboration contract covers earthworks, construction, and installations in several buildings.

The Contracts

In 2014, Skanska and ESS signed a collaboration agreement for the whole construction project and a design contract for the first stage. The complex project is divided into several stages, where separate agreements are settled at the beginning of each stage. The project will be carried out in collaboration between Skanska and the Conventional Facilities Division at ESS.

The contract for the second phase was signed in May 2015. Phase 2 covers installations in a number of buildings, substations and transformers, ground works, including piling, landscape works and concrete works for the Target Station and Experimental Halls. Skanska was also selected to build the ESS Campus under a separate agreement in 2018.

The work is executed by Skanska Sweden (75%) and Skanska UK (25%).

Skanska Sweden is one of Sweden’s largest construction companies, with operations in building and civil-engineering construction. In Sweden, the business unit has approximately 11,000 employees.

Collaboration Strategy

A project management team, known as Skanska-ESS Construction, consisting of members from both ESS and Skanska, was set up to lead and develop the work. 

Who Is Building ESS?

Follow the links for highlights from our ongoing technical and scientific collaborations around the world. National labs, universities, institutes and fellow Big Science facilities are all currently coordinating in the design, production and delivery of ESS's accelerator, target station, instruments, research labs, software, controls and other systems.