The Università degli Studi “Roma Tre” (Roma Tre University) has been established in 1991 and actually represents a central point of reference in the academic scenario at both local and national level hosting nearly 40000 students. The University has 12 Departments, 10 Libraries and 10 Centres and totals of about 970 teachers (553 professors I and II level, 353 research assistant professors and 36 language experts). Since its foundation, Roma Tre has paid a great importance to international cooperation, and it has been an active participant in the European Union exchange programs. Particularly, Roma Tre has taken part to the Erasmus program since 1993/1994. In the academic year 2002/2003, Roma Tre was awarded the Erasmus University Charter (EUC), thus obtaining the right to participate in the Erasmus Program. Roma Tre is involved, either as coordinator or partner, in about 78 International Research projects.

In Oyster, the activity of UNIROMA3 team will be conducted by the Materials Science and Technology (STM) group, which is part of the Engineering department. The STM group has a consolidated experience in the field of advanced characterization of bulk materials and thin films, through the use of high-resolution microscopy, (TEM, FIB/SEM and AFM), nanoindentation (four different heads available, including the novel high-speed heads), nano-scratch testing and micro-tribological. The group is composed by four staff units (one full professor, two assistant professors and one senior technician) and a team, financed mainly through research projects, composed of about 6 unities with the following profiles: two fellowship researchers, three doctoral students and one person with technical-administrative role. The research group is deeply involved in the activities of the Euroepan Materials Charcaterisation Council (EMCC), and has already successfully completed a large European project as a coordinator (www.istress.eu).

Cambridge Nanomaterials Technology (CNT) Ltd is a nanomaterials innovation, management and technology consulting company based in Cambridge, England.

• The CNT Ltd helps companies, academic and government institutions to develop nanomaterials related R&D and IPR strategy, partnership, products, technologies and market.
• The CNT Ltd is specialised in carbon nanomaterials innovation strategy and investment consulting
• The CNT Ltd is involved in collaborative R&D project management, such as FP7 project UltraWire (www.ultrawire.eu) Horizon 2020 project NanoLeap (www.nanoleap.eu) helping from proposal preparation and exploitation and dissemination management.

Fraunhofer is Europe’s largest application-oriented research organization. It comprises 66 institutes at 43 different locations within Germany as well as remote research centres and representative offices in Europe, USA and Asia.

The FRAUNHOFER Institute for Mechanics of Materials (Fraunhofer), Freiburg is a leading research centre in the experimental and theoretical characterization of material properties. The institute combines know-how and experience in all fields of materials technology and materials science. Within the scope of Materials Design, Manufacturing Processes, Tribology, Component Safety and Lightweight Construction and Assessment of Materials, Lifetime Concepts we offer clients and project partners individual solutions, unexpected insights and immediately actionable results for the development, production and application of functional materials, high-performance components and resource efficient manufacturing processes.

FUNCOATS which belongs to MPG (Molecular Plasma Group) develops atmospheric plasma treatments, enables dedicated chemical functionalization of any substrate (plastics, glass, metal, composites, textile, etc…). Almost any chemical precursors can be grafted/coated onto a substrate in order to create a desired surface function. Funcoats finally provides industries with nanocoatings production methods to achieve surface functionalizations such as, superhydrophobic and oleophobic properties, adhesion enhancements, or bioactivities properties,…

FUNCOATS develops and distributes adapted solutions to various industrial specific requirements regarding surfaces modification and functionalization to control surfaces properties of a wide range of substrates (polymers, metals, ceramics, composites, textile, etc…).

For example, our eco-friendly superhydrophobic nano-coating (LEAF TECHNOLOGY) can be used for answering to various properties on 2D and 3D parts such as, anti-wetting, self-cleaning, anticorrosion, anti-condensation and anti-icing, antibacterial, anti-biofouling, etc.

FUNCOATS succeeds in providing a durable and versatile superhydrophobic solution suitable with the most extreme conditions encountered in Building or Transport activities such as Aerospace, Automotive, Rail- ways, Navy applications..

Goldbeck Consulting is based on over 30 years of experience, Goldbeck Consulting supports a wide range of aspects in the science to engineering, academia to industry spectrum of materials modelling:

• Multiscale materials modelling integration across science and engineering.
• Translation, guidance and coaching for using materials modelling in R&D projects.
• Economic impact analysis
• Training
• Product management, marketing and business development for science and engineering software.
• Software commercialisation strategies and planning: from academia to business.
• EU project proposal writing, team building, project management and monitoring.

IRES, an R&D consulting company founded in 2015, is dedicated to new and innovative nanotechnology solutions. Headquartered in Brussels (Belgium), IRES is a team of key collaborators that provide supporting services such as IP, market research, environmental solutions and marketing advice. Our mission is to deliver to our customers world-class innovative solutions for development of materials based products.

Customised and tailored solutions on demand, often in tool form, successfully identify possible business risks and provide sustainable directions. For this, the whole lifecycle of products is considered, through a holistic evaluation of social, environmental and economic aspects based on EU standards and regulations. IRES in collaboration with external bodies and related initiatives, is part of new technological events, arising innovative technologies and strategic research trends.

Nanoforce Technology Limited was established in 2005, it is an open-door industry-facing research and development company committed to delivering state of the art material solutions based on advanced processing technologies.

Nanoforce aims to enhance the quality and performance of customers’ products by providing technical solutions in competitive timescales. It is driving innovation in the advanced materials sector through continuous development of industry-leading expertise, high value added products and integrated services.

Nanoforce consists of a team of experienced professionals specialising in high performance ceramics, advanced polymer composites, process modelling and materials characterisation. Each customer’s particular application is supported by our well-equipped facilities and we provide unique solutions for a wide range of topics.

Founded in 1997, we are a Swiss based high-tech company providing scanning probe microscopes to customers around the globe. Our product range starts with very compact AFM and STM instruments, followed by state-of-the-art research atomic force microscope systems, all the way up to fully customized and comprehensive next‑level solutions. Our customers in research, industry and teaching value the innovative approach, modularity, and ease of use of our products.

The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is the UK’s National Measurement Institute, providing the measurement capability that underpins the UK’s prosperity and quality of life.

From new antibiotics to tackle resistance and more effective cancer treatments, to unhackable quantum communications and superfast 5G, technological advances must be built on a foundation of reliable measurement to succeed. Building on over a century’s worth of expertise, our science, engineering and technology provides this foundation and helps to make the impossible possible. We save lives, protect the environment and enable citizens to feel safe and secure, as well as support international trade and commercial innovation. As a national laboratory, our advice is always impartial and independent, meaning consumers, investors, policymakers and entrepreneurs can always rely on the work we do.

Based in Teddington, south-west London, NPL employs over 500 scientists and is home to 388 of the world’s most extensive and sophisticated laboratories. NPL also has regional bases across the UK, including at the University of Surrey, the University of Strathclyde, the University of Cambridge and the University of Huddersfield’s 3M Buckley Innovation Centre.

The Politecnico di Torino was founded in 1859 as “Scuola di Applicazione per gli Ingegneri” (Technical School for Engineers), and it became Regio Politecnico di Torino in 1906. A long history, which bore out the University as a reference point for education and research in Italy and in Europe, a Research University of international level which attracts students from more than 100 countries and which activates about 800 collaborations per year with industries, public institutions and local organizations.

The multi-Scale ModeLing Laboratory – SMaLL – is an engineering research group launched at Politecnico di Torino with the aim to propose and promote innovative solutions for applications related to the energy sector. It has been active for many years in modelling on various scales the thermal and transport properties of materials and composites, including those containing carbon nanomaterials. Moreover SMaLL has a relevant expertise regarding to the modelling interaction forces at nanoscale interfaces, even in the presence of water and adsorbed soft matter.

Spectrum Instruments Limited (SIL) is an SME based in Limerick, Ireland and is a leading worldwide provider of Scanning Probe Microscopes and Accessories. SIL is involved in the development and production of traditional Atomic Force Microscopes (AFM’s); AFM’s combined with inverted microscopes; AFM combined with spectrometer; scanning near-field optical microscope and AFM in vacuum.

SIL provides a versatile range of sample testing, consultations and demonstrations. SIL staff consists of employees with backgrounds in scientific and industrial product design and the companies activities include service & logistics, sales & marketing, product development, production assembly and testing on site. SIL is the exclusive worldwide distributor of NT-MDT products & accessories and is licensed to design, manufacture and distribute all NT-MDT equipment and services.

Thales is a world leader for mission critical information systems, with activities in 3 core businesses: aerospace (with all major aircraft manufacturers as customers), defence, and security (including ground transportation solutions). It employs 68000 people worldwide (50 countries). It provides its customers with all the key functions in the critical information loop, from detection and processing to transmission and distribution.
Thales develops its strategic capabilities in component, software and system engineering and architectures through its R&T organization. Designing and developing the mission/safety-critical information systems that underpin the company’s leadership in aerospace, defence and security markets calls for comprehensive expertise in increasingly sophisticated technologies and the ability to integrate these technologies with large scale software driven systems.

Thales Research & Technology (TRT) comprises five research entities in France, the UK, the Netherlands, Canada and Singapore, as well as laboratories managed jointly by corporate research and Group subsidiaries and a network of research departments in operating units. TRT research comes under three main headings:

• Hardware systems and components research is mainly conducted by TRT France and includes microwave systems for land-based, naval and airborne radars and electronic warfare, optronics systems for detection and countermeasures, and security systems to protect people and property: identity cards, gas and explosive detection, biometrics, site security
• Software technology research aims to both reduce risk and raise the productivity of software engineers working on software-intensive systems and embedded software, and to provide a technological edge in the systems Thales sells. Research is devoted to four areas: new technologies for system engineering and software with a high standardization component; software and middleware architectures; hardware and software environments for high-performance data and signal processing; and smart software systems for autonomous management, control and decision-making in critical situations
• Software system research, mainly conducted in the UK, focuses on four major system functions: communications technology, positioning and navigation services (particularly for security systems), signal processing and data fusion, and virtual office technologies for collaborative working environments.

Thales Research and Technology – France (TRT-Fr) located near Paris, is the main multidisciplinary research unit of the Thales group. Through its internal activities and scientific links with industries and universities, either in France or internationally, TRT-Fr is participating in the preparation of Thales industrial future in strategic R&D fields. In addition to R&D activities, TRT-Fr also provides scientific and technical advice, expertise or services for the company.

The National Technical University of Athens is among the oldest higher education institutions of Greece and the most prestigious among engineering schools. It is named Metsovio in honor of its benefactors Nikolaos Stournaris, Eleni Tositsa, Michail Tositsas and Georgios Averoff, whose origin is from the town of Metsovo in Epirus.

It was founded in 1837 as a part-time vocational school named Royal School of Arts which, as its role in the technical development of the fledgling state grew, developed into Greece’s sole institution providing engineering degrees up until the 1950s, when polytechnics were established outside Athens.

The University of Limerick (UL) is an, internationally focussed University with over 13,000 students and 1,300 faculty and staff. It is a young, energetic and enterprising institution with a proud record of innovation in education and excellence in research and scholarship. As a research-led university, UL’s mission is to remain distinctive through the deliberate focus on research with impact, graduate employability, industry engagement and the provision of an outstanding campus environment.

The Bernal Institute at UL comprises over 300 researchers active in materials science and technology with relevant process and manufacturing engineering. Materials research is challenge-driven; whether addressing health (biomedical, pharmaceutical and nutritional); energy (electric and composites), transport (composites and fuels), or information (electronic), the combination of fundamental Materials Science and Technology knowledge alongside sustainable process engineering experience provides an unique eco-system for researchers at the Bernal Institute to generate research with impact to meet these challenges with and for society.