Subcontracting

Collaborating with industrial partners

The in-house portfolio is complemented with industrial partners to enlarge the production capacity and to include additional fabrication technologies. Around 40 % of the mechanical components needed at CERN are subcontracted by our unit, involving more than 2,000 contracts per year.

We work in close collaboration with the CERN Procurement Department and we do a strong contribution to balance the industrial return to CERN member states.

Complementing the in-house portfolio

Fabrication techniques: Machining, sheet-metal processing, metallic structures, specialty applications, assemblies…
Materials: Metals, ceramics, fibre-reinforce composites, exotic materials, wood, plastics…
Surface treatments: corrosion protection, hardness enhancement, screen printing, coatings for electrical or radio-frequency applications…

The strategy: make-or-buy

Depending on the technical details, the materials involved, the quantity and the internal workshop workload we decide the optimal strategy.

Our industrial partners

We developed a vast network of industrial partners from all CERN member states.

Our expertise in preparing technical specifications and price enquiries ensures smooth subcontracting activities.

We transfer our manufacturing knowledge to industry when we were the first to validate it.

Complementing the in-house portfolio

The strategy: make-or-buy

Depending on the technical details, the materials involved, the quantity and the internal workshop workload we decide the optimal strategy.