MINUTES
OF THE
FIRST MEETING OF THE RTN NETWORK ON
" REACTIVE INTERMEDIATES "
27 - 29th October 2000
This meeting was held in Edam, Holland, in the Dam Hotel, from the 27th to the 29th of October 2000.
The list of the representatives of each research group participating in the Network was the following:
John Dyke (Co-ordinator) from Southampton, C. A. de Lange (Network Manager) from Amsterdam, Philippe Brechignac from Orsay, Stelios Couris from Crete, Augusto Moutinho and Maria Lourdes Costa from Lisbon, Vladimir Bondybey and Martin Beyer from Garching, and Gokhan Baykut from Bruker-Daltonik. John Dyke also represented the Porton Down group.
The business meeting started on Saturday, the 29th, at 9.30 a.m. according to the schedule previously sent by the Co-ordinator to each group leader.
After the Introduction and Welcome by C. A. de Lange, where the importance of this meeting was stressed, Part 1 on "Organisation and Logistics of the Network", by John Dyke, was initiated, with the following topics:
• Main Task of the First "Reactives" Network Meeting
- establish detailed research plan and milestones for the first year, and outline the plan for the next 36 months;
- ensure that the two arms of the Network, on Spectroscopy and Ion-Molecule Chemistry, are operational and active through the sub-co-ordinators Dolores Gauyacq, from Orsay, and A. Bell, from Porton Down.
• Situation of the Network at present
- 1st of September 2000 - contract started for forty eight months;
- 5th of October - contract signed in Brussels;
- 1st of November - membership agreement completed. Recommendation to hand copies to each contract administrator;
- 1st of January - first financial payments due.
• Next steps to follow
- confirm milestones for the training programme;
- decide on milestones for the research programme;
- decide on scientific work plan for the first twelve months and outline for remaining thirty six months;
- make decisions on appointments of young researchers (YRs), as appropriate;
- supply a copy of the minutes, via the Co-ordinator, to the EU Commission. Maria Lourdes Costa, from Lisbon, will be charged with writing the minutes of the first meeting;
- the Network Manager will put a summary of minutes of the first meeting on the web-page.
• Milestones
- the list of milestones set at the first meeting of the steering committee will be included in the first annual progress report.
• Tools for monitoring progress
- each team leader will monitor the progress in his/her team and will report progress to the Co-ordinator and Network Manager at six monthly Network meetings;
- the Co-ordinator will monitor progress of the overall project against the list of milestones to be established at the first meeting of the steering committee. He/she will suggest changes to the work plan of individual groups to achieve the overall aims of the Network;
- each team will train the young researchers and will promote their movement among the other groups.
• Milestones for the training programme
- by the mid-term review at least 40% of the training deliverable (in terms of man-months) shall be achieved and the YRs will have given two presentations of their project and results to the steering committee and have attended a team building and presentation skills course.
• Milestones for the research programme
- the milestones must be clear, deliverable and tangible. They should be defined for the first year at the end of this meeting.
• Submission of project deliverables
The project Co-ordinator needs to submit to the EU Commission:
- a data base report to be up-dated annually. It will appear on the web page;
- periodic progress reports each 12 months from the project commencement date (September 1st) containing details of training programme and networking, joint programme of work, results and departure from Work-schedule. Early August will be the appropriate date for each leader to submit report to the Co-ordinator;
- Mid-term review report will be the basis of discussion at mid-term review meeting;
- principal contractor needs to agree agenda and date with the EU Commission at least two months prior to the meeting.
• Mid-term review
- the meeting shall take place no later than when two-thirds of the duration of the work to be performed under the contract has elapsed. However, 40% of the training deliverable (in terms of man-months) shall be achieved by then.
• Newsletter
- a newsletter should be fed to all participants via the Network manager, e. g. every six months. This could be an up-dated set of minutes with major new items added.
• At this point the "Main points from the EC RTN Co-ordinators Meeting in June 2000" were summarised:
- The primary objective of an RTN Network is to promote Training through Research;
- The Co-ordinator and the Network manager should be kept in touch by team-leaders whether the YR appointments are running smoothly or not. Early identification of problems is important;
- A report is required on training-through-research on an annual basis. In the report we need to state what has been achieved at the Network level as well as at the individual level, to train YRs;
- TEAM SPIRIT NEEDS TO BE CREATED;
- Finance
- First instalment of money will arrive two months after last signature on the membership agreement;
- Report
First report is the report of the first meeting:
a) Message that the Network has started;
b) Short minutes of the meeting;
c) Scientific plans finalised.
Later reports
a) Annual reports;
b) Mid-Term Review;
c) Final reports.
- Young Researchers
a) encourage YRs to meet together;
b) ask them to produce a training plan;
c) ask them to have a YR web-page which can be part of the main web-page or linked from the main web-page;
- The main deliverable is the total training in terms of man-months
Short-term placements in industry (4-6 weeks) are important and should be organised from the second Network meeting, e.g. Bruker can accommodate one YR for one month in each year of the grant.
After the coffee break, the "Organisation and Logistics of the Network", Part 2 was dealt with, again by John Dyke, as follows:
• Report Writing
Each team leader should produce and send to the Network Manager, by every September 1st, starting in year 2000, one page A4 for each part:
a) training report;
b) research report.
• Plans for Meetings
- minutes and overheads prepared and collected by Maria Lourdes Costa, from Lisbon, and sent to the Network Manager;
- the Network Manager writes a short report, based on the minutes, and includes it on the web-page;
- the Co-ordinator communicates and interacts with Brussels;
- tentative program for future meetings.
The plan which was approved after some discussion is the following:
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September 1st, Start of Project |
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| 1. October 2000 |
Holland |
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2. April 2001 |
Lisbon |
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3. October 2001 |
Garching |
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4. April 2002 |
Crete |
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5. October 2002 |
Southampton/Salisbury |
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Team-Building |
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Presentation Course for YRs |
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6. April 2003* |
Mid-Term Review, Orsay |
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7. October 2003 |
Bremen |
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8. April 2004 |
Salisbury/Southampton |
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August 2004, End of Project |
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*Not more than two-thirds of the duration of the work has elapsed. 40% of the YRs man-months should be used by that date.
Every meeting should be arranged in two parts:
a) one part as a small conference, where the YRs will present their work;
b)the other part as a team leader business meeting.
• Websites and advertising
The Network has two web sites:
a) http://www.chem.uva.nl/imc/reactive_intermediates.html
controlled by the Network Manager
b) http://improving-rtn.sti.jrc.it/network
controlled by the Network Co-ordinator.
All vacancies, papers, changes in research plans and direction should be given to both the Co-ordinator and the Network Manager for placing on these web sites.
• Network Management
- Steering Committee of the Network (not mandatory but helpful)
a) chaired by the network Co-ordinator;
b) take decisions on costs breakdown;
c) supervise, monitor and evaluate the project progress;
d) implement the training programme;
e) appoint young researchers (overall situation).
- Scientist's in Charge Responsibilities
a) manage local team and local funds in agreement with the local administration;
b) manage the project progress following his/her defined role;
c) implement local training programme for young researchers;
d) appoint young researchers and take care of their integration (locally/network wide);
e) inform local team of contractual obligations;
f) inform the Network Co-ordinator of any change or problem;
g) provide the Network Co-ordinator with required reporting data.
- Start of the Contract
Required information:
a) membership agreement;
b) database report +2 pictures;
c) actual date of commencement of the work.
• Eligible Costs
A. Costs linked to Networking
- Travel and subsistence
a) for meetings with other network participants, staff exchanges (secondments - normally, 3 months maximum -);
b) for conference participation (representation of the project);
c) for invitation of external experts to network meetings/workshops;
d) for interviewing young researchers for an appointment;
e) for young researchers previously appointed to take part in the Mid-Term Review meeting.
- Travel outside EU and Associated States
a) representation of the network project at international workshops, seminars and conferences: normally up to 3 persons per event and every person travelling should play an active role;
b) invite external expert to a network meeting;
c) meetings with other participants.
Travel outside (to/from) EU and associated states requires EU Commission approval (standard form) except if the third country is a participant
B. Contribution to Indirect Costs (Overheads)
a) administrative personnel;
b) telecommunications costs;
c) office supplies;
d) postal charges;
etc.
20% of actual direct costs (excluding subcontracting costs) can be charged
- Transfer of budget between partners
a) Co-ordinator and participants concerned must agree;
b) if <20% of initial amount of the participants is concerned, no prior approval of the EU Commission is needed;
c) if >20% of initial amount of the participants is concerned, prior written approval by the Commission required.
• Training of Young Researchers
- Training- through-research within a top quality international research project
a) network-wide training;
b) local training;
c) integration in the international community.
- Training Aspects
a) discipline-related training: local or network-wide;
b) help for integration in the scientific community;
c) encouragement to co-operate with scientists from other nodes;
d) additional skills (presentation skills, project management, language courses, etc.);
e) encouragement to present achievements in international events;
f) training for/in an industrial environment;
g) young researchers networking.
- Monitoring
Young researchers at the end of their appointment are requested to fill out a confidential questionnaire:
a) nationality, age, gender, discipline;
b) background, career plans, etc.;
c) assessment of the time spent in the network and of training received.
Questionnaires should be given to Co-ordinator in a sealed envelope at the end of the appointment and sent to the Commission with periodic reports.
• Network Payments
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Advance payment
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Within 60 days from the date of receipt of the membership agreement. Between 30% and 40% of total.
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Periodic payment |
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Within 60 days from the date of approval of the periodic report and cost statements (incomplete report = delay), <85% per annum Periodic payment<actual expenditure during previous year. |
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Final payment |
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Within 60 days from the date of approval of the final report and cost statements |
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Recommendations
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a) Deviations from yearly financial plan (CPF) should be explained;
b) Credit from the participating institutions is essential (15% will be retained until the approval of the final report);
c) Reimbursement only for costs already incurred, not for planned costs (planned persons- months for young researchers, no annual %-rates).
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• Advise for Good Practice
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Keep up the enthusiasm for the duration of the project |
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Communication between the participants is essentia |
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Participation of women should be strongly encouraged |
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Interview of candidate young researchers at Network meetings |
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Appointment of young researchers can be decentralised, but the Co-ordinator must know the exact situation |
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Organise at least once a year a meeting for the network teams (only) where all young researchers are invited |
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Each member should help the Co-ordinator to provide correct and timely reporting data to the EU Commission
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A dynamic web-page is good publicity for your research. Part of it could be dedicated to the young researchers Electronic newsletter fed by all partners creates an identity for the network |
Young Researchers
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Make them aware
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a) that they work in an EC funded network; |
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b) of their rights and duties regarding the contract and give a copy of the appointment conditions before signature of the contract. |
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Help for practical administrative problems (social security, taxation,etc) |
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Give them reasonable salary/grant |
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Can be appointed in different teams, consecutively: prolongation of their stay in another team, better "bonding" between the teams |
• Discussion on post-doc applicants (YRs)
Post-doc applicants were already attributed to the research groups in Amsterdam and Orsay and are being interviewed for the positions. Graduate students seem to also fit the
EU rules. One YR (a pre-doc) started in Southampton on October 1st 2000. Another YR (a post-doc) will start in
Porton Down on January 1st 2001. Southampton hopes to take
another pre-doc from October 1st 2001. Crete and Lisbon will advertise for post-docs, and Garching will advertise for pre-docs.
The Co-ordinator will send the advertisements to an appropriate web-site.
The meeting was adjourned for lunch at 1 p. m.
The meeting restarted at 2.30 p. m., with each representative presenting a summary of the scientific plans for the Network's first year, together with possible interactions with the other research groups. The order of presentation was as follows: Amsterdam, Orsay, Crete, Lisbon, Garching, Bruker, and finally Southampton.
The Work Plan will be rewritten by the Co-ordinator based on the above presentations, and sent to each group leader for approval, before sending it to Brussels. This is necessary in order to obtain the first payment.
The availability of the participants for the next meeting in Lisbon was considered.
The Co-ordinator thanked Kees de Lange (Network Manager) for his excellent organisation of the meeting and closed the proceedings at 6 p.m.