Research excellence grows through collaboration. This is the vision behind the Joint Open Lab (JOL), an initiative of the EUNICE European University Alliance that brings together the research infrastructures of its partner universities, making them more visible, accessible and connected.
Joint Open Lab was created to encourage researchers across the Alliance to discover laboratories, scientific equipment and specialised expertise available at other EUNICE institutions. By sharing research facilities and promoting dialogue between research teams, JOL helps create new opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, knowledge exchange and future joint projects.
Every EUNICE university hosts laboratories and research infrastructures with unique expertise that could support researchers from across the Alliance.
One of the key activities supporting this initiative is the organisation of Joint Open Lab webinars, where universities present their research platforms to the wider EUNICE community.
For example, the Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-France organised a webinar on July 1st dedicated to the MorphoMeca platform, presented by François Berkmans, one of its members. The event aimed to showcase the platform’s expertise, instrumentation and research capabilities while fostering new collaborations between EUNICE partner universities.
MorphoMeca is a research and technological platform specialising in the morphological and mechanical characterisation of surfaces and materials. Its equipment enables multiscale surface analysis, from macroscopic geometries to micro- and nanometric features. The platform supports research in surface topography, roughness analysis, three-dimensional imaging and the relationship between surface morphology and functional performance, with applications ranging from mechanical engineering and tribology to cultural heritage, archaeology and artwork conservation.
The webinar was designed to increase the visibility of MorphoMeca within the EUNICE network and to demonstrate how the platform can support collaborative research projects, from the definition of scientific challenges to measurement, data analysis and joint publications. It also opened discussions on future collaborations, including sample exchange, access to specialised equipment, staff and student mobility, and the development of interdisciplinary research initiatives.
These online events allow researchers to explore cutting-edge facilities, learn about available technologies and identify potential partners for future research collaborations.
For this reason, all partner universities are encouraged to organise a Joint Open Lab webinar to showcase their own research facilities. Presenting a laboratory through JOL is an opportunity to increase its visibility, connect with researchers from other institutions and lay the foundations for future European research collaborations.
