Panel discussion and book launch highlight successful public-private partnerships
On September 4, colleagues and collaborators from ARCNL gathered to discuss public-private partnerships and to launch a special book. In a panel discussion, distinguished leaders from academia and business reflected on public-private partnerships and 10 years of ARCNL. This was followed by the launch of the book “ASML and Dutch Physics – A History of the Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL) 2014–2024,” written by science historian Hein Brookhuis.
Speaking each other’s language
During the panel discussion, we heard about the biggest challenges in public-private partnerships from five prominent figures in both academia and business, who have all played a role in ARCNL’s history.
Vinod Subramaniam, President of University of Twente, said of his experience preparing the proposal for ARCNL over 10 years ago, “The time frame for a research project is not the same as for a business, so you need to come to a mutual understanding. Language is extremely important. You need people who speak the language. So, I called Joost.” His ability to speak both languages was one of the reasons why Joost Frenken, dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering at University of Groningen, would become ARCNL’s first director.
This emphasis on the importance of speaking each other’s language and mutual understanding across the table was echoed throughout the panel. Wim van der Zande, Director of ARCNL, shared, “In practice, my dominant role as Director was being a psychologist: telling ASML people to slow down, be quiet, don’t be too angry, and telling ARCNL people, please listen.”
Contract research versus contact research
The panel also shared the importance of maintaining close collaboration throughout the partnership, and the benefit this has for society at large. “Bringing together fundamental research and business is extremely valuable for the Netherlands, and for businesses in this country,” emphasized Leo Warmerdam, Executive Director at Holland High Tech.
A partnership such as that between ARCNL and ASML is not the same as a business hiring researchers for a specific project. “Doing this kind of fundamental research together with the business world, you may not know how it will turn out, but either way you set the stage for innovation,” shared Aletta Kraneveld, Dean of the Faculty of Science at Vrije Universiteit (VU) Amsterdam. “This is the biggest difference between contract research and contact research.”
This kind of contact research is not always easy, but as Bart Noordam, Senior Vice President of Strategy at ASML, explained, there is always a common ground: “What turns out to be more difficult than I thought is, you see two worlds that, from the outside, seem very different. But they have one thing in common: they work with the same kind of people. Yet they work in a completely different way. And that is astonishing.”
The panel brought together many insights and lessons about public-private partnership: it isn’t a sprint, but a long journey wherein courage, trust and mutual learning are central. The partnership between ARCNL and ASML has shown that the key to sustainable innovation and a strong position of knowledge for the Netherlands lies in this combination of fundamental curiosity and industrial relevance.
A book on the ARCNL experiment
At the event we were also delighted to celebrate the launch of the book ‘ASML and Dutch Physics: A History of the Advanced Research Center for Nanolithography (ARCNL), 2014-2024.’ This book by science historian Hein Brookhuis is now published by Amsterdam University Press.
When asked about working on the book, Hein said: “What surprised me when studying so many documents and evaluations was that, of course there was a lot about science, but there was also a lot of social character in what people said. So, in this book you see that doing research has a very social aspect to it.”
Wim van der Zande called the book a sort of thesis, summarizing the experiment of ARCNL: “There are many PhD students at our institute, and they do experiments and have to write a thesis about them. ARCNL is an experiment too: one in public-private partnership.”
The book details the history, challenges, and lessons learned in the creation of ARCNL as a research institute centered around public-private partnership. We are very proud of this book as a testament to all ARCNL and its partnership with ASML have accomplished, and hope that it can inspire other such partnerships in the future.
‘ASML and Dutch Physics’ is now available to order in print or as an open-access eBook via Walburg Pers, in English or in Dutch.
A mission centered around partnership
With over ten years of fruitful collaboration behind us, we look forward to discovering what the coming ten years will bring for ARCNL and our partnerships with ASML and Dutch universities. The reflections and advice from our distinguished panelists and insights shared in the book are sure to guide us to a bright future for all the parties involved.
Learn more about ARCNL’s history, mission, vision, and partnerships.
Photo credits
Floris Krelage
