From CERN success to GSI/FAIR
ABB
ABB’s collaboration with CERN has evolved from an innovation partnership into a model for creating long-term value across Big Science facilities. Building on its successful energy-efficiency project at CERN, ABB is now applying that experience through a new collaboration with GSI/FAIR in Germany, where FAIR is being built alongside GSI.
From first meeting to energy savings
The journey began when experts from ABB – a global technology leader in electrification and automation – met CERN representatives at a Discovery Day organised by Big Science Sweden.
Together, experts from ABB and CERN analysed around 800 motors used in cooling and ventilation applications. Rather than evaluating individual motors alone, they assessed the efficiency of the complete systems, identifying where upgrades would have the greatest impact.
The original target was to improve energy efficiency by 10–15%. Instead, the project identified a potential energy saving of 17.4%, equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of more than 18,000 European households.
“It’s an excellent example of collaboration where each side brings its own contribution to the table. CERN brings its large-scale infrastructure and ABB contributes with its technology and service expertise,” says Giovanni Anelli, Head of CERN’s Knowledge Transfer Group.
ABB’s journey with CERN and GSI/FAIR shows how sharing expertise opens new business opportunities and supports more sustainable research facilities.
A blueprint for sustainable Big Science
The successful collaboration at CERN has since opened the door to a second major project. ABB is working with GSI and FAIR in Darmstadt, Germany, to assess motor-driven systems within the existing GSI accelerator complex and identify the most impactful opportunities to optimise energy use. The project includes energy mapping, the development of an efficiency roadmap and the testing of digital optimisation tools for motor-driven pumps, fans and cooling systems.
Building directly on the methods and experience developed at CERN, the project aims to cut energy consumption, lower operating costs and contribute to strengthening environmental stewardship of large-scale research facilities. At GSI, the asse
ssment is intended to support the objective of reducing overall facility energy consumption by 15%. The project also has a knowledge-sharing component: results are intended to inform other research centres and energy-intensive industries.
“This collaboration aligns with our long-term commitment to scientific excellence and environmental stewardship. Energy efficiency clearly has a transformative role,” says Dr. Katharina Stummeyer, Administrative Managing Director of GSI and FAIR.
The GSI/FAIR project therefore demonstrates how methods and expertise developed with one Big Science organisation can be transferred, adapted and scaled to another research infrastructure.
New collaboration opportunities
Besides showing how industrial energy efficiency can be a strategic lever for industry and research institutions to decarbonise and enhance competitiveness, the ABB story demonstrates how relationships built through Big Science Sweden can evolve into long-term collaborations with multiple international research organisations.
The success has since become a reference project and a blueprint for transferring energy-efficiency expertise between Big Science facilities.
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GSI/FAIR, “GSI/FAIR partners with ABB to boost efficiency of energy-intensive research infrastructure”, 1 October 2025. https://www.gsi.de/en/start/news/details?tx_news_pi1%5Baction%5D=detail&tx_news_pi1%5Bcontroller%5D=News&tx_news_
Last edited 2026