INSTYTUT CHEMII BIOORGANICZNEJ POLSKIEJ AKADEMII NAUK

Their core work

This is PSNC — the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center — operating under the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences. They run Poland's major research computing and networking infrastructure, providing high-performance computing (HPC), cloud services, and national research network connectivity. PSNC is a core node in GÉANT (Europe's research and education network) and builds middleware, data platforms, and IoT experimentation environments for European research communities. They also develop applied solutions in areas like smart farming, immersive media, and cybersecurity, translating infrastructure expertise into domain-specific tools.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2014–2018, PSNC focused heavily on classical HPC (numerical methods, parallel computing, code optimization), research networking infrastructure (GÉANT, PRACE), and public engagement through Researchers' Night events in Poznań. From 2019 onward, their work shifted decisively toward open science ecosystems (EOSC, FAIR data, research infrastructures), IoT experimentation platforms, and applied domains like smart farming and network security. The trajectory shows a mature infrastructure provider evolving from "building the pipes" to "building the services that run on top of them."

PSNC is moving from core infrastructure provision toward federated data services, IoT experimentation platforms, and domain-specific applications — expect them to seek partnerships in agriculture, environment, and health data spaces.

How they like to work

PSNC operates overwhelmingly as a trusted technical partner (72 of 83 projects as participant), contributing infrastructure and middleware expertise to large European consortia rather than leading them. With 1,229 unique partners across 58 countries, they are a major network hub — one of the most connected research organizations in Central Europe. Their 5 coordinator roles (e.g., M2DC on modular datacenters, COMPLETE on transport networks) show they can lead when the topic aligns with their core computing and networking strengths, but their value proposition is clearly as a reliable infrastructure backbone for ambitious multi-partner projects.

With 1,229 unique consortium partners spanning 58 countries, PSNC has one of the widest collaboration networks of any Polish research organization. Their partnerships are concentrated in Western Europe (via GÉANT and PRACE) but extend globally through projects like BELLA-S1 connecting Europe with Latin America.

What sets them apart

PSNC is one of very few organizations in Central-Eastern Europe that simultaneously operates national research networking, HPC infrastructure, and cloud/data services at European scale. Their dual identity — a Polish Academy of Sciences institute that functions as a national computing center — gives them both scientific credibility and operational capacity that pure universities or pure data centers cannot match. For consortium builders, they offer a single partner covering networking, computing, storage, IoT testbeds, and data management, plus strong connections into the CEE research ecosystem.

Highlights from their portfolio

• GN4-2
  Largest single project by far (EUR 4.3M EC contribution) — PSNC's central role in GÉANT, Europe's backbone research network, underscoring their position as a national network operator.
• M2DC
  One of their rare coordinator roles (EUR 866K), leading research on modular microserver datacenters — showing they can drive hardware-level innovation, not just operate infrastructure.
• EUROfusion
  Long-running participation (2014–2022) in Europe's flagship fusion energy program, demonstrating their HPC capabilities applied to one of science's grand challenges.