OSTERREICHISCHE GESELLSCHAFT FUR SYSTEM- UND AUTOMATISIERUNGSTECHNIK

Their core work

SAT is an Austrian research centre specializing in automation technologies for the circular economy of electronics. They develop systems for automated disassembly, sorting, and remanufacturing of electrical and electronic equipment — turning e-waste back into usable components and materials. Their work bridges industrial automation with sustainability goals, focusing on practical factory-level solutions for recovering value from discarded smartphones, tablets, circuit boards, and other electronic devices.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

SAT's early H2020 work (2015-2017) concentrated on the technical side — building automation for disassembly lines, sorting systems, and remanufacturing factories for specific devices like smartphones, tablets, and circuit boards. By 2018-2022, their focus shifted upstream toward circular business models, ecodesign principles, and service-based approaches (ecoleasing, customization) for the entire electronics sector. The trajectory shows a move from "how to take things apart efficiently" to "how to redesign the whole system so less waste is generated in the first place."

SAT is moving from technical automation solutions toward systemic circular economy frameworks, making them increasingly relevant for projects that need both engineering depth and business model innovation in electronics sustainability.

How they like to work

SAT predominantly operates as a project participant (3 of 4 projects), contributing specialist expertise to larger consortia rather than leading them. However, their one coordinator role on FENIX — their largest project by funding — shows they can lead when the topic is core to their mission. With 76 unique partners across 25 countries, they are well-networked and comfortable working in diverse, international teams.

SAT has built a broad European network of 76 unique partners spanning 25 countries — impressive breadth for an organization with only four H2020 projects. This suggests they are embedded in the circular economy and electronics sustainability community across Europe, not confined to any single regional cluster.

What sets them apart

SAT sits at a rare intersection: they combine deep automation and systems engineering expertise with circular economy domain knowledge specifically for electronics. Most automation research centres focus on manufacturing productivity; most circular economy groups lack the robotics and automation capabilities for industrial-scale disassembly. This dual competence makes them a strong fit for any consortium that needs to move e-waste recovery from manual lab processes to automated factory operations.

Highlights from their portfolio

• FENIX
  Their only coordinator role and largest single grant (EUR 508,750), focused on future business models for secondary resource recovery in extended supply chains.
• sustainablySMART
  Their most technically detailed project, covering the full chain from disassembly automation to remanufacturing of smartphones, tablets, and circuit boards.
• C-SERVEES
  Signals their strategic shift toward circular services and ecodesign, with the second-largest budget (EUR 499,500) and a 2018-2022 timeline.