PLANSEE SE

Their core work

Plansee SE is an Austrian manufacturer of high-performance components made from refractory metals — tungsten, molybdenum, and their alloys. Their products serve as critical enabling materials for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, power electronics substrates, and solid oxide fuel cell stacks. In H2020 projects, they contribute advanced metal and composite materials for GaN power semiconductor packaging, auxiliary power units, and next-generation chip fabrication at the 2nm node. They sit at the intersection of materials science and industrial production, supplying components that other technology developers cannot build without.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 participation (2015–2019), Plansee focused on power semiconductors (GaN substrates, pilot line materials), Industry 4.0 manufacturing, and solid oxide fuel cell components — a broad materials portfolio serving multiple end applications. By 2021, their focus sharpened dramatically toward advanced semiconductor fabrication, joining the ID2PPAC consortium targeting the 2nm node with lithography, metrology, and heterogeneous system engineering challenges. This shift mirrors the European Chips Act push: Plansee is positioning its materials expertise squarely in the most demanding semiconductor manufacturing segment.

Plansee is concentrating its EU R&D participation on the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing nodes, making them a key materials partner for European chip sovereignty initiatives.

How they like to work

Plansee consistently participates as a specialist partner, never as coordinator — they bring materials expertise to large, industry-driven consortia rather than leading project design. With 93 unique partners across 13 countries from just 4 projects, they work in very large consortia (averaging 23+ partners per project), typical of major European semiconductor and electronics initiatives. This pattern suggests they are sought after as a trusted materials supplier and are easy to integrate into large multi-stakeholder projects.

Despite only 4 projects, Plansee has built connections with 93 unique partners across 13 countries, reflecting the massive scale of European semiconductor consortia. Their network is heavily centered in Western and Central Europe's semiconductor ecosystem.

What sets them apart

Plansee occupies a rare niche: they are one of very few companies globally that can produce refractory metal components at the precision and purity required for semiconductor manufacturing equipment. While most semiconductor project partners focus on chip design, process integration, or equipment assembly, Plansee provides the upstream materials without which none of those steps can happen. For consortium builders, they fill the critical "advanced materials supplier" role that is often the hardest seat to fill in electronics-focused proposals.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ID2PPAC
  Largest funding (EUR 592K) and most ambitious scope — targeting the 2nm semiconductor node, placing Plansee at the frontier of European chip manufacturing R&D.
• COMPASS
  Highest single-project funding (EUR 797K) and a departure from semiconductors into solid oxide fuel cell APUs, showcasing Plansee's materials versatility beyond electronics.