Our sponsors
Gold sponsors
Bertin Winlight, a brand of Bertin Technologies, brings the group’s expertise and activities in the field of photonics, delivering high-performance solutions for the most demanding scientific infrastructures and research programs worldwide.
Nuclear fusion is a core strategic focus of Bertin Winlight’s expertise. Our company is a key partner in scientific instrumentation for fusion, particularly in the analysis of very high-temperature plasmas generated during fusion reactions. Through cutting-edge photonic technologies, Bertin Winlight provides advanced diagnostic and measurement systems that are essential for understanding, monitoring, and controlling plasma behavior, supporting major international fusion programs.
Building on this unique expertise, our experts designs and delivers advanced components and systems for big science applications, with a strong emphasis on fusion, as well as astronomy, large-scale scientific infrastructures such as synchrotrons, and space environments. These solutions are developed to meet the most stringent requirements in terms of precision, reliability, and performance, and are specifically engineered to operate in extreme and highly constrained environments.
By combining scientific excellence, industrial know-how, and a strong innovation-driven culture, Bertin Winlight positions itself as a reference photonics player serving the fusion community, supporting research institutions and laboratories in addressing the technological challenges of future energy.
BigScience.NL is the Dutch network of Industrial Liaison Officers (ILOs) connecting high-tech industry with the world’s most ambitious scientific infrastructures: from CERN and ESA to ESO and ITER. By bridging science and industry, BigScience.NL helps Dutch companies win challenging contracts, collaborate internationally, and contribute to landmark research facilities.
At SOFT, six Dutch high-tech companies and one research institute are jointly represented under the BigScience.NL banner, each bringing specialised expertise to Big Science challenges.
Schmiedewerke Gröditz and Rolf Kind: A Strong Partnership for Advanced Energy Technologies
Schmiedewerke Gröditz, part of the GMH Gruppe, and Rolf Kind combine their complementary expertise in a strategic partnership to support the next generation of energy technologies. Together, they offer an integrated value chain – from high-quality steel production and open-die forging to precision machining, testing, and comprehensive documentation.
As a specialized forging company within the GMH Gruppe, Schmiedewerke Gröditz brings decades of experience in producing high-performance forged components for demanding industrial applications. This materials and forging expertise is complemented by Rolf Kind’s capabilities in complex machining and component finishing.
The collaboration enables a seamless transition from forged semi-finished products to ready-to-install, high-precision components. This integrated approach ensures the quality, traceability, and reliability required for advanced energy systems.
A particular focus of the partnership lies in technologies supporting sustainable and future energy solutions, including applications in fusion research. By combining metallurgical know-how, manufacturing precision, and rigorous quality assurance, Schmiedewerke Gröditz and Rolf Kind contribute to components capable of performing in highly demanding environments.
Following successful joint activities in previous years, the companies once again present their collaboration at SOFT 2026 in Aix-en-Provence, highlighting their shared commitment to innovation, technical excellence, and long-term cooperation.
Together, Schmiedewerke Gröditz and Rolf Kind deliver reliable solutions for advanced energy technologies – from steel to finished components.
With decades of experience in practical tritium handling, smolsys provides you with the safest, most flexible, and advanced tools for industrial hydrogen isotope processing.
smolsys, your partner for:
- High Vacuum, all metal tritium bellows valves, off the shelf, tested and VCR® compatible, ¼ to 1.5 Inch
- Raman Spectroscopy, proven in tritium fuel cycle, easy to use, plug& produce®
- Solid state gas scintillation sensors
- Isotope pressure pumps, 100 bar and more
- Glove box systems (inert gas) and fume hoods, modular, for tritium handling
- System automation, pneumatic valve actuators, off the shelf, retrofit possible
- Handling systems, production lines, custom made
- Mobile tritium handling laboratories (plug&produce®), custom built
Our extensive experience and in-house tritium microsystems production facility provide a solid foundation for our solutions.
We support customer projects from the very beginning, starting with requirements engineering and process development. Once the optimal solution is defined, we engineer and manufacture the required components, building and getting them everything ready for factory acceptance testing.
We offer site acceptance test and qualification as well.
New to tritium handling? Need to upgrade equipment, or just face a challenging task?
Call us now. We look forward talking to you: +41 79 173 24 84
Silver sponsors
AXIMA Concept – Vacuum Systems for Nuclear Fusion Facilities
AXIMA Concept is a leading company for the design, manufacture, installation and commissioning of primary, secondary and ultra-high vacuum systems for nuclear fusion facilities.
Our scope covers the complete vacuum system lifecycle, including engineering studies, prefabrication of stainless steel and aluminium alloy piping networks, installation of pumping equipment, instrumentation and control integration, and final commissioning.
The company also performs high-precision leak detection and qualification testing using qualified methods such as global helium testing and pressure variation techniques.
AXIMA Concept’s capability is supported by multidisciplinary engineering teams, strong partnerships with leading vacuum equipment suppliers, and proven experience delivering turnkey vacuum systems for high-integrity environments.
Our expertise ensures reliable vacuum performance, strict leak-tightness requirements, and full compliance with the demanding standards of nuclear fusion projects.
CIVIDEC Instrumentation GmbH is an internationally operating company which has its headquarters in the heart of Vienna, Austria. CIVIDEC specializes in the development and production of radiation diagnostic systems, based on synthetic chemical vapour deposition (CVD) diamond detectors, analogue electronics and digital real-time data processing units.
Our fast-neutron diagnostics systems are used for plasma diagnostics in fusion devices, where the fusion plasma temperature and profile are extracted from the neutron energy distribution measured along specific line of sights. CIVIDEC diamond detectors are available off-the-shelf or as customized solutions, such as the Diamond Matrix Detector for the ITER-RNC.
Dockweiler’s Expertise in Fusion Technology Installations
- Ultrapure stainless-steel tubing and components for demanding applications
- Safety and full traceability through transparent, documented processes
- Clean & controlled production
- Precise, orbital weld seams enabled by long-standing welding expertise
- Comprehensive 100% quality control across all process steps
- Extensive, high quality documentation with convenient online access
- Experiences with F4E and IO specifications
- ITER and F4E-project experiences
EUROfusion supports and funds fusion research for the Euratom programme across 26 EU member states, Ukraine, and Switzerland, while Norway and the UK participate via national budgets. Guided by the Roadmap to the Realisation of Fusion Energy, the consortium fosters education through the Bernard Bigot Researcher and Engineering Grant schemes.
It further supports diverse projects via the Enabling Research scheme and manages Technology Transfer activities. Established on 9 October 2014, EUROfusion (the European Consortium for the Development of Fusion Energy) cements European collaboration to advance the global development of fusion power.
Exosens is a European leader in high-end electro-optical technologies, delivering advanced detection and imaging solutions for the most demanding scientific, industrial, and research environments. With more than 85 years of expertise, the company designs and manufactures cutting-edge instruments ranging from advanced imaging cameras to highly specialized detectors for electrons, ions, neutrons, and gamma radiation.
Exosens plays a key role in enabling the next generation of fusion energy by providing advanced radiation detection and diagnostic technologies that operate reliably in extreme environments. Through high-performance neutron detectors, fission chambers, and radiation-hardened sensors, Exosens delivers the precise measurements scientists need to analyze plasma behavior, monitor neutron flux, and validate fusion performance—supporting the progress of major international fusion research programs.
Since the dawn of the atomic age, General Atomics innovations have advanced the state of the art across the full spectrum of science and technology – from nuclear energy and defense to medicine and high-performance computing. Behind a talented global team of scientists, engineers, and professionals, GA’s unique experience and capabilities continue to deliver safe, sustainable, economical, and innovative solutions to meet growing global demands.
With over 40 years’ experience designing and developing quadrupole mass spectrometers, Hiden Analytical is a leading manufacturer of scientific instruments for advanced research and specialist process monitoring. Driven by customer- and application-focused innovation, Hiden works in partnership with users to deliver leading-edge products that extend analytical capability and strengthen confidence in results.
Hiden’s portfolio spans precision gas analysis, plasma diagnostics by direct measurement of plasma ions and ion energies, SIMS probes for UHV surface science, catalysis performance quantification and thermo-gravimetric studies, covering pressures from 30 bar processes down to UHV/XHV. Global reach is strengthened by local representation across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East & Africa, and Asia & Pacific, supported by dedicated sales and service centres and experienced application specialists.
Fusion research and technology place exceptional demands on vacuum integrity, gas purity and real-time diagnostics. Hiden systems support fusion-relevant workflows including residual gas analysis for contamination tracking, vacuum and leak verification during commissioning and maintenance, and plasma–surface interaction studies where sensitive detection of light gases and trace species is essential. Hiden helps laboratories reduce risk, improve uptime, and accelerate fusion. From RGA to plasma ion analysis, our instruments support cleaner vacuums, safer operations, and better reproducibility in fusion R&D.
The HUN-REN Centre for Energy Research is active both in fission and fusion nuclear energy technology development, with a strong emphasis on applied research, engineering development, and international collaboration. The Fusion Plasma Physics Department (FPLab) plays a central role in bringing together plasma physicists and engineers, enabling activities that span from fundamental plasma diagnostics to the design and construction of reactor-relevant systems.
FPLab has more than three decades of experience in fusion research and over two decades of participation in Euratom/EUROfusion programmes, working closely with major international facilities like ITER, JT-60SA, Wendelstein 7-X, ASDEX Upgrade, MAST Upgrade, KSTAR, EAST and BEST. A core competence of the department is the development of active beam and optical diagnostics, including beam emission spectroscopy, high-speed video diagnostics, synthetic diagnostics and advanced data evaluation and modelling techniques. These activities are closely related to experimental operation and theory, ensuring direct relevance for present-day and next-step fusion devices.
A strategic focus area is cryogenic pellet technology, covering shattered pellet injection for disruption mitigation, fuelling pellet systems, and supporting cryogenic infrastructure. FPLab operates an ITER DMS Support Laboratory and develops fuelling pellet solutions for JT-60SA and other devices.
In addition to academic research, Hungarian fusion industry partners are closely integrated into these activities through direct ITER contracts and joint developments with the Research Centre. FPLab welcomes industrial and institutional collaborations in diagnostics, cryogenics, design, modelling and prototype development.
KME is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of copper and copper alloy products. With its dedicated employees, KME offers a wide range of innovative product solutions for customers in industry, trade and commerce. KME supplies pre-strips, industrial strips, cable and Hf cable strips as well as sheets, plates and discs in a wide range of different materials made of copper and copper alloys. Thanks to its versatile and attractive characteristics, copper is one of the most widely used commodity metals today. From electromobility, aircraft and aerospace systems, autonomous driving and smart home applications to modern communication technology – copper is an indispensable material for high-tech solutions. Qualified KME teams work on market-orientated and customer-oriented issues along the entire copper value chain.
RI Research Instruments GmbH specializes in the design, engineering, and manufacturing of high-complexity and high-precision components and systems for Fusion Energy and particle accelerators.
For Fusion Energy, RI focuses on the engineering and manufacturing of cryogenic systems, RF systems, fuel cycle, pulsed power systems, and components designed to operate in extreme harsh conditions, including the Inner Vertical Targets for ITER.
RI has the in-house capabilities to manufacture highly complex components with advanced production technologies, including electron beam welding, vacuum brazing, precision machining, heat treatments, 3D measurements, helium leak detection, RGA, cryogenic tests and cleanroom assembly.
Ridgway Machines is a UK-based world leader in the design and manufacture of high-precision machinery for superconducting coil and cable production. With over 100 years of engineering heritage and more than two decades supporting high-field magnet programmes, including contributions linked to CERN, ITER, Commonwealth Fusion Systems and SuperNode. Ridgway delivers automated winding, taping and insulation platforms for fusion and HTS applications. As part of Tokamak Energy, the company enables scalable, repeatable industrial manufacture of superconducting coils, magnet systems and cables for next-generation fusion devices and advanced electrical infrastructure.
With decades of expertise, SAES-HVD is a trusted partner in nuclear fusion research. Its innovative technologies enable the stringent vacuum conditions required for plasma containment and other critical processes in fusion energy development.
Managing hydrogen isotopes is one of the key challenges in fusion energy. SAES-HVD addresses these challenges with:
- Hydrogen Storage and Release: ZAO NEG pumps ensure unmatched capacity for safe hydrogen storage and release.
- Tritium Handling: SAES-HVD materials provide sustainable and efficient tritium management.
About – SAES is global leader in advanced material solutions, delivering innovative technologies for vacuum systems, gas management, and specialized materials across different sectors, shaping the future technologies.
