Collaboration and Applied Research

At Cefas we spend approximately 20% of our annual budget on applied research and developmental activities, directly supporting customer needs. These projects drive innovation and scientific excellence across all our activities.

Our research benefits from the fact that we have over 100 years’ experience in providing marine monitoring services. This experience means that we can offer a profound and extensive understanding of UK and EU maritime policy, which helps ensure the best outcomes for our customers. We provide applied solutions that address real problems, based on leading edge and high quality scientific processes.

Our customers value our interdisciplinary and collaborative working. Almost all our scientific activities and research is undertaken in collaboration with others, from the UK and abroad, with integrated projects providing the strongest platform from which to solve complex problems.

Cefas' science is accredited to ISO9001 and the UK Government 'Joint Code of Practice'. These standards underpin delivery of all our science services and ensure we provide quality products for all our customers.

Research carried out by Cefas is published in a broad range of media, including a wide range of scientific journals. In 2014, Cefas published 170 peer-reviewed papers. Marine biology and fisheries science are the fields in which we have the greatest output of research papers, and Cefas now ranks in the top 5% of over 2,500 international institutes publishing in the same fields.

We also carry out ‘impact’ case studies in partnership with a range of universities and research institutes. These are used to provide a stronger evidence base for projects funded by the Research Council, ensuring they are providing solutions for societal benefit.