EDIP/USI 2027: Industrial Reinforcement Actions for unmanned and counter-unmanned systems (EU–Ukraine)

Expected Impact:
Projects are expected to deliver results aligned with the expected results set out in this call topic and to evidence their contribution through dedicated KPIs defined in the proposal. Expected results include:
• demonstrable and sustainable
increase in production capacity in UA
for the targeted (counter-)UxS-related production lines;
• measurable
reduction of production lead time
from order/production decision to delivery in UA;
• improved t
imely availability and supply of defence products in UA
, including increased delivery reliability and readiness of production lines;
• effective
cross-border cooperation between UA and EU
that enables production ramp-up, integration, qualification and sustainment;
• strengthened Ukrainian industrial base, and, where applicable, operationalised MaaS and dual-use heavy industry conversion pathways for surge.
Proposals shall define, baseline and track KPIs such as: production output (units/month), time-to-rate, lead-time reduction, line availability/uptime, qualified output delivered in UA, MaaS throughput, surge conversion readiness indicators, and workforce trained where relevant—alongside risk-related indicators demonstrating supply robustness and maintainability readiness.
Objective:
This topic aims to reinforce (counter-)UxSs readiness and a sovereign UxSs component base by enabling the rapid industrial reinforcement of Member States and Ukraine for key defence product (including subcomponents) production lines:
•
(swarming) UxSs
(including FPV variants, modular payload configurations, relay/repeater variants, and AI-enabled/autonomy-enabled UxS integration where relevant) and (swarming) UxS interceptor variants (including intercept solutions to protect critical nodes and logistics routes);
•
EW-resilient UxS variants
(including fibre-optic controlled UxS, and other GNSS- /RF-denied operational profiles);
•
counter-UxSs and EW(-resilient) supporting systems
(including counter-UxSs EW function supporting detection/characterisation, jamming/spoofing and spectrum management for friendly UxS operations, terminal navigation, optronic and radar-guided systems).
Actions shall be aligned with the objectives, scope and priorities of this call topic, and implemented as IRA under USI in line with Regulation (EU) 2025/2643. Proposals are expected to ensure
timely availability and supply of defence products in Ukraine,
by scaling production capacity and industrial readiness for
cross-border (EU-UA)
industrial set-up in the form of:
• joint production lines;
• reinforcement of specific production capacity and enablement capacity (including integration and validation/testing of alternative control and navigation approaches, production/service and maintenance capability/integration of sensing and effector modules, multi-sensor fusion integration, and dedicated assembly/test capacity/production planning to sustain high monthly volumes, as applicable);
• scale-up of UA systems and ready-to-use production lines (including rapid-cycle modular assembly and re-configuration capacity to adapt to fast-evolving threats and mission profiles);
• MaaS (Manufacturing as a Service) (including rapid small-batch production, fast line changeover, and scalable assembly/test capacity for attritable UxS output);
• dual-use heavy industry conversion options for defence surge (including surge assembly/integration, test, packaging, and supporting infrastructure as applicable).
Applicants may include an optional dedicated Work Package (WP) implementing a supporting action as defined in Article 13(d) of Regulation (EU) 2025/2643, to r
einforce the physical and cyber protection of the production capacity targeted by the action, including on security against UxS/drone-enabled threats
. The objective is to reduce the risk of disruption, sabotage or interference affecting production continuity, ramp-up and deliveries, complementing the proposal’s overall risk-management approach (notably safety, supply-chain and obsolescence, industrialisation/integration, and maintainability risks) and supporting the achievement of the industrial KPIs set for lead time and capacity.
Scope:
Proposals shall implement Industrial Reinforcement Actions, in line with Regulation (EU) 2025/2643, targeting the specific defence product and production capacities listed under “Objectives pursued”.
Proposals shall demonstrate the
criticality of the targeted defence product (including subcomponents)
and justify the urgency of reinforcing their availability and security of supply through the proposed industrial reinforcement activities.
Proposals shall include a
risk-management approach
commensurate with industrial ramp-up in UA (including safety, supply-chain and obsolescence, industrialisation/integration, maintainability, and operational constraints), explain how risks are mitigated to ensure timely availability and supply of defence products in UA, and shall, where relevant include provisions allowing to upgrade quickly the targeted (counter-)UxS based on the evolving lessons identified from the battlefield.
Activities linked to the
physical and cyber protection WP
may include expert threat assessment, procurement, installation and initial integration of proportionate solutions as well as efforts to connect to a national or European security system for: (i) counter-UxS site protection measures (detection/alerting and other authorised protective measures), and/or (ii) cyber protection measures of production-relevant networks and systems (including monitoring, hardening and secure access) which includes obtaining the European Union Cybersecurity Certification (EUCC) schemes for products used in the IRA activity, as well as acceptance testing and operational set-up necessary for effective deployment, in order to work towards compliance with the NIS2 Directive, where applicable, and alignment with standards such as ISO/IEC 27001 and IEC 62443.
Actions shall not have started before 5 March 2024 and shall