Four phases can be distinguished in the life cycle of a facility, each requiring specific management and financing considerations.

(1) During the preconstruction phase, scientific, technical, financial and legal cases have to be confronted and thoroughly assessed to reach the decision to build the facility and to guarantee cost containment during all phases of the life of the facility. (2) The construction phase corresponds to a large spending in capital investment. The financial return to local building and equipment industry is a key factor to determine contributing partners. (3) The exploitation phase is the major period of scientific production. Its budget must include maintenance and constant upgrading of the facility. A strong link between scientific benefits and financing is desirable. Peer reviewed free international access is nevertheless essential to maintain world leading facilities. (4) The closing phase must be thought of right from the beginning. It includes dismantlement of buildings and equipments and reorientation of staff.

Optimal staff profiles change during the lifetime of a facility. Short and long term staff exchanges and staff mobility are key parameters to maintain competence and motivation. There is a need for a European mobility legal framework at all staff levels and for a prospective vision of future staff requirements integrating ESFRI, required competence, gender issue, succession planning, closing of facilities.

A strong program at the EU level remains highly desirable to develop European access to national and international facilities. For a given type of facility, participants should be seen as a single distributed European infrastructure. This does not necessarily mean more money (national + EU) but a different way to allocate it, e.g. through joined programming. It implies a constant dialogue and concerted actions between facilities and with national and EU authorities for defining domains of excellence and supporting methodological and technical developments.