BRUSSELS, JANUARY 20, 1948.

The Ministry of Finance was in a great mood in the early days of 1948. A new report for the month of January saw macroeconomic trends point towards positive developments due to the Spaak Plan. The overall analysis for the plan led to a single conclusion: It is possible to perform a satisfying mix of economic liberalism and social democracy. This project and its success led to a minor stabilization of the PSC/CVP-PSB/BSP coalition, with Finance Minister Gaston Eyskens mentioning, to a local Brussels newspaper, that ‘the coalition between our parties is going to produce wonderful results still’.

The objective now was to kickstart Belgian economy back into modernization and new production methods in as many areas of the industrial sector as possible. For this purpose, Gaston Eyskens has met with Prime Minister P.-H. Spaak and discussed the possibilities for a new technical institute. Among the issues discussed was the funding; the necessity for international cooperation; and the possibility of bridging the gap between the Flemish and the Walloon. The result was the Belgian Institute for Industrial Research (IBRI/BIIO).

The Belgian Institute for Industrial Research

The Objective

The Belgian Institute for Industrial Research (hereafter IBRI) is projected as a unitary research institution under the administration of the Belgian government and the Ministry of Education, hereafter changed by decree to the Ministry of Education and Technology (ME&T). It has two purposes. Its primary purpose is to undertake data interpretation and develop experimental methods of industrial production, including new machinery, production techniques, and energy methods, to advance our industrial production. A specific focus, as requested by the Ministry of Finance, will be to further our research on basic oxygen steelmaking, either by developing our own model or attracting researches capable of implementing this method in our indigenous industries. Its secondary purpose is to acquire, store, generate, and synthesize comprehensive data on all Belgian industries, encompassing areas such as steel production, garment making, and the extraction of minerals like iron ore or copper.

The Structure

The IBRI will be established in two periods: in 1949 there will be the creation of the main campus; the two other campuses will be launched simultaneously in 1951. The primary research and development (R&D) unit, to be known as Paul Héroult Center of Industrial Research, will be situated in Brussels. In addition to the central unit, there will also be the construction of secondary branches in Antwerp and Liège, named the A.E. van Arkel and the J.-J. Dony Research Centers, respectively.

The IBRI will be by a Director, who shall appoint Department Heads. A basic structure was developed in 1948 for the predicted organization of the IBRI:

The IBRI is to staffed by researchers and technical professionals of Belgian academia. They have to be approved through a civil service exam to be applied in September of 1948. Following their approval in October, they shall undergo a month-long course in November in order to be inducted into the organization in January of 1949. A commission of Belgian professors has been selected to draft a list of three prominent figures within academia to become the Director of the IBRI. The list will be sent to the ME&T and introduced to the King-Regent, who shall select the new Director.

Language and Collaboration

The IBRI’s central unit in Brussels will function through bilingual production. Its official languages will be both Dutch and French, as will all reports, policy papers, research and so on. At this point in time, English has not been approved as an official language. The other research units, set in Wallonia and Flanders, will have French and Dutch as their respective official languages. The objective is to have a central area where debates can flourish and facilitate cooperation, while smaller – albeit more specialized – research can occur in monolingual regions. This means these campuses are more accessible to beginning scientists, ensuring engagement with those local academic communities and broadening our reach in the country.

Government Support

The IBRI will be fully managed and supported by the Belgian government. This means that the government funds it and has the legal instruments necessary to nudge the institution according to specific interests. For instance, right now, the Belgian government is focusing on the development of new steelmaking processes. It can, later on, change this focus through an administrative decree to the production of improved models of garment machines, for instance.

Through a clause in the legislation, the Belgian government will dedicate 0.5% of its GDP to the IBRI, which is estimated at around US$36.6 million per year [M] US$342 mil. in 2011 USD [/M]. This can be changed through alterations in the yearly budget but the objective is to maintain the IBRI’s competitivity in the international scene by encouraging its funding. If the GDP contracts in any given year, the IBRI’s budget is not reduced in proportion with the GDP’s collapse, but rather is frozen in the value of the last time the Belgian GDP grew.

SUMMARY

• The Belgian government is creating a new institute called the Belgian Institute for Industrial Research (IBRI), a unitary institution under government administration and the Ministry of Education (now Ministry of Education and Technology).
• It has two objectives: the first is to undertake data interpretation and develop experimental methods for industrial production. It shall have the initial task of advancing research on basic oxygen steelmaking. The second objective is to acquire, store, and synthesize comprehensive data on all Belgian industries.
• The IBRI will be structured with a main campus in Brussels and two others, one in Antwerp and one in Liège.
• The IBRI will be staffed by researchers and technical professionals from Belgian academia, selected through a civil service exam. Department heads are appointed by the Director, who is appointed by the King. The institute uses both French and Dutch as their main language.
• The IBRI is funded by the Belgian government. For 1949 it will have a budget of US$36.6 million per year. It has a dedicated budget that totals 0.5% of the Belgian GDP in any given year. If the GDP contracts in any given year, the IBRI’s budget is not reduced in proportion with the GDP’s collapse, but rather is frozen in the value of the last time the Belgian GDP grew.