Collaboration in the Scientific Community

Vaisala is an active player in the scientific community. Scientific collaboration strengthens our position as an industry pioneer and an innovative technology leader. Vaisala continues to be a contributor to many organizations, advancing technological development in several fields of study.

We collaborate with the leading research institutes and universities to advance studies related to environmental and industrial measurements across various scientific and technological fields. Our collaboration partners include the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and Colorado State University, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in the United States. Vaisala’s key scientific research partners also include a number of national meteorological offices around the world.

Vaisala is an active participant in United Nations’ World Meteorological Organization (WMO). WMO coordinates the study of the state and behavior of the Earth’s atmosphere, including the weather and climate. It also facilitates its members’ observational networks and free, unrestricted exchange of data and information. In addition, WMO supports research to optimize the production of weather, climate, and water-related services worldwide.

The Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation (CIMO) is part of WMO. Vaisala is actively involved in several CIMO expert teams focusing on the development of industry practices and standards.

Vaisala is also a member of the Association of Hydro-Meteorological Equipment Industry© (HMEI), acknowledged by the WMO. The association represents private industry providers of products and services in the meteorological, hydrological, environmental, and related fields. Its goal is to facilitate interaction between its members and a broad range of governmental and private organizations. As a member of HMEI, Vaisala’s representatives participate in the expert teams of WMO’s Commission for Basic Systems (CBS) in order to help advance the improvement of environmental observations and weather forecasts worldwide.

Vaisala supports the Global Climate Reference Measurement Network (GRUAN) in characterizing climatologic data when migrating to a new radiosonde model.

We also participate in various industry standards development work in fields that are important to us. For example in the area of wind energy, Vaisala takes active part in International Electrotechnical Commission’s (IEC) wind energy standards committees and groups.

In 2018, Vaisala received research and development grants from governments amounting to EUR 488,000.

In the United States

In the United States, Vaisala is an active member in the Environmental Information Services Working Group of the NOAA Science Advisory Board. Vaisala also supports NOAA in the development of the new Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM), the first technology to map lightning from geostationary orbit. Combined with other weather measurement technologies, the GLM can help authorities better predict severe weather conditions. Vaisala participates in the evaluation of this new technology, and Vaisala’s lightning data is used as an important reference to validate the performance of the GLM.

Vaisala is also a strong contributor and corporate sponsor to the American Meteorological Society (AMS), a leading scientific organization dedicated to atmospheric, oceanic, and hydrologic sciences. In addition to sponsorships, Vaisala representatives contribute to the AMS through a number of activities, including the governance of the society and scientific committee memberships, reviewing and editing journals and articles, and actively sharing scientific advancements in various channels.

In Asia

Vaisala has a long-standing cooperation with the Chinese Meteorological Administration’s Institute of Urban Meteorology in various projects. In Australia, Vaisala cooperates with the University of New South Wales in a project aimed at advancing the scientific understanding of urban environments among students, the scientific community, government officials, and the wider public. Vaisala has provided 20 primary schools in the Sydney metropolitan area with the Vaisala meteorological and air quality sensor network, mobile communications gateway, and cloud-based data acquisition platform (Beacon Cloud). The platform enables the students to collect and analyze data from the sensor network. In addition to the students, the public can monitor conditions online in real time, and the information can be utilised by the government and the international scientific community.

In Europe

In Germany, Vaisala has a research collaboration agreement with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in the area of LiDAR applications and with the Fraunhofer Institute for microsensor technology development.

In Finland

In Finland, Vaisala operates in close cooperation with various scientific stakeholders, including the Finnish Meteorological Institute, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd., the University of Helsinki, Tampere University of Technology, Lappeenranta University of Technology, and Aalto University. We are also collaborating with the University of Jyväskylä to develop novel measurement methods and to utilize the University’s expertise in material analysis. Vaisala has representation in several working groups of the Technology Industries of Finland organization and in the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Finland, which promotes international trade and investment worldwide.

Vaisala is also a member in FIBS, Finland’s leading corporate responsibility network, and in the Climate Leadership Coalition (CLC). The purpose the CLC is to improve the competitiveness of Finnish businesses and research organizations and their ability to respond to the threats posed by climate change. In addition, Vaisala partners with the Technology Academy Finland (TAF). Vaisala is a shareholder and research partner of CLIC Innovation Oy, an open innovation cluster with the mission to create breakthrough solutions in bioeconomy, energy, and cleantech by facilitating joint research between industry and academia in Finland. Vaisala is also a project partner of the CITYZER project, which develops new digital services and products to support decision-making processes related to weather and air quality in cities. The results of the project work are utilized in the Helsinki and Nanjing Air Quality Testbeds.