Service Provider’s Pitches #1: LNE and CETIC Present TEF-Health Services for SMEs

LNE catalogue of services 

Guillaume Bernand, project manager at LNE (Laboratoire National de Métrologie et d’Essais), a French Institution born at the beginning of the 20th century and owned partially by the French government, presented the range of services offered by the French national laboratory, focusing on datasets evaluation and AI testings in the medical domain, metrology tests, regulatory analysis, certification and cybersecurity. LNE aims to guide SMEs in aligning their solutions with the upcoming AI Act and in achieving readiness for CE marking (Conformité Européenne), which certifies a product compliance with EU health, safety, and environmental standards. 

What is the business value for SMEs? 

A key benefit for SMEs is early-stage preparation for CE marking - critical in the healthcare sector, where AI regulations will soon build upon an already demanding legal framework. LNE provides independent, unbiased evaluations, a resource SMEs often lack internally. LNE’s services are based not only on the AI Act but also on insights from Notified Bodies, increasing their relevance and practical value. 

LNE’s support in practice  

Mr. Bernand illustrated this with the case of Median Technologies, a French SME developing a medical device, based on an AI tool, to analyse MRI images for cancer diagnosis seeking to meet EU regulatory requirements. LNE supported them first through consulting on their quality management system and documentation and secondly by conducting a performance evaluation of their AI system using validated datasets - offering clarity on regulatory alignment and product readiness. 

Importantly, LNE’s services integrate into the wider TEF-Health ecosystem. For instance, an SME might begin with LNE’s gap analysis, then be referred to hospital partners for access to qualified clinical datasets, and finally could turn to CETIC for cybersecurity testing. This modular, collaborative approach is a core advantage of the TEF-Health network. 

CETIC’s Role in TEF-Health 

Maher Badri and Nikolaos Matskanis, project managers at CETIC (Centre d’Excellence en Technologies de l’Information et de la Communication) presented their non-profit ICT applied research centre supporting regional economic development by transferring technological skills and expertise to businesses. It connects academic research with real-world applications, by transforming academic results into practical and innovative solutions - in health, smart mobility, energy, and manufacturing and other domains. 

Its 50+ researchers specialise in software engineering, AI, data management, cybersecurity testing, algorithmics combinatorial optimisation and IoT.  

What expertise does CETIC bring to SMEs? 

In TEF-Health, CETIC supports startups and SMEs by providing access to virtual testing facilities - including simulated data environments, cybersecurity testing tools, and IoT testing capabilities. 

AI-based healthcare solutions present significant challenges and CETIC helps address key obstacles, such as:  

• the lack of high-quality, standardised data for training, validation, and testing;  

• the difficulty SMEs face in setting up rigorous internal testing required to build robust and secure AI systems, resilient to errors and cyber-attacks, and  

• the challenge SMEs face to comply with the AI Act, the Medical Device Regulation (MDR) and other EU regulations, often due to limited understanding of regulatory obligations.  

While TEF-Health targets solutions at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 and above, CETIC can also support startups and SMEs from TRL 3 onwards, offering valuable support in earlier phases of development. 

Boosting SMEs’ innovation in Health Tech: practical case studies of CETIC's support services 

CETIC provides support to SMEs through a range of services which were illustrated through three use cases in key areas of expertise: AI deployment in hospitals, cybersecurity testing and hospital process optimisation. 

How to find TEF-Health services? 

To access and apply for TEF-Health testing and validation services, SMEs and startups should: 

• visit TEF-Health.eu 

• search for services, and  

• filter by country and provider (e.g. LNE or CETIC) to explore the full service catalogue.  

For inquiries, contact LNE and CETIC via email. 

How to apply for support in testing and validation? 

• Register at https://tef.charite.de/register and create a user account. 

• If any service meets your SME’s needs, submit your application. 

• Eligibility Check: to ensures compliance, TEF-Health expert evaluators will assess and score your application 

• Engagement – qualified applicants are connected with service providers for contract setup. 

Do you want to rewatch the webinars?

The full webinar recordings are available on the TEF-Health Youtube channel.