Enhancing the research infrastructure is an important policy issue in science, technology and innovation policy. The first Science and Technology Basic Plan stated importance of research infrastructure to follow aging of university facilities and equipments in 1990s. Since the 2000s, the environment around research infrastructure has become severer due to the incorporation of national universities and severe financial conditions.
In recent years, the research infrastructure is expected not only to reduce costs and improve efficiency, but also as a platform for development of new science and technology fields and creation of innovations. International perspective is indispensable for development and utilization of research infrastructure such as building large scale facilities and sharing machine time and fees. In recent years, the URA (University Research Administrator) has become an increasingly important for management of research infrastructure.
