Two of the ARCHES WPs are dedicated to ensure the project benefits from efficient management and communication and that the scientific work and agenda is competently coordinated.

-WP1 Administrative Management

-WP2 Scientific Coordination

• Administrative management (WP1)

This WP aims at coordinating the overall activities of the project and ensuring the contractual, financial and administrative management of ARCHES.

Planned activity:

Activities attached to this WP consist in managing the financial, administrative aspects of the project, monitoring contractual obligations of the Consortium, coordinating with the Research Executive Agency and reporting on the project work and decisions, ensuring deliverables are submitted as planned, reporting on possible submission delays, organising Executive Board and other necessary meetings.

Under the sole responsibility of the University of Strasbourg, the outcome of this WP includes:

-Forms which can serve as templates for all kinds of reports internal to the ARCHES project. These templates aim at guaranteeing the homogeneity and sustainability of the ARCHES information system

-Reporting shall take place regularly throughout the project. A periodic report was issued halfway through the project to review the financial and administrative aspects of the project and to give a detailed description of the science work achieved.A final report is planned at the end of the project.

• Scientific coordination (WP2)

This WP aims at coordinating the different WPs within ARCHES and monitoring the project plan. The objective is also to ensure specific results are delivered on time and according to the financial obligations, as well as to control the quality of the performance, developments and of the output achieved.

Planned activity:

Tasks for this WP include management support to WP leaders, coordination of activities and communication within the Consortium, follow up of actions and work plan and reporting to the Research Executive Agency (REA). This WP also includes the administration and management of the ARCHES website which represents a significant tool to ensure efficient communication within the Consortium and to present ARCHES to the scientific community.

Activities foreseen in this WP also include efforts to apply high quality standards, to encourage good performance, probing critique and constructive criticism, close monitoring of work progress and efficient and frequent communication between the scientific coordinator and the WP leaders.

The University of Strasbourg is in charge of this WP and its planned activities and output which have consisted in:

-The organisation of a kick off meeting and its report.

The kick off meeting was a success. Organised from 6-7^th February 2013 at the Astronomical Observatory in Strasbourg it achieved its objectives:

• Meeting Executive Board members and other project participants in person.
• Introducing the ARCHES project manager.
• Discussing and defining management and project plans.

-The setting up of the ARCHES website.

It has been a priority from the start of the project. The ARCHES website has been functional since mid-April. It includes a wiki system accessible to ARCHES members only. Regularly updated the ARCHES website presents the project, its partners and recent activities and work to the scientific community; both the website and the wiki are efficient information exchange tools to enable the best quality communication among the consortium.

-The organisation of a closure meeting.