IRIS provides the digital research infrastructure that enables UK scientists to undertake data-intensive, computation-driven research at national and international scale. By bringing together computing, data, software, networking, security and expertise from across a federation of infrastructure providers, IRIS helps researchers process data more rapidly, collaborate more effectively and adopt advanced digital research methods. These capabilities accelerate scientific discovery, improve the efficiency and reproducibility of research, strengthen international partnerships and develop the skills needed for the next generation of research challenges. Over the long term, IRIS contributes to a resilient national digital research infrastructure, supports world-leading science, delivers wider economic and societal benefits, and helps maintain the UK’s leadership in global research programmes.
IRIS Logic Model
The IRIS Logic Model is a comprehensive causal-chain model mapping how IRIS inputs and activities translate into research outcomes and long-term impacts for STFC science communities. Aligned with UKRI, ESFRI, RI-PATHS, and HM Treasury Magenta Book evaluation frameworks.
The Logic Model describes how investment in digital research infrastructure is translated into scientific, economic and societal value. It provides a theory of change for IRIS, illustrating the relationship between resources, activities, outputs, outcomes and long-term impacts across the UK research landscape. The model is aligned with approaches used by UKRI, ESFRI, RI-PATHS and HM Treasury’s Magenta Book for evaluation and impact assessment.
Inputs → Activities → Outputs → Outcomes → Impacts
Inputs
Inputs represent the resources invested in IRIS that enable the delivery of services and capabilities to science communities.
- Financial Investment – STFC programme funding, operational budgets and capital investment supporting infrastructure development and renewal.
- Human Capital – Specialist engineers, research software engineers, system administrators, data scientists, security experts and technical specialists across IRIS providers.
- Infrastructure Assets – Federated computing platforms, storage systems, networking infrastructure and associated data services.
- Partnerships – Relationships with research communities, infrastructure providers, international collaborations and UKRI partners.
- Knowledge & Expertise – Existing technical capabilities, operational knowledge and intellectual property developed across the community.
- Governance – Strategic oversight, policy frameworks, roadmaps and community-led decision-making structures.
Activities
IRIS transforms these inputs into services and capabilities through a coordinated programme of technical delivery, community engagement and strategic planning.
- Provisioning and operating federated computing infrastructure.
- Developing data management, preservation and stewardship services.
- Operating identity, access management and secure networking services.
- Supporting research software engineering and scientific workflows.
- Engaging research communities and gathering requirements.
- Delivering training and digital skills development.
- Coordinating national and international strategic planning activities.
Outputs
The direct products and services delivered by IRIS include:
- Operational compute services spanning HPC, HTC, cloud and accelerator resources.
- Large-scale data storage and high-performance data transfer capabilities.
- Federated authentication, authorisation and security frameworks.
- Research software platforms, workflow tools and scientific applications.
- Training programmes and enhanced researcher skills.
- Community roadmaps, requirements analyses and strategic plans.
- Interoperability standards and operational best practices.
- Collaboration frameworks supporting national and international partnerships.
Outcomes
As researchers adopt and use IRIS services, a number of measurable outcomes emerge.
Short-Term Outcomes (1–2 Years)
- Accelerated data processing and scientific analysis.
- Improved efficiency through shared infrastructure and reduced duplication.
Medium-Term Outcomes (2–4 Years)
- Enhanced research quality and reproducibility.
- Expanded research capability and access to new scientific methodologies.
- Strengthened international collaboration.
- Growth in digital skills across research communities.
- Increased cross-disciplinary knowledge transfer.
Long-Term Impacts
The ultimate purpose of IRIS is to enable lasting scientific, economic and societal benefits for the United Kingdom and the international research community.
- World-Leading Science – Enabling discoveries and research breakthroughs across multiple scientific disciplines.
- Economic Impact – Creating innovation spillovers, supporting industry collaboration and developing high-value skills.
- National Research Capability – Establishing a resilient, sustainable and scalable digital research infrastructure.
- Workforce Development – Building a pipeline of highly skilled researchers, engineers and technical specialists.
- International Leadership – Strengthening the UK’s influence within major global scientific programmes and infrastructures.
- Public Value – Supporting open science, public engagement and broader societal benefits arising from scientific discovery.
Feedback and Reinforcing Mechanisms
IRIS operates within a series of reinforcing feedback loops that increase its long-term effectiveness and value.
- Capability–Demand Spiral – Improved infrastructure enables more ambitious science, creating additional demand and justifying further investment.
- Skills–Adoption Flywheel – Training leads to greater adoption, creating demand for new services and further skills development.
- Reputation–Partnership Cycle – Successful scientific outcomes enhance reputation, attracting new collaborations and investments.
- Complexity–Governance Balance – Growth increases organisational complexity and requires strong governance to maintain effective delivery.
External Factors
IRIS operates within a wider environment that influences outcomes but remains largely outside its direct control.
- UK science and research funding decisions.
- Technology innovation in computing, storage, AI and networking.
- Requirements of major international science programmes.
- Policy and regulatory developments.
- Technical labour market availability.
- Commercial cloud and technology vendor developments.
Understanding Attribution
Not all outcomes can be attributed to IRIS in the same way. The logic model uses three levels of attribution:
- Direct – Outcomes primarily caused by IRIS services and activities.
- Enabled – Outcomes that depend upon IRIS but also require significant contributions from researchers and partner organisations.
- Contributed – Outcomes where IRIS is one of several contributing factors that accelerate or amplify success.
