In my opinion, the critical role of CERN here is to create demand for cutting-edge production runs which can then be combined with other research projects for c

In my opinion, the critical role of CERN here is to create demand for cutting-edge production runs which can then be combined with other research projects for cost savings. In the PCB industry at least, it is quite common to pool designs from different customers onto one sheet. Also, CERN heavily promotes open source software development, among other things by getting students super excited (high school trip to a super collider) and by raising research funding for PhDs to work on said software.