The main goal of the VARIES project is deliver a platform to help Embedded Systems developers to maximise the full potential of variability in safety critical embedded systems. The focus will be on the safety critical aspects, in particular the impact of reuse and composition on certification. Embedded systems developers constantly confront decisions about using and adapting existing products or product assets versus new developments. And producers of complex embedded systems often face the added problem of assembling parts supplied by different partners. Hence the need for mechanisms that allow safe and trusted integration. In addition to this ambitious goal, the VARIES project will create a Centre of Innovation Excellence (CoIE) for managing variability in Embedded Systems and offer appropriate support for the European Embedded Systems industry.