The challenge of the quest for energy from fusion is being addressed in the EU through a significant programme articulated in a roadmap combining the design of a Demonstration Fusion Power Plant (DEMO) and substantial R&D activities. Following the recent transition of the DEMO project to Concept Design phase, emphasis is being put on ensuring self-consistent integrated DEMO plant design concepts emerging from a system-oriented approach. A staged design approach has been adopted and the various elements of its foundation are currently being pursued. The paper provides an overview of the organized effort leading to the development of a concept for the maintenance of the breeding blanket of DEMO as an example of the overall process of concept selection and concept validation laid out for the DEMO Concept Design phase. This specific effort is done in a collaborative framework with the China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor programme that seeks to resolve the same issues on the way to a first-of-a-kind fusion power plant.
