In this paper we analyze from the technical point of view the possibility of developing the IFMIF facility (International Fusion Materials Irradiation Facility) in a stepped approach from the prototypes, presently under testing in the framework of the IFMIF/EVEDA Project (IFMIF Engineering Validation and Engineering Design Activities), but with the capability to fulfill the DEMO (Demonstration reactors) needs in a first step and the fusion power plant needs in a second step. The paper is focused on the so-called DONES (DEMO Oriented Neutron Source) alternative. It is built using one of the 40 MeV IFMIF accelerators, together with a strong simplification of some of the other systems and subsystems, driven by the lower power to be handled in the DONES facility, by transferring the PIE (post-irradiation experiment) analysis to other external facilities, by reducing the remote handling activities foreseen in the facility, and by reducing the type of irradiation experiments to be performed simultaneously. A preliminary neutronic evaluation of the achievable radiation map and on the requirements for the transfer of the irradiated modules to the external facility is also presented.