Funding available for innovation in time dissemination and application
Innovate UK is working with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) to invest up to £2 million in feasibility studies for innovation in the dissemination and application of resilient time, frequency and synchronisation (TFS). This funding is from the Strategic Priorities Fund (SPF).
Scope
The competition objectives are as follows:
- Firstly, to support and enable business-led innovation across the UK supply chain in resilient TFS. As a result, this should lead to the development of products, services and end user applications.
- Secondly, to develop a TFS ecosystem and capability for relevant industries and critical national infrastructure.
- Lastly, to disrupt and create new markets to improve the provision of TFS.
Your project must deliver a feasibility study for an innovative development and demonstrate a route to market. It should also be scalable, either geographically or across applications. For additional information, including specific themes that your project might consider, click here.
Eligibility
Projects can start from 1st October 2021 and should last between 4 and 6 months. Eligible costs can range from £50,000 up to a maximum of £250,000. In addition, your organisation must fulfil the following criteria to work alone or lead a project:
- Be a UK registered business of any size
- If collaborative, partner with other UK registered businesses, research organisations, research and technology organisations (RTO), academic institutions, public sector organisations or charities
- Carry out its project work and intend to exploit its results from or in the UK
- Academic institutions and research organisations cannot lead an application or work alone
Innovation in time dissemination and application will open on Monday 19th April and close on Wednesday 9th June. You can find more information on the competition page. To book a free consultation with one of our advisers, please contact us today.
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£20 million available for clean maritime and smart shipping projects
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of £20 million for clean maritime and smart shipping projects. By supporting the design and development of these technologies, the competition aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the UK’s maritime sector. The funding is from the Department for Transport and delivered by Innovate UK.
Innovate UK is seeking solutions for all sizes and categories of maritime vessels. In addition, all ports and harbours are in scope, including infrastructure for both freight and leisure. There are two strands running at the same time:
Strand 1 – Feasibility Studies
In strand 1, projects must:
- Review the technical and economic feasibility of solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
- Develop a clear plan for a future technology demonstration to be deployed after the feasibility project has been completed
For more information on project scope, including specific themes, click here. Total eligible costs can range from £25,000 to £1,000,000. Your project should start before 1st September 2021 and end by 31st March 2022, lasting up to 7 months in total.
Strand 2 – Industrial Research and Experimental Development
In this strand, projects must design, develop and test novel clean maritime or smart shipping technologies. They must reduce greenhouse gas emissions from both vessels and shore-side infrastructure at ports and harbours. You can find more information about the competition's scope on the Innovate UK website. Your project must have total eligible costs between £100,000 and £4,000,000. Again, your project can start any time from 1st September 2021 and should end by 31st March 2022.
The Clean Maritime competition is open from 22nd March until 2nd June 2021. If you’re thinking of making an application and are looking for bid writing support, please contact us today.
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£10 million available to support the uptake of battery electric trucks
A new Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) has launched to provide an innovative solution to enable fleets to switch to battery electric trucks. It is funded by the Department for Transport and delivered by Innovate UK. This is phase 1 of a potential 2-phase competition. Phase 1 projects must include data evaluation, test and demonstration involving a minimum of ten battery electric trucks. If phase 2 goes ahead, projects will involve further field testing and evaluation.
Scope
The competition aims to develop one or more innovative, interactive solutions to support the uptake of battery electric trucks. This should encompass both public and private sector fleet operations.
Your proposal must:
- Identify the costs and considerations around deploying commercially available zero emission trucks
- Demonstrate a credible and practical route to market
- Include a plan to commercialise your result and demonstrate how your solution will provide value
Your solution must:
- Ensure users understand both the strengths and weaknesses of deploying commercially available battery electric zero emission trucks
- Help users to 1) gain an understanding of the economic and practical feasibility of the technology and 2) de-risk, aid and encourage fleet operators to convert to battery electric vehicles
- Provide relevant information to help users make a range of decisions, for example, what to expect in terms of vehicle use and system performance to options for vehicle charging
Eligibility
In total, £10 million is available through this competition with the Department for Transport expecting to fund up to 3 projects. Phase 1 projects can last up to 10 months. Organisations of any size can lead a project and work alone or with subcontractors. You must also be able to provide or obtain access to suitable battery electric trucks to meet the real-time logistics demands of a UK public sector fleet operator. Finally, you should obtain and submit a letter of support from a UK public sector fleet operator
This competition is open between 22nd March and 21st April. If you’d like to discuss an application with one of our advisers, please get in touch. You may also be interested in Innovate UK’s Zero Emission Road Freight competition.
Zero Emission Road Freight: funding available for feasibility studies and industrial research
Innovate UK is investing up to £10 million in innovative projects that focus on zero emission road freight and its supporting infrastructure. This funding is from the Department for Transport as part of the commitments defined in the Government’s Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution.
The competition has three strands running at the same time:
- Electric road system demonstration (feasibility studies) – strand 1.
- Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles demonstration (feasibility studies) – strand 2.
- Supply chain technology (feasibility studies and industrial research) – strand 3.
In addition, a related SBRI procurement competition is currently open, which aims to support the uptake of battery electric trucks.
Electric Road Systems
Funding is available for ambitious feasibility studies into an electric road system demonstration. The system should be suitable for 44 tonne zero emission road freight. In this strand, projects must have total eligible costs from £500,000 to £2 million and take place between 1st July 2021 and 31st March 2022.
Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles
UK registered organisations or businesses can apply for funding for feasibility studies into a future zero emission road freight demonstration of hydrogen fuel cell trucks. Eligible costs must be between £500,000 and £2 million while all projects should again take place between 1st July 2021 and 31st March 2022.
Supply Chain Technology
Lastly, funding is available for advanced feasibility studies and industrial research in supply chain technology. All proposals must address the challenges associated with the transition to zero emission road freight. Secondly, they should define a solution to the technical challenges to developing or operating zero emission trucks. Your total eligible costs should be between £100,000 and £250,000.
Each of the three stands will close on 5th May 2021. If you’re short on time and therefore looking for grant writing support, please contact us to arrange a free consultation.
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Funding available to solve problems associated with zero emission vehicles
The UK Government has £17 million available to invest in innovative zero emission vehicles projects. The competition aims to address challenges associated with their uptake in the UK.
Firstly, funding is available for feasibility studies and collaborative research and development projects. Projects must provide on-vehicle innovative solutions that support the transition to zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) in line with the Government’s transport decarbonisation aims. Solutions should address one or more of the following challenges:
- Improve ZEV capability
- Increase adoption of small commercial ZEVs
- Support transition to zero emission for special use vehicles
- Improve ZEV user experience
- Improve sustainability of ZEVs
Applicants can address these challenges in one of two ways: 1) using new, highly innovative solutions or 2) by advancing an existing innovation or R&D project.
Transitioning towards Zero Emission Vehicles: Feasibility Studies
Up to £1 million is available for feasibility studies. Your project should have total eligible costs between £300,000 and £600,000. It must start by 1st August 2021 and end by 31st March 2022, lasting no longer than 8 months.
At the end of the feasibility study, your project must be ready to continue in future R&D competitions. In addition, you should be able to raise private sector investment to take the project outcome to market.
Transitioning towards Zero Emission Vehicles: Collaborative Research and Development
Up to £6 million is available for collaborative research and development projects. Again, your project must have total eligible costs between £300,000 and £600,000. It should start by 1st August 2021 and end by 31st March 2022, lasting no longer than 8 months.
Infrastructure solutions for zero emission vehicles
Secondly, up to £10 million is available for innovative infrastructure solutions that support the UK's transition to zero emission vehicles. Innovate UK will fund feasibility studies and research and development projects that address one or more of the following infrastructure challenges:
- Improve public residential charging in urban areas
- Improve rural charging
- Advance fleet charging solutions
- Enhance the ZEV user charging experience
Your project must have total eligible costs between £300,000 and £800,00 and the lead organisation must be a UK registered business. In addition, you have to work in collaboration; this may be with another UK-registered business or with an academic institution, charity, not-for-profit, research organisation or research and technology organisation (RTO).
The competition is open from Monday 15th March until Wednesday 21st April. However, there's no need to let the short turnaround stop you from applying! Our expert advisers are on hand to help; contact us today to arrange a free, no-obligation consultation.
Driving the Electric Revolution: funding available for supply chain innovation projects
The latest round of Innovate UK’s Driving the Electric Revolution competition is now open for applications, with up to £22 million available for innovation projects that support the government’s green industrial revolution. The competition aims to facilitate supply chain and manufacturing capability growth in power electronics, machines and drives (PEMD).
Background
Part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, Driving the Electric Revolution is an investment of £80 million in electrification technologies. The challenge, which launched in 2019, helps businesses to seize the opportunities that the UK’s transition to net-zero presents.
Scope
The competition aims to facilitate UK niche and volume supply chain and manufacturing growth in PEMD. Therefore, funding is available for business-led and supply chain-focused innovation projects. All projects must enable future improvements in at least one of the following areas: productivity, capacity, quality, efficiency. Ideally, projects should also have the potential for cross-sector impact.
You can find specific themes on the Innovate UK competition page. Broadly, they encompass the following areas:
- Manufacturing process development
- Design for manufacture
- Innovative end-of-line testing and product validation processes
- Circular economy
Eligibility
Firstly, projects must have total costs between £500,000 and £5 million. To lead a project, your organisation must be a UK registered business of any size and work in collaboration. You must conduct all project work and intend to exploit your results from or within the UK. In addition, the project team must include at least 3 layers of an existing or new supply chain, representing both the supply and demand side.
Applications are due by 30th June 2021. If you would like to discuss an application with one of our advisers, please contact us today.
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Commercialising Quantum Technologies: funding available for germinator projects
£1 million is available for high-risk, high-return quantum technology projects with defined commercial outputs. The funding is from the Commercialising Quantum Technologies programme of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF). It aims to advance the commercialisation of quantum technologies in the UK through the development of early-stage quantum technology opportunities.
This competition is split into 3 strands: ‘Feasibility Studies R2’, Germinator projects (this strand) and ‘CR&D and Tech 2.’
Scope - Your Proposal
All proposals must identify a promising application of quantum technologies, a project to demonstrate its potential and a route to market. In more detail, your project must:
- Identify a commercial opportunity
- Quantify technological outcomes
- Provide a roadmap of future exploitation
- Exploit second generation quantum techniques
You should also identify any future work and funding that you will require to bring your project to commercial maturity.
Eligibility – Who Can Apply?
Firstly, your project’s total eligible costs must not exceed £50,000. In addition, it should last for a total of 6 months, starting by 1st October 2021 and ending by 31st March 2022. To lead a project, your organisation must:
- Be a UK registered business, public sector organisation, academic institution, research and technology organisation (RTO) or research organisation
- Carry out its project work in the UK
- Intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
A research organisation, academic institution, research and technology organisation or research organisation cannot work alone, but they can lead a project if they have a UK registered business as a partner.
This competition is open from 10th February until 31st March. For more information, please visit the Innovate UK competition page or contact us.
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ISCF Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Demonstrators: £16 million available
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of £16 million for ambitious demonstrator projects in smart and sustainable plastic packaging. The funding, which is from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, will support projects that demonstrate innovation at a commercial scale.
This is the Expression of Interest stage, at which there is no funding. Successful applicants will receive an invite to proceed to stage 2 and submit a full-stage application.
Scope
Firstly, your proposal should address widely known problems in relation to plastic packaging for consumer products. It must also include significant industry investment. Innovate UK is particularly interested in projects which address the UK Plastic Pact targets by demonstrating at scale:
- minimised or reduced plastic packaging
- refillable packaging and systems
- sustainable solutions for film and flexibles
- food grade recycled polypropylene and polyethylene
- behaviour change leading to less packaging waste or higher recycling rates
- solutions for problematic or unnecessary single-use plastic packaging items
Eligibility
Grants of between £1 million and £12 million are available for large-scale commercial demonstration projects. All projects must last between 12 and 36 months, starting by 1st February 2022 and ending by 31st January 2025.
The project lead must fulfil the following criteria:
- Be a UK registered business of any size
- Collaborate with another UK registered business, academic institution, charity, not-for-profit, public sector organisation or research and technology institution
- Carry out its project work in the UK and also intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
Expressions of interest are due by 24th March and successful applicants will then be notified by 30th April. You can find more information on the Innovate UK competition page: ISCF Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Demonstrators. To discuss an application with one of our advisers, please contact us today.
Farming Innovation Pathways: grant funding available
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs are collaborating on a new funding opportunity, Farming Innovation Pathways. The competition will be delivered through UKRI’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, Transforming Food Production. Up to £5 million will be available for feasibility studies and a further £7 million for industrial research projects.
All applications must address at least one of the four farming industry subsectors: livestock, plant, novel food production systems, or bioeconomy and agroforestry. There are a number of high priority areas, which can be found on the specific competition pages. You can find more information on each of the strands below:
The aim of this competition is to evaluate the potential of early-stage innovations that tackle on-farm challenges, such as productivity, sustainability, and net-zero emissions. All projects should have total eligible costs between £75,000 and £250,000. They should start by 1st October 2021 and last between 12 and 18 months.
The Industrial Research strand will support the development of novel high-potential solutions that tackle the problems farmers face. This competition is for collaborative industrial research only. While a project can be based anywhere in the UK, it must generate benefits to the English farming sector. In addition, projects must have total eligible costs between £250,000 and £750,000. They should start by 1st October 2021 and last between 18 and 24 months.
The 'Farming Innovation Pathways' competition will open on 1st March and close on 28th April. If you’d like to discuss a potential project with one of our advisers, please contact us today.
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£40 million available through the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF)
The Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (IETF) will reopen for applications on 8th March with £40 million available across two strands: 1) energy efficiency and decarbonisation studies and 2) deployment of energy efficiency technologies. The IETF is a crucial part of the Government’s strategy for tackling climate change and reaching net-zero by 2050.
IETF energy efficiency and decarbonisation studies
Organisations can apply for funding to carry out feasibility and engineering studies into energy efficiency and decarbonisation technologies. Firstly, this strand aims to help industrial companies build a pipeline of future deployment projects. Secondly, it aims to reduce the costs and risks of either industrial energy efficiency or decarbonisation technologies.
The total eligible project costs for a feasibility study must be at least £30,000 and for an engineering study must be at least £50,000. All projects must start by 1st July 2022 and come to an end before 30th June 2024. A project should last up to 12 months if it is a feasibility study or up to 24 months if it is an engineering study. Additionally, the end-beneficiary of the study must be a single manufacturing site or data centre in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.
IETF deployment of energy efficiency technologies
This competition aims to support the commercial rollout and permanent installation of energy efficiency technologies at industrial sites. Eligible technologies must have been proven to work through successful operations or be qualified through test and demonstration; this corresponds to Technology Readiness Levels of 8, 9 and above.
Innovate UK has provided the following list of eligible technologies for guidance:
- monitoring and management equipment that improves the efficiency of processes
- more efficient heat exchange
- more efficient driers
- energy recovery from waste heat
- energy recovery from waste pressure
- onsite resource efficiency measures to reduce wastage and optimise the use of raw materials
Your project should have a minimum total grant funding of £100,000, start by 1st January 2023 and end by 31st December 2024. At this point, you must have installed and begun to operate (or be ready to operate) the energy efficiency technology. In addition, your project work must be carried out at a single manufacturing site or data centre in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.
Both strands will close on 14th July 2021. For more information, please visit the competition pages: strand 1 and strand 2. If you’d like to discuss a potential application with one of our advisers, contact us today.