Innovate UK, the Government’s national innovation agency, is to invest up to £15 million in innovation projects in the infrastructure systems sector.
The aim of the competition is to encourage the development of business-led innovative solutions that will help provide:
- affordable, sustainable and secure energy
- connected transport
- urban living
- integrated infrastructure and resilience of infrastructure to environmental and social pressures
Innovate UK wants to encourage proposals that provide ways to integrate and/or optimise different infrastructure systems. The solutions will lead to significant improvements in performance, capacity, adaptability, functionality, productivity and resilience.
The innovation agency expects projects to range in size from total project costs of £25,000 to £5 million although we may consider projects outside this range.
Projects must last between 3 months and 3 years and must include at least one UK-registered small or medium-sized enterprise (SME). UK SMEs can carry out a project with total costs of up to £100,000 as a single organisation or you can collaborate with others. Projects above £100,000 must be collaborative. A business must lead each project.
There are 2 options to apply for the competition which depend on the size and length of the project - the two streams are:
- Stream 1 is for projects lasting up to 1 year with total costs of under £100,000
- Stream 2 is for projects over 1 year or over £100,000
This competition is open now.
Applicants must register before 12 noon on Wednesday 14 September 2016 and then apply before 12 noon on Wednesday 21 September 2016. Potential applicants can also attend the briefing in London on 12 July 2016 (in person or by webinar).
Register and apply online
Click here for more information about the compettion brief.
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