The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £4.5 million in new collaborative research and development aimed at encouraging industrial end-users to work with supply chains and innovators to create new products and services for a sustainable economy. The objective of this new funding competition, which opens on 3 October 2011, is to help companies with access to the market – the end-users – mobilise their supply chains to provide innovations that are precisely targeted to their currently unmet needs.
Proposals should be collaborative and led by a business, and must clearly present the benefits to business. Up to £500,000 funding is available for each project and they are expected to have a maximum duration of 24 months.
Resource efficiency competition
This competition addresses two high-level challenges – reducing the global environmental impact of the used materials and reducing the dependence on key raw materials, the supply of which potentially is at risk. The new products and services proposed should, therefore, have a reduced environmental impact compared to current alternatives, and/or should be less dependent on the use of strategic materials.
Further information about the Resource Efficiency – Supply Chain Innovation competition (including deadlines for registration, the submission of expressions of interest and submission of applications) is available at innovateuk.org.
Materials Security Special Interest Group to be buildt
The first networking event to facilitate consortia building for this competition will take place on 20 September 2011 in London. This event will also see the launch of the Materials Security Special Interest Group. This group, created by the Technology Strategy Board, hopes to become a place for dialogue among designers, chemists, materials scientists, engineers, product developers and recycling and waste experts. It aims to facilitate the adoption of new business models and the rapid formation of new supply chains capable of delivering high impact, innovative solutions to Material Security challenges.
