£7 Million available for R&D into Flexible manufacturing; open to business led collaborative partnerships with a minimum of 2 business partners (any size) one of whom must be an end user.  Research organisations may participate.

APPLICATIONS WILL BE EVALUATED ON A COMPETITIVE BASIS.

Key Objective: The aim of this competition is to encourage the development, demonstration and implementation of novel equipment, processes and/or systems. These should enable UK manufacturers to react quickly and efficiently to changes in raw materials, customer requirements and manufacturing resource availability.

Grantors: Innovate UK (new name for the TSB) and the ESPRC

Funding available:  
Expected project size range: £500k - £1.5 m eligible costs

             A grant of up to 60% of eligible project costs for industrial research; up to 35% for experimental development

             3 years maximum duration,

Opening:  17 November 2014---- this is a 2 stage application, consisting of an Expression of Interest (EoI) and a full application on invitation

Application deadline: Registration closing on, 28^st January 2015 for Expressions of interest.  EoI deadline will be 4^th February 2015.)

             Stage 2 opens for invited applicants on 9 March and will close on the 9^th April 2015

Details: UK manufacturers should partner with customers, companies within their supply chain, academic and other research bodies, equipment developers and/or system integrators to develop a solution that delivers improved flexibility.

Solutions must look at developing innovative equipment, systems or processes. Where relevant, they should include integration with enterprise resource planning (ERP), manufacturing execution system (MES) or other digital production systems, to enable a rapid response to changing needs.

The following technology areas are considered to have the greatest potential to deliver impact:

• Robust technologies tolerant of variable / different input materials

• Equipment and systems capable of upscale and downscale production

• Standardised modular units for rapid assembly and reconfiguration

• Advanced software solutions for produce-on-demand capability. 

Conditions: Innovate UK's High Value Manufacturing Strategy 2012-2015 identifies key national competencies necessary to deliver innovation across a broad range of market sectors. It is important that the project delivers flexible manufacturing using novel approaches and/or technologies that are new to the industry involved in the application.

If approaches are adopted from another industry, the translation and integration of these technologies should involve innovative deployment mechanisms that require specific development and involve a level of risk commensurate with the funding sought.

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