Innovate UK Analysis for Innovators is focused on helping individual companies solve tricky and, perhaps, long running technical problems affecting existing processes, products or services.
The programme’s aim is to help boost a company’s productivity or competitiveness by enabling the UK’s top scientists, using their other world-class facilities, to work with companies to address problems in innovative ways. Key to the success of Innovate UK Analysis for Innovators are the Brokerage Meetings that are arranged between the companies and experts from the programme partners. These meetings allow the company to discuss their problem with experts who want to work with the company to address the problem.
Each Competition is divided into three distinct parts:
- Stage 1 – Expression of Interest
- The Brokerage Meetings
- Stage 2 – Application for a funded project
Competition Details
Each EoI application should cover an issue that impacts the company’s productivity or competitiveness. As well as the responses to questions about the problem the company is trying to address, the applicant must produce a video (up to 2 minutes) that illustrates the problem.
In the video you can show the production line, products, diagrams or a presentation. The quality of the video is not critical – it could be made using a smart phone or a webcam and is submitted via a browser based platform.
It is important that an application includes details of the potential economic benefit (£k) from solving the issue – this should be a ‘best estimate’ with some explanation.
After the closing date, each application is checked to ensure it meets the scope of this round and then reviewed by each of the partners. Successful applications are those that are in scope and where one or more partners believe they can assist the company.
Successful applicants at this EoI stage will be invited to brokerage consultations with relevant Innovate UK Analysis for Innovators partners. These meetings will focus on potential approaches to solve the problem.
They will then work together to propose joint proposals to address the problem which are submitted to Stage 2 of the competition. Successful Stage 2 applications will then be funded through Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) (replaces SDR), or as a match funded grant. There may also be an MFA implication based on the partners share of costs, this will be explained in the Stage 2 briefing.
Every successful applicant from Stage 1 is invited to one or more meetings with experts from the partners who can potentially help the company solve its problem.
These initial meetings allow a more detailed discussion of the company’s problem and how the partner might approach a solution. They are the first step towards defining a costed project for Stage 2.
Planned dates for round 11 brokerage:
- 22nd September 2023 – Notification of Stage 1 Results
- 25th September – Invites sent to arrange Brokerage Meetings
- 9th October – Start of Brokerage Meetings
- 22nd October – End of Brokerage Meetings
Every company that has been through brokerage and identified one or more partners they can work with, will be invited to apply for a grant funded project in Stage 2.
In addition to timings and max costs, the requirements for the projects are:
- To carry out all of its project work in the UK
- Intend to exploit the results from or in the UK
- Involve at least one of the Innovate UK Analysis for Innovators co-funding partner organisations
- The application form will be similar to a normal Innovate UK funding application. The application should include the project costs of both the company and the partner(s). Grant funding will be applied to the total project costs.
Note: Information on Stage 2 will be issued (by invitation only) after the close of Stage 1.