Grant for Research and DevelopmentFinancial support for innovative businesses in the Northwest

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Solutions for Business is a suite of highly targeted, publicly funded products and services offering solutions to real business needs and tackling market failure. Designed to drive qualifying businesses forward, it helps them to grow and succeed by providing help in a number of areas. These include starting up, understanding finance, developing people, environment and efficiency, exploiting ideas, international sales and marketing and growing your business.

Solutions for Business helps you make the most of business opportunities and challenges. By targeting public money at real business needs, it helps businesses create sustainable success.

Grant for Research and Development is funded by the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The NWDA leads the economic development and regeneration of England’s Northwest.

To apply for a Grant for Research and Development, contact the NWDA’s Business Finance Team:visit www.nwda.co.uk/finance or call 01925 400 495

For further information on the NWDA visit our corporate website www.nwda.co.uk

If you wish to discuss wider business support contact Business Link Northwest:visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/northwest or call 0845 00 66 888

For more information about Grant for Research and Development,visit www.nwda.co.uk/finance or call 01925 400 495

Grant for Research and Development

Investing in your innovation Research and Development (R&D) is the cornerstone of sustained business success. It’s about investing for future profits and keeping one step ahead of the competition. But it doesn’t come cheap. You may have the idea, but lack the resources to finance its development. Or you may have taken a project as far as you can and now need a partner to share the risks of further development.

That’s where a Grant for Research and Development can help. It provides funding towards the costs of R&D, as well as support and risk sharing to help you develop new products and processes. It gives you the financial support to move your products one step closer to market; the financial support to invest in your long term success.

What are Grants for R&D?

Grants for R&D are aimed at helping entrepreneurs and business owners fund the R&D required to get their innovative products and processes to market.

Innovation isn’t easy. It’s risky, often expensive and difficult to fund through private sector investment.

Grants are managed by the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and provide financial support to assist a business to develop and exploit new ideas, addressing the barrier of securing private sector finance.

Grants for R&D help your business to become more competitive by enabling you to research the market for your idea, develop new products and processes and helping you stay ahead of your competitors. They help you reduce the risks - but not the rewards of innovation.

Obtaining support can also give you added credibility and insight to secure additional private sector investment, while the consultative nature of the application process itself can often be an invaluable exercise regardless of the final decision.

Who can apply?

Any individual or small-to-medium-sized business (SMEs) in the Northwest can apply for financial support for a specific R&D project. You can also apply if you are planning to start up a business in the region.

The project you are seeking support for must be based around an innovative product or process that you want to bring to market.

“Our whole business is a result of a successful Grant for Research and Development. Without it, we would not have made the invention and would not have had the wherewithal to develop the initial thinking. Let no-one doubt the value to very small businesses of grants, like this.” John Dower - Managing Director, Marine Systems Technology

What kinds of projects can benefit?

There are five tiers of support available, depending on the size of your business and the specific project for which you are seeking assistance. The different tiers range from Proof of Market support from £5,000 which aims to help you test the commercial potential of an innovative idea for a new technology moving up to grants of £500,000 for pre-production prototypes of national strategic significance. The five tiers of support are:

Proof of Market – help you test the commercial potential of an innovative idea for a new technology. The grant will help you fund thorough desk based market research investigating areas such as target markets, competitor analysis and technical issues. The market research could be undertaken by the applicant or by a third party such as a consultancy or Higher Education Institute. These are for companies with less than 250 employees and a turnover of less than £34m or a balance sheet total of £29m. Grants are available up to 60% of the project costs (Minimum £5,000 – Maximum £20,000).

Micro – small scale development projects lasting up to 12 months to develop pre-prototypes of new products or processes. These are for companies with less than 10 employees and a turnover of less than £1.5m or a balance sheet total of £1.5m. Grants are available up to 45% of the R&D costs, (maximum of £20,000).

Research – last between 6 to 18 months to assess the commercial feasibility of innovative technologies. These are for companies with less than 50 employees and turnover of less than £7.5m or a balance sheet total of £7.5m. Grants are available up to 60% of the R&D costs, (maximum of £100,000).

Development – last between 6 to 36 months to develop pre-production prototypes involving significant technological advance. Development grants are also available to support projects that can demonstrate innovative carbon emission reducing technologies. These are aimed at companies with up to 250 employees and turnover of less than £34m or a balance sheet total of no more than £29m. Grants are available up to 35% for companies employing between 50–250 employees and 40% for companies employing up to 50 employees.

Exceptional Research – last between 6–36 months to research new technology that is strategically important for the UK in one or more sectors. These are aimed at companies with fewer than 50 employees, a turnover of less than £34m or annual balance sheet total of no more than £29m. Grants are available between £100,000 and £250,000, covering 60% of eligible costs.

Exceptional Development – up to 3 years to develop new technology that is strategically important for the UK in one or more sectors. These are aimed at companies with fewer than 250 employees. Grants are available up to 35% for companies employing between 50–250 employees and 40% for companies employing up to 50 employees. Grants are available between £250,000 and £500,000 covering 40% of eligible costs.

The different tiers of assistance are not mutually exclusive. They offer a ‘step ladder’ of financial support and risk-sharing to take your technology from drawing board to market. You can potentially apply for more than one tier as your project and your company develops, perhaps starting with a proof of market grant to assess commercial potential, progressing to a research grant to assess feasibility and then a development grant, or even an exceptional grant, to aid commercialisation of the technology.

What costs does it cover?

Grants for R&D are designed to provide financial assistance for all the reasonable project specific costs of undertaking your R&D project.

This includes:

• Staff pay

• General project overheads

• Materials

• Intellectual property

• Capital equipment

• Training

• Trials and testing

• Market assessment

• Production of technical manuals

• Third-party costs (no more than 25% of total project costs), such as consultants or sub-contractors

It may be possible for you to include other costs if you can justify their importance to the project.

How does the scheme work?

Your application needs to demonstrate:

• Technical risk or scientific uncertainty and technological innovation

• Commercial potential of the product or process

• Experience, skills and track record of the project team abilities

• The need for the grant

• Position to exploit intellectual property

• Any wider environmental or social benefits

You won’t have to wait too long to find out if your application has been successful. Providing your application is complete, we should be able to give you an answer in approximately 8 weeks.

It isn’t just a yes or no process. The approval process is designed to be an open, transparent dialogue with a two-way flow of information. We’ll visit your premises to talk to you about the project. You’ll be kept informed of our emerging views on your application and you’ll be invited to comment on them.

Even if you are subsequently unsuccessful, it is a beneficial process for the project and the business to go through. You will receive a UK Intellectual Property Office report on your project, (except for proof of market and micro projects) plus the expert views of the technical advisors who assess your application. These expert opinions can help you to modify any areas of the project that need attention and, ultimately, make it more attractive and viable for future investors.

How can I find out more?

To apply for a Grant for R&D, you’ll need to complete an online application form which will help us to establish your general eligibility. You can apply on our website at www.nwda.co.uk/finance.

If you’re unsure about whether your project is suitable for support, contact the Finance for Business team at the NWDA on 01925 400 495.

“The R&D grant we were awarded enabled us to develop a new ship’s ballast water treatment product. The resulting success of the project has significantly impacted the growth of our business. Over the last three financial years, export sales have increased from 16% to 55% of turnover and profits have trebled. We’ve been able to develop products superior in function, appearance and cost. Without grant support, that would have been much harder to achieve.”

Tony Leigh, Managing DirectorATG UV Technology Ltd

If you wish to discuss wider business support contact Business Link Northwest on:

0845 00 66 888www.businesslink.gov.uk/northwest

For further information or to apply for Grant for Research and Development contact:

01925 400 495www.nwda.co.uk/finance