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07 April 2010

Technology Strategy Board to invest up to £30 million in new technologies to help accelerate UK business innovation

The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £30 million, in coming months, in six new research and development competitions. The investment is part of a wider £1bn funding programme, being rolled out by the Technology Strategy Board up to 2011, designed to support UK businesses and drive technology-enabled innovation.

The competitions, scheduled to open in May and June, are all designed to accelerate the development of innovative new technologies in a wide range of technology areas and include aims to: reduce the carbon emissions produced by buildings, encourage the uptake of new technologies that will help an ageing population remain independent for longer and increase the speed at which new innovations along the energy supply chain are able to enter the market, through smart metering and the development of smart grids.

The six new competitions are listed below:

Building Performance Evaluation: £8m investment , spread across two years, in the costs of Building Performance Evaluation, data aggregation, analysis, interpretation and dissemination across a range of building types, both domestic and non-domestic. Successful applicants will secure funding to cover the cost of evaluating the performance of case study buildings they design, build, own and/or operate, thus providing them with improved insight into what works and what doesn’t. The aim is to establish the best way to deliver predictably lower impact buildings. The competition opens on 10 May 2010.

Design for Future Climate: The £4.9m investment will assist design teams in developing adaptation strategies to improve resistance to climate change of specific buildings they are already working on. The focus will be on improving building resilience and adaptation to climate change, thus extending the commercial viability of buildings. Projects must be on a specific building / refurbishment project with a client and design team both applying together for the funding. The funding covers all buildings except domestic retrofit. The competition will be run in two parts. The first part will open in June and funding of up to £2.5m will be available. The second part will open in 2011 and will have a value of £2.4m.

Nuclear Power Technology: £2m will be invested in feasibility studies to stimulate innovation and strengthen the supply chain in the area of nuclear R&D and its applications. The studies to be supported will cover areas such as the development of innovative technologies, their applications and technology transfer that could lead to their future development & application in civil nuclear plants and develop business opportunities in this growing area. With a global market valued at around £600bn for new nuclear build and £250bn for decommissioning, waste treatment and disposal, the predicted resurgence in the nuclear market over the next 20 years could lead to significant opportunities for UK businesses in the area of nuclear engineering and its associated technologies. The competition particularly targets SMEs who have technologies which they believe can provide innovation and added value to the civil nuclear sector and are considering entry into this market, but require technical feasibility studies to support their business case. The fast-track application process opens on 14 June 2010.

Economic and Business Modelling; Social and Behavioural Studies: Funding of up to £10 million in total is to be made available through the Assisted Living Innovation Platform, which supports UK businesses and the health & care sector to develop innovative, cost-effective, user-centred technology and services for independent living. The aim of this competition to address needs identified in the areas of Economic and Business Models and Social and Behavioural Studies. The Economic and Business Modelling theme will aim to provide improved evidence to underpin industry and social enterprise, to encourage investment in and implementation of assisted living services and technology. The Social and Behavioural Studies theme will aim to better understand the interactions between Assisted Living technologies and services and individuals, families and communities. The competitions, which will be run jointly, open on 14 May 2010.

Smart Meters and Smart Grids: Up to £5m in innovative collaborative research, development and demonstration in the area of energy Smart Grids and Smart Meters. This is a small part of a considerable amount of public funding which is being made available to support the delivery of Smart Meters across the country, and the integration and development of an interconnected Grid. The Technology Strategy Board programme on Smart Meters and Smart Grids is committed to facilitating business growth and technology-based innovation. It complements other programmes being run by the Technology Strategy Board, in particular those being run as part of the Digital Britain and the Low Impact Buildings programmes.
This competition aims to accelerate the speed at which new innovations along the energy supply chain are able to enter the market. It will develop and trial new business propositions for how a smart meter can be integrated with communications into a system within the home in a way which can impact on the management, supply and reduction in usage of energy. The competition opens on 10 May 2010.

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