Grants get SMEs and research together

Small to medium sized companies are being helped to commercially develop innovative technologies in partnership with researchers, thanks to a DTI funded initiative led by Loughborough University.

Faraday grants encourage partnership between industry and research Small to medium sized companies are being given a helping hand to commercially develop innovative technologies in partnership with leading edge researchers, thanks to a DTI funded initiative led by Loughborough University.

PRIME Faraday SPARK awards encourage technology transfer from the UK's higher education institutes (HEIs) to small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to boost innovation.

Ten grants of ?5,000 will be awarded to the relevant HEI to tackle a problem of direct relevance to the SME.

The grants will not only help the SME tackle a current problem, but will also lead to longer-term beneficial relationships between the educational institutes and the business community.

The grants are offered by the PRIME Faraday Partnership, in conjunction with the DTI, the London Development Agency, South West of England Regional Development Agency and One NorthEast.

The initiative is open to SMEs and HEIs throughout the UK who are concerned with the design and development of Products with Interdependent Mechanical and Electronic parts (PRIME).

Typically, these are assemblies where both the mechanical and electrical performance is critical and which relate particularly, although not exclusively, to: * Novel packaging of electronic/electromechanical devices.

* Getting micro electro mechanical systems to market.

* Novel power sources for portable applications.

* Electronic integration in medical devices.

"These awards are an excellent starting point for growing high tech companies to take advantage of the wealth of commercially relevant research expertise in universities and colleges in order to bring cutting-edge technology into today's market place," says Paul Palmer, Technical Manager of The Prime Faraday Partnership at Loughborough University.

He continues, "The PRIME partnership harnesses existing UK and European funding initiatives to the benefit of the UK economy." The awards have been designed with minimal bureaucracy, in keeping with the value of the grant, with an online application form that must be received by 19 November 2003.

Application forms and further details are available at: http://www.primefaraday.org.uk Previous projects to receive SPARK awards include the production of prototype mini electric thrusters for underwater vehicles and boats and the development of bench type ultraprecision machining tools for nanometric machining.

The PRIME Faraday Partnership is one of the first four Faraday Partnerships launched by the UK Government.

The Partnership brings together the academic strengths of both Loughborough University and the University of Nottingham, and the industrial and technology transfer expertise of Pera, with the common purpose of assisting industry throughout the UK.

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