Launchpad: bio-based manufacturing, Scotland – Rd 2 MFA

Who can apply

Your project

Your project must:

• have a total grant funding request between £25,000 and £100,000

• last between 6 and 12 months

• carry out all of its project work in the UK

• intend to exploit the results from or in the UK

• not start before 1 April 2025

• end by 30 June 2026

Projects must always start on the first of the month, even if this is a non-working day. You must not start your project until your Grant Offer Letter has been approved by Innovate UK. Any delays within Project Setup may mean we need to delay your project start date.

You must only include eligible project costs in your application. See our overview of eligible project costs. For specific guidance, see the eligibility section in this competition.

You will be made ineligible if you exceed the Minimal Financial Assistance limit. You must submit a complete declaration as part of your application.

Lead organisation

Your business must:

• be a UK registered micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME)

• be growing your innovation activities in the bio-based manufacturing innovation cluster in Scotland

• not have previously been awarded funding from the Round 1 MFA competition strand for this Launchpad in Scotland

• have a demonstrable ambition for business growth

More information on the different types of organisation can be found in our Funding rules.

Subcontractors

Subcontractors are allowed in this competition.

Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.

We expect all subcontractor costs to be justified and appropriate to the total eligible project costs. We will not accept a cheaper cost as a sufficient reason to use an overseas subcontractor.

Number of applications

A business can lead on only one MFA strand application for this competition. Any subsequent applications submitted by the same business will be ineligible and will not be forwarded for assessment.

You are not eligible to apply to this Round 2 MFA competition if you led a successful application to the Round 1 MFA competition for this Launchpad in Scotland.

If you apply to the CR&D strand of this competition, as well as this MFA strand, each project must be clearly distinctive and separate. We will monitor closely for this separation if you are awarded funding in both competition strands.

Sanctions

This competition will not fund you, or provide any financial benefit to any individual or entities directly or indirectly involved with you, which would expose Innovate UK or any direct or indirect beneficiary of funding from Innovate UK to UK Sanctions. For example, through any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any entity as lead, partner or subcontractor related to these countries, administrations and terrorist groups.

Use of animals in research and innovation

Innovate UK expects and supports the provision and safeguarding of welfare standards for animals used in research and innovation, according to best practice and up to date guidance.

Applicants must ensure that all of the proposed work within projects, both that in the UK and internationally, will comply with the UKRI guidance on the use of animals in research and innovation.

Any projects selected for funding which involve animals will be asked to provide additional information on welfare and ethical considerations, as well as compliance with any relevant legislation as part of the project start-up process. This information will be reviewed before an award is made.

Previous applications

You can use a previously submitted application to apply for this competition.

If you have previously submitted an application that reached our assessment stage, you can re-apply once more with the same proposal.

If there are minor differences to the proposal, but it is judged by us to be ‘not materially different’, the same rule applies.

We will not award you funding if you have:

• failed to exploit a previously funded project

• an overdue independent accountant’s report

• failed to comply with grant terms and conditions

Minimal Financial Assistance (and De minimis where applicable)

Grant funding in this competition is awarded as Minimal Financial assistance (MFA). This allows public bodies to award up to £315,000 to an enterprise in a three year rolling financial period.

In your application, you will be asked to declare previous funding received by you. This will form part of the financial checks ahead of Innovate UK making a formal grant offer.

To establish your eligibility, we need to check that our support added to the amount you have previously received does not exceed the limit of £315,000 in the ‘applicable period’.

The applicable period is made up of:

(a) the elapsed part of the current financial year, and

(b) the two financial years immediately preceding the current financial year.

You must include any funding which you have received during the applicable period under:

• Minimal Financial Assistance (previously referred to as Special Drawing Rights)

• De Minimis Regulation

You do not need to include aid or subsidies which have been granted on a different basis, for example, an aid award granted under the General Block Exemption Regulation.

Further information about the Subsidy Control Act 2022 requirements can be found in the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (legislation.gov.uk).

EU Commission rules now only apply in limited circumstances. Please see the Windsor Framework to check if these rules apply to your organisation.

Further information

If you are unsure about your obligations under the Subsidy Control Act 2022, you should take independent legal advice. We cannot advise on individual eligibility or your legal obligations.

Funding

We have allocated up to £5.25 million to fund innovation projects across the two strands of this Launchpad competition for Scotland.

Funding will be in the form of a grant.

The total funding available for this Launchpad competition can change. The funders have the right to:

• adjust the funding allocations between all Launchpad competitions and strands

• apply a ‘portfolio’ approach

Your total project costs will be up to 100% funded up to the maximum grant of £100,000. If your grant funding request exceeds the £100,000 maximum then your application will be made ineligible. Your project costs can be higher than your grant funding request.

You can make reference to any additional voluntary contribution in your application answers. It must not be detailed in the finance section.

For more information on company sizes, please refer to the Company accounts guidance.

If you are applying for an award funded under European Commission Regulations, the definitions are set out in the European Commission Recommendation of 6 May 2003.

Your proposal

The aim of this competition is to support outstanding innovation projects led by businesses. Your business must be growing your innovation activities in the bio-based manufacturing innovation cluster in Scotland.

Your project must contribute to Scotland’s industrial biotechnology strategy and ambitions to grow related company turnover in this sector beyond £1.2 billion by 2026.

Your project must focus on one or more of the following:

• industrial biotechnology

• biomass supply chain development

• sustainable production and manufacturing

Your project must contribute to growing your innovation activities in the cluster, both during and after your project.

This could be demonstrated by:

• your local innovation activities

• the value that your innovation activities create in the cluster

• your engagement with other innovation active organisations in the cluster, such as with Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre, this Launchpad’s cluster management organisation

Your application may be considered ineligible if you do not describe clearly how your main project activities and work packages meet the scope of this competition. This includes the main project activities of any subcontractors. If you do not describe how your activities in the cluster will continue after your project, then you are unlikely to be offered funding in this competition.

The geographical requirement is to align this competition to the UK Government’s goals for local economic growth.

Portfolio approach

Following the independent assessment, all applications scoring over 70% will be reviewed by a panel including Innovate UK and our local partners on this Launchpad. The panel will review the applications in line with the portfolio criteria, which will inform Innovate UK's decision on the funding awards offered.

We want to fund a variety of projects across different categories. We call this a portfolio approach.

We reserve the right to prioritise projects that demonstrate:

• more innovation activity or value creation in the cluster or outside the Greater South East of England, during and after the project

• more engagement in the innovation cluster, during and after the project

• closer alignment to this competition’s scope and specific themes

Specific themes

Your project can focus on one or more of the following:

• facilitating innovation in industrial biotechnology and enhancing its adoption across multiple sectors and industries

• acceleration of biomass supply chain development

• greening supply chains and transitioning industries towards sustainable production and manufacturing

• supporting innovation in skills development

This list is not exhaustive. Where you can show your proposal fits within the scope of this competition you can focus on other themes.

Projects we will not fund

We are not funding projects that:

• do not meet the competition eligibility or scope requirements

• request grant funding of less than £25,000 or more than £100,000

• are aimed solely at biopharmaceutical or cell and gene therapy markets

• involve the production, processing or servicing of biochar, graphene or bioenergy

• are led by businesses who led a successful application to Round 1 MFA competition strand for this Launchpad in Scotland

• involve primary production in fishery and aquaculture, or in agriculture; meaning the project must be undertaking research and development, the solution must be for exploitation by the wider business community and the funding cannot be used for capital asset acquisition

We cannot fund projects that:

• involve primary production in fishery and aquaculture

• involve primary production in agriculture

• have activities relating to the purchase of road freight transport

• are not allowed under De minimis regulation restrictions

• are not eligible to receive Minimal Financial Assistance

• are dependent on export performance, for example, giving an award to a baker on the condition that they export a certain quantity of bread to another country

• are dependent on domestic inputs usage, for example, if we give an award to a baker on the condition that they use 50% UK flour in their product

4 November 2024

Pre-recorded briefing: watch the recording.

Briefing slides are now available to download from Supporting Information.

14 November 2024

Online briefing event at 1.00pm to 2.15 pm: register to attend

11 December 2024

Submission deadline - competition closes

7 February 2025

Applicants notified

1 April 2025

Project start from

Before you start

You must read the guidance on applying for a competition on the Innovation Funding Service before you start.

Before submitting, it is the lead applicant’s responsibility to make sure:

• that all the information provided in the application is correct

• your proposal meets the eligibility and scope criteria

• all sections of the application are marked as complete

You can reopen your application once submitted, up until the competition deadline. You must resubmit the application before the competition deadline.

What we ask you

The application is split into four sections:

1. Project details.

2. Application questions.

3. Finances.

4. Project Impact.

Accessibility and Inclusion

We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and are committed to making our application process accessible to everyone. This includes making reasonable adjustments, for people who have a disability or a long-term condition and face barriers applying to us.

You can contact us at any time to ask for guidance.

We recommend you contact us at least 15 working days before this competition’s closing date to allow us to put the most suitable support in place. The support we can provide may be limited if you contact us close to the competition deadline.

You can contact Innovate UK by email or call 0300 321 4357. Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

1. Project details

This section provides background for your application and is not scored.

Application team

Decide which people from your organisation will work with you on the project and invite those people to help complete the application.

Application details

Give your project’s title, start date and duration.

Public description

Describe your project in detail, and in a way that you are happy to see published. Do not include any commercially sensitive information. If we award your project funding, we will publish this description. This can happen before you start your project.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Scope

Describe how your project fits the scope of the competition. In your answer you must outline how your project will grow your innovation activities in the cluster both during and after your project. Due to the competitive nature of this competition, your answer may be used in our portfolio approach to prioritising projects.

If your project is not in scope, it will not be sent for assessment. We will tell you the reason why.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

2. Application questions

The assessors will score all your answers apart from questions 1, 2, 3 and 4. You will receive feedback for each scored question. Find out more about how our assessors assess and how we select applications for funding.

You must answer all questions. Do not include any website addresses (URLs) in your answers.

Question 1. Applicant location (not scored)

You must state the name and full registered address of your organisation and any subcontractors working on your project, and the work location for your project if different to the registered addresses.

We are collecting this information to understand the geographical location of all applicants, and your answer may be used in our portfolio approach.

Your answer can be up to 150 words long.

Question 2. Minimal Financial Assistance declaration (not scored)

You must download the declaration template. You must complete this, declaring any funding received under Minimal Financial Assistance (previously referred to as Special Drawing Rights) or De minimis awards, (from any source of public funding) in the applicable period.

You must complete all the fields on your form before uploading.

You must write “declaration attached” in the question text box.

You must upload the completed declaration as an appendix. It must be a PDF and the font must be legible at 100% zoom.

You must keep all documentation relating to Minimal Financial Assistance (previously referred to as Special Drawing Rights) and other De minimis awards for a period of six years and be prepared to release it to any public funding body which requests it.

Question 3. Animal testing (not scored)

Will your project involve any trials with animals or animal testing?

You must select one option:

• Yes

• No

We will only support innovation projects conducted to the highest standards of animal welfare.

Further information for proposals involving animal testing is available at the UKRI Good Research Hub and NC3R’s animal welfare guidance.

Question 4. Permits and licences (not scored)

Will you have the correct permits and licences in place to carry out your project?

We are unable to fund projects who do not have the correct permits or licences in place by your project start date.

You must select one option:

• Yes

• No

• In process of being applied for

• Not applicable

Question 5. Need challenge and market awareness

What is the business need, technological challenge, or market opportunity behind your innovation? What does the market or markets you are targeting look like?

Explain:

• the main motivation for the project

• the business need, technological challenge or market opportunity

• the target markets for the project outcomes and any other potential markets, either domestic, international or both

• the size of the target markets for the project outcomes, backed up by references where available

• the structure and dynamics of the target markets, including customer segmentation, together with predicted growth rates within clear timeframes

• the target markets’ main supply or value chains and business models, and any barriers to entry that exist

• whether you have identified any similar innovation and its current limitations, including those close to market or in development

• any work you have already done to respond to this need, for example, if the project focuses on developing an existing capability or building a new one

If your project is highly innovative, where the market may be unexplored, describe or explain:

• what the market’s size might be

• how your project will try to explore the market’s potential

Your answer can be up to 600 words long.

Question 6. Approach and innovation

What approach will you take and where will the focus of the innovation be?

Explain:

• how you will respond to the need, challenge or opportunity identified

• how you will improve on the nearest current state-of-the-art identified

• whether the innovation will focus on the application of existing technologies in new areas, the development of new technologies for existing areas or a totally disruptive approach

• the freedom you have to operate

• how this project fits with your current product, service lines or offerings

• how it will make you more competitive

• the nature of the outputs you expect from the project, for example, report, demonstrator, know-how, new process, product or service design, and how these will help you to target the need, challenge or opportunity identified

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

You can submit one appendix to support your answer. It can include diagrams and charts. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 7. Team and resources

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Explain:

• the roles, skills and experience of all members of the project team that are relevant to the approach you will be taking

• the resources, equipment and facilities needed for the project and how you will access them

• the details of any vital external parties, including subcontractors, who you will need to work with to successfully carry out the project

• any roles you will need to recruit for

• the main work packages of the project, indicating the lead partner assigned to each and the total cost of each one

• your approach to project management, identifying any major tools and mechanisms you will use to get a successful and innovative project outcome

• the management reporting lines

• your project plan in enough detail to identify any links or dependencies between work packages or milestones

Your answer can be up to 600 words long.

You must submit a project plan or Gantt chart as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be legible at 100% zoom.

You can also submit one appendix with a short summary of the main people working on the project to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be legible at 100% zoom.

Question 8. Outcomes and route to market

How are you going to grow your business and increase long term productivity as a result of the project?

Explain:

• your current position in the markets and supply or value chains outlined, and whether you will be extending or establishing your market position

• your target customers or end users, and the value to them, for example, why they would use or buy your product

• your route to market

• how you are going to profit from the innovation, including increased revenues or cost reduction

• how the innovation will affect your productivity and growth, in both the short and the long term

• how you will protect and exploit the outputs of the project, for example, through know-how, patenting, designs or changes to your business model

• your strategy for targeting the other markets you have identified during or after the project

If there is any research organisation activity in the project, describe:

• your plans to spread the project’s research outputs over a reasonable timescale

• how you expect to use the results generated from the project in further research activities

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 9. Risks

What are the main risks for this project?

Describe:

• the main risks and uncertainties of the project, including the technical, commercial, managerial and environmental risks

• how you will mitigate these risks

• any project inputs that are critical to completion, such as resources, expertise, data sets

• any output likely to be subject to regulatory requirements, certification, ethical issues and so on, and how you will manage this

You must submit a risk register as an appendix to support your answer. It must be a PDF no larger than 10MB. It can be up to two A4 pages but must be legible at 100% zoom.

Your answer can be up to 400 words long.

Question 10. Costs value for money and added value

How much will the project cost and how does it represent value for money for the team and the taxpayer? How will this public funding help you to accelerate or enhance your approach to developing your project towards commercialisation? What impact would this award have on the organisations involved?

In terms of the project goals, explain:

• the total eligible project costs

• the grant you are requesting

• how you will finance any contributions you are making to the project

• how this project represents value for money for you and the taxpayer

• how it compares to what you would spend your money on otherwise

• any subcontractor costs and why they are critical to the project

• what advantages public funding would offer your project, for example: appeal to investors, more partners, reduced risk or a faster route to market

• the likely impact of the project outcomes on the organisations involved

• what other routes of investment or means of support you have already approached and why they were not suitable

• how any existing or potential investment or support will be used in conjunction with the grant funding

• what your project would look like without public funding

how this project would change your R&D activities

Your answer can be up to 600 words long.

3. Finances

You must complete your project costs, organisation details and funding details in the application.

Your projects total grant funding request must not exceed the maximum of £100,000. If your grant funding request does exceed this maximum, then your application will be made ineligible.

You can make reference to any additional voluntary contribution in your application question answers but these must not be detailed in this finance section.

For an overview on what costs you can claim, see our project costs guidance. Note this is general guidance, for specific guidance please see the eligibility section in this competition. You can also view our application finances video.

4. Project Impact

This section is not scored but will provide background to your project.

You must complete the Project Impact questions before being able to submit the application.

More information can be found in our Project Impact guidance and by viewing our Impact Management Framework video.

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is committed to upholding data protection legislation, and protecting your information in accordance with data protection principles.

Assessment

Your application will be reviewed by three independent assessors based on the content of your application and their skills or expertise relevant to your project. All of the scores awarded will count towards the total score used to make the funding decision unless you are notified otherwise.

You can find out more about our assessment process in the General Guidance.

Your submitted application will be assessed against these criteria:

Launchpad bio-based manufacturing Scotland Rd 2 MFA - assessor guidance for applicants.pdf (opens in a new window)

Background and further information

In considering the eligibility of your proposal you are encouraged to review:

• Scotland’s innovation strategy

• Scotland’s national plan for industrial biotechnology

Further information about the cluster will be provided in the online briefing event that will be available for you to view.

For further guidance on your eligibility, you can contact Innovate UK by email.

Briefing slides

Pre-recorded briefing: watch the recording.

Briefing slides are available to download here.

Launchpad Process Slides.pdf (opens in a new window)

If your application is successful

If you are successful with this application, you will be asked to set up your project.

You will be notified by email on the date published for this competition. Notifications may be sent any time up to 5pm.

You must follow the unique link embedded in your email notification. This takes you to your Innovation Funding Service (IFS) Set Up portal, where we gather the information to set up your project.

Watch our video on what steps there are before a project starts.

During the project set up you will be assigned a delivery executive who will guide you through the whole project set up process.

Following your email notification, you will need to provide the following within 5 days (including weekends and bank holidays):

• the name and contact details of your project manager and project finance lead

• a finance contact for all partners

• a copy of your bank details

You will need to provide the following within 30 days (including weekends and bank holidays):

• an exploitation plan

You will have 90 days (including weekends and bank holidays) to complete all of your project set up. Within this time, you will also be required to submit:

• project location

• any answers to financial queries we have requested

• any requested documentation to support your project such as a spend profile

Your funding offer may be withdrawn if project setup is not completed within this or an alternative timeframe as advised by Innovate UK.

In order for us to process your claims, you must make sure you have a valid UK business bank account. It can take several weeks for a new account to be created if required. We recommend starting this process as early as possible to avoid any delays to your project start date.

The bank account which grant is to be paid into must:

• be a business account in the same name as the organisation listed in IFS

• be from a UK bank regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA)

• have a cheque and credit clearing facility

Online accounts are eligible as long as they meet the above criteria.

Innovate UK will accept most banking societies apart from:

• Viva Wallet

• Intesa Sanpaolo

• Equals Money UK Limited

• Modulr FS Limited

If you have any doubts that your bank account will not meet Innovate UK's funding criteria, you can use the sort code checker. If you input the sort code and find a tick next to the ‘BACS Direct Credit payments can be sent to this sort code’, this will give you an indication that the bank account you hold is acceptable.

Finance checks

We will carry out checks to make sure you are an established company with access to the funds necessary to complete the project.

You must check your IFS portal regularly and respond to any requests we have sent for additional information to avoid any delays.

Failure to complete project setup may result in your grant offer being withdrawn.

During our financial due diligence checks you must provide evidence of how you will finance your project costs for the duration of your project. Grant claims are submitted three months in arrears.

Your Grant offer letter (GOL)

Once you have successfully completed project setup, we will issue your GOL.

The GOL will be made available on your IFS portal. You will need to sign and upload this for us to approve. Once approved we will send you an email with permission to start your project on your confirmed start date.

You must not start your project before the date stated on your email and GOL. Any costs incurred before your agreed start date cannot be claimed as part of your grant.

If your GOL is approved on or before the fifteenth of the month it will be dated from the first of that month. If your GOL is approved after the fifteenth, it will be dated the first of the next month.

If your application is unsuccessful

If you are unsuccessful with your application this time, you can view feedback from the assessors. This will be available to you on your IFS portal following notification.

Sometimes your application will have scored well, and you will receive positive comments from the assessors. You may be unsuccessful as your average score was not above the funding threshold or your project has not been selected under the portfolio approach if this is applied for this competition.

Find a project partner

If you want help to find a project partner, contact Innovate UK Business Connect or the Scottish Enterprise business support team.

Support for SMEs from Innovate UK Business Growth

If you receive an award, you will be contacted about working with an innovation and growth specialist at Innovate UK Business Growth. This service forms part of our funded offer to you.

These specialists focus on growing innovative businesses and ensuring that projects contribute to their growth. Working one-to-one, they can help you to identify your best strategy and harness world-class resources to grow and achieve scale.

We encourage you to engage with Innovate UK Business Growth, delivered by a knowledgeable and objective specialist near you.

Protecting your innovation

A Secure Innovation campaign has been developed to help founders and leaders of innovative startups protect their technology, competitive advantage, and reputation.

This was developed by UK’s National Protective Security Authority (NPSA) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

Data sharing

This competition is jointly operated by Innovate UK, and Scottish Enterprise (each an ‘agency’).

Any relevant information submitted and produced during the application process concerning your application can be shared by one agency with the other, for its individual storage, processing and use.

This means that any information given to or generated by Innovate UK in respect of your application may be passed on to Scottish Enterprise and vice versa. This would include, but is not restricted to:

• the information stated on the application, including the personal details of all applicants

• scoring and feedback on the application

• information received during the management and administration of the grant, such as Monitoring Service Provider reports and Independent Accountant Reports

Innovate UK and Scottish Enterprise are directly accountable to you for their holding and processing of your information, including any personal data and confidential information. Data is held in accordance with their own policies. Accordingly, Innovate UK, Innovate UK Business Connect and Scottish Enterprise will be data controllers for personal data submitted during the application.

Innovate UK’s Privacy Policy

Innovate UK Business Connect Privacy Policy

Scottish Enterprise’s Privacy Policy

Innovate UK complies with the requirements of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is committed to upholding data protection legislation, and protecting your information in accordance with data protection principles.

The Information Commissioner’s Office also has a useful guide for organisations, which outlines the data protection principles.

Contact us

If you need more information about how to apply or you want to submit your application in Welsh, email support@iuk.ukri.org or call 0300 321 4357.

Our phone lines are open from 9am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm UK time, Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays).

Innovate UK or any of our partners will not tolerate abusive language in any written or verbal correspondence, applications, social media or any other form that might affect staff.