European sources can provide very substantial support for company’s investment in R&D. For example, compared to TEKES, the percentages of allocated funding can be larger: 50% for demonstrations, 75% for research activities and 100% for the coordination of projects. On the other hand, the competition in all EU-funding is tougher, and the amount of bureaucracy higher.
Preparation of EU-projects takes time and requires specific know-how. A successful proposal has to have the right combination of partners, the application has to be well written and correspond exactly to the formulation of the call, and all the required forms and documents have to be filled in and sent on time. Also, the coordination of the project brings an additional load of work, which is away from the time spent on actual research and development activities.
Due to demand, Spinverse is expanding its service offering to include consultancy for EU-funding. We can help to identify suitable calls and find the right partners, coordinate in the writing of the applications, and to ensure that the applications is of high quality and fulfills all the formal requirements. We can even act as a coordinator for the project, if the project fits our areas of interest and expertise well.
There are several calls open at the moment, which are targeting nanotechnologies, applications of new materials and novel manufacturing methods. A clear trend in all the new calls is the move from fundamental research closer to the marketplace, which makes them more attractive to companies.