Key Features
This is a Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) competition funded by the UK Space Agency.
Programme: UK Space Agency
Award: Share of up to £2 million
Opens: 17th Nov 2023
Closes: 15th Dec 2023
This is a Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) competition funded by the UK Space Agency.
The aim is to undertake commercially viable innovative feasibility studies, that aim to combine terrestrial technologies with satellite data and services, to be adopted by customers in the transport and logistics and financial services sectors.
Satellite data and services already underpin over 17% of UK GDP, with innovation continuing to unlock new opportunities for business.
Harnessing satellite data and services with complementary data sources can unlock new opportunities for businesses, from revenue growth and operational efficiencies to customer experiences and environmental, social and governance (ESG) benefits.
This competition aims to fund innovative feasibility studies fusing terrestrial data sources with satellite data and services, within the transport and logistics and/or financial services sectors.
Your project must demonstrate the development of satellite data and services solutions within the two target sectors, delivering a feasibility study that solves customer challenges in these sectors. The UK Space Agency are particularly interested in proposals from organisations that can combine terrestrial data and services (eg AI, quantum, machine learning, drones, geospatial data) with satellite data and services, and can provide analysis to derive value-added insights, to develop innovative solutions for customers.
The UK Space Agency particularly welcomes applications from organisations who have not extensively used satellite data and services in their organisation before. The UK Space Agency recognises that while projects may have potential impact on both the transport and logistics and financial services sectors, your project should have an identified primary target sector. If possible, you should identify any expected spillover impacts on other sectors within your proposal.
Your proposal must detail the intended customer groups, integrators and suppliers of satellite data and services who will be involved in your feasibility study.
The UK Space Agency reserves the right to launch a phase 2 of this competition, subject to the outcomes from this phase 1. While the details of a phase 2 are yet undecided it is likely to include a demonstration of your solution in a live environment.
In applying to this competition, you are entering into a competitive process.
Any adoption and implementation of a solution from this competition would be subject to a separate, possibly competitive, procurement exercise. This competition does not cover the purchase of any solution by the UK government.
This competition closes at 11am UK time on the date of the deadline.
This competition aims to fund innovative feasibility studies using satellite data and services, within the transport and logistics and/or financial services sectors in the UK.
You must show how your solution involves an innovative application of satellite data and services, which may be combined with terrestrial data sources, to drive business benefits within the transport and logistics and/or financial services sectors in the UK. Your project must develop a solution for end customers in these sectors by targeting those organisations who have not extensively used satellite data and services before. Proposals are encouraged from organisations who can bring together diverse data and service types, and in some cases provide analysis to derive value-added insights, to encourage innovative uses of satellite data and services by customers in the transport and logistics and/or financial services sectors.
Your project should involve 1 or more of the 3 types of commercial satellite data and services:
In this competition you must focus on close to market solutions, prioritising:
You must demonstrate how your innovative application of satellite data and services can be integrated into functional prototypes and system solutions for end customers in the target sectors. The demonstration of active support and commitment of potential end customers would strengthen the application. You can submit a letter(s) of support with your answer to question 7 in your application to highlight this commitment.
You must demonstrate a credible and practical route to market, so your application must show how you will engage with potential end customers, integrators and space suppliers, including a plan to commercialise your results.
Our goal for funded projects is that through exploitation of commercial satellite data and services, combined with terrestrial data types and sources, businesses in the transport and logistics and financial services sectors will be able to collaborate across the supplier and integrator ecosystem to unlock new benefits from satellite data and services.
Contracts will be given to successful applicants. At this stage contracts will be given for phase 1 only.
Your project must focus on driving benefits for businesses in one of the following sectors:
This means planned research or critical investigation to gain new knowledge and skills for developing new products, processes or services.
In phase 1 your project will work closely with potential future customers to develop a solution and produce a final report, which will be assessed. This may form part of the decision for awarding contracts for a future phase 2.
The UK Space Agency reserves the right to launch a phase 2 of this competition, subject to the outcomes from this phase 1. While the details of a phase 2 are yet undecided it is likely to include a demonstration of your solution in a live environment.
Projects must:
To lead a project, you:
This competition will not fund any procurement, commercial, business development or supply chain activity with any Russian or Belarusian entity as lead or subcontractor. This includes any goods or services originating from a Russian or Belarusian source.
Contracts will be awarded to a single legal entity only. However, if you can justify subcontracting components of the work, you can engage specialists or advisers. The project and delivery against the project milestones will still be the responsibility of the main contractor. For clarity your subcontractors may not meet all the eligibility criteria, however we maintain the right to review subcontractors on a case by case basis and to object where we see a need to.
The UK Space Agency will not fund projects that:
A total of up to £2,000,000 inclusive of VAT, is allocated to this competition.
This competition involves up to 10 feasibility study research and development (R&D) contracts being awarded to organisations. The contracts will be up to £200,000, inclusive of VAT, for each project for up to 6 months.
The total funding available for the competition can change. The funders have the right to:
The contract is completed at the completion of all milestones set out in the project plan, and the successful organisation is expected to pursue commercialisation of their solution.
You must state whether you are VAT registered before entering your project costs.
VAT is the responsibility of the invoicing business. We will not provide any further advice and suggest you seek independent advice from HMRC.
If you are VAT registered, you must enter your project costs exclusive of VAT. As part of the application process VAT will be automatically calculated and added to your project cost total. Your total project costs inclusive of VAT must not exceed £200,000.
If you are not VAT registered, you must enter your project costs exclusive of VAT. You will not be able to increase total project costs to cover VAT later should you become VAT registered. Your total project costs must not exceed £166,666.
Your application must have at least 50% of the contract value attributed directly and exclusively to R&D services, including solution exploration and design. R&D can also include prototyping and field-testing the product or service. This lets you incorporate the results of your exploration and design and demonstrate that you can produce in quantity to acceptable quality standards.
R&D does not include:
Book an appointment to speak to one of our advisors to discuss your eligibility to apply for this Grant Funding opportunity.
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