Archived Grant Opportunity View - GO113

Innovation Connections assists businesses to understand their research needs, connect with the research sector and fund collaborative research projects. It is done in 2 stages.

Stage 1 – Innovation Connections Facilitation

You must complete stage 1 before stage 2. The Innovation Connections Facilitation service is free and includes access to a highly-skilled facilitator, who will work with your business to understand your research needs. You might:

• discuss strategic research opportunities in new or existing markets
• identify critical research areas for improving your products, processes and services
• find ways for your business to work with the research sector

At the end of the engagement, you will receive a Service Report that outlines your business’s research needs and opportunities.

Stage 2 – Innovation Connections Grant

If your facilitator recommends it, you can apply for an Innovation Connections Grant to undertake a research project that addresses the recommendations made in the Service Report.

Research projects must be in collaboration with a Publicly Funded Research Organisation (PFRO) and should develop a new idea with commercial potential. Your facilitator will help you decide which of the 3 available grants will suit your business's needs:

• Researcher Placement – places a PFRO researcher in your business to work on a specific research project (up to $50,000)
• Business Researcher Placement – places a researcher from your business into a PFRO to work on a specific research project (up to $50,000)
• Graduate Placement – helps employ a graduate or post-graduate with a relevant degree into your business to work on a specific research project (up to $30,000)

See the Customer Information Guide for more information.

Eligibility for Innovation Connections Facilitation

We recommend that you contact a facilitator in your state before you start, to find out if our service is right for you. A facilitator can also assist with your application.

What are the eligibility criteria?

To be eligible for an Innovation Connections Facilitation, your business must:

• be a solvent, for-profit, non-tax-exempt company that is registered for GST and incorporated and operating in Australia
• be a company with trading activities that are the majority of its overall activities
• have filed Business Activity Statements showing ongoing trading in at least 3 successive years
• not have received an Innovation Connections Facilitation before

Your business’s annual turnover or operating expenditure in 1 of the last 3 financial years must be between $1.5 million and $100 million. If your business is in remote or Northern Australia, your annual turnover lower limit is $750,000.

You must also satisfy one of the following:

• operate in one or more growth sectors
• provide enabling technologies or services to one or more of the growth sectors
• show a commitment to, and have the skills, capability, intellectual property or expertise to operate in, one of the growth sectors in the future

Refer to the Customer Information Guide for more information on the eligibility criteria for Innovation Connections.

Eligibility for Innovations Connections Grant

What are the eligibility criteria?

To be eligible for an Innovation Connections Grant, your business must:

• have received a Service Report
• apply within 12 months of receiving the report
• be able to fund the total project costs, as the grant is paid after completion of the project
• not use in-kind contributions or funds from other government grants or programmes to cover the project costs
• not have received an Innovation Connections Grant in the last 5 years, unless you have confirmation that you can apply for a supplementary grant

From $1.00 to $50,000.00

To apply, go to https://www.business.gov.au/Grants-and-Programs/Innovation-Connections

business.gov.au provides information and advice to businesses via a range of channels including phone (13 28 46), email and web chat. Contact us for assistance.