Horizon 2020 FUNDS FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION

Hybrid light and heavy duty vehicles

Deadline: 28th august 2014

Specific challenge: The competitiveness of European road vehicle manufacturers is based on technological leadership particularly on system optimisation and affordability, particularly with respect to powertrains. The challenge is to recover a leading position in hybrid technology. The technology will also have positive effect on the reduction of CO2 emissions from road transport and air quality.

Scope: Proposals should develop new knowledge on hybrid components (storage system power electronics, etc.) and system engineering, simulation and technology integration with the aim of achieving hybrid powertrain weight and cost reduction, increased functionality, simplification of complex systems, efficiency and affordability while decreasing emissions and improving performance, comfort and functional safety. For light vehicles, preference would be given to concepts providing significant zero emission ranges. The research should be validated through at least one demonstrator for each platform subject of research.

Project Budget: between EUR 10 to 20 million each

Funding rate: 70% (except for non-profit legal entities, where a rate of 100% applies)

Source: European Commission official website

FUNDS FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION

Reducing impacts and costs of freight and service trips in urban areas
Deadline: 18th march 2014

Proposals should address one or several of the following aspects:

• Improving basic knowledge and understanding on freight distribution and service trips in urban areas. This could address research on indicators, measurement and data (e.g. delivery/service characteristics, operators, movements, and impacts); economic and behavioural modelling; impacts of urban planning; effects of logistics sprawl (e.g. impact of decentralisation of logistics facilities on transport movements); freight mitigation strategies; effectiveness of partnerships and stakeholder engagement; and comparative analyses and evaluation of policies and experiments.

• Assessing innovative policies and solutions to ensure a better use of infrastructure (e.g. delivery spaces, off peak deliveries, non-road modes, urban waterways) and vehicles (types, load factors); improve network management; address demand side measures, innovative use of transport modes, new ways of stakeholder collaboration; and provide policy frameworks that allow sustainable business models for urban logistics solutions.

• Assessing innovative policies and solutions on consolidation and distribution centres in urban areas, including design (e.g. cross-docking); business models for consolidation schemes (including fleet and freight sharing and pooling and adequate collaboration frameworks); integration of direct and reverse logistics; tools to identify and measure consolidation opportunities; and governance models.

Project Budget: between EUR 2 to 4 million each

Funding rate: 100%

Source: European Commission official website

FUNDS FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Transforming the use of conventionally fuelled vehicles in urban areas

Deadline: 18th March 2014

Proposals should address one of the following domains:

• Comparing innovative policies, measures and tools that will, inter alia, halve the use of conventionally fuelled vehicles in cities, while increasing accessibility of urban areas and improve air quality and road safety. This could include:

– Assessing the role of regulatory measures, demand side measures, innovative mobility services and the promotion of alternative modes as part of wider package of technologies, policy-based and soft measures with a strong potential for replication. The related consensus building, information and communication activities should be fully integrated in the work.

– Exploring how changes in mobility behaviour, individual choices, and social norms can be catalysed, accelerated and guided towards modal shift, changing vehicle use or ownership, reducing the need for travel, new mobility patterns, or their combination. Relevant drivers and barriers could be identified. The research should gather, evaluate and disseminate techniques that can be employed, including approaches that use social media.

• Exploring policy frameworks and measures to ensure the uptake of alternative fuelled vehicle fleets in urban areas. This could include:

– Assessing the opportunities for large scale deployment of alternative fuel distribution infrastructure, including for electric vehicle recharging. This could include a comparative assessment of deployment approaches combined with the adequate vehicles. Research on partnerships, business models and planning/rollout approaches could be undertaken and standardisation aspects could form part of the work. Pre-commercial procurement initiatives could be facilitated.

– Analysing the potentials for upgrading and/or regenerating electric public transport systems (i.e. trolleybus, tram, light rail and metro) while ensuring the safe integration of electric vehicles into infrastructure, in line with the trend towards electromobility. This could include the evaluation of costs and benefits of development schemes, also addressing noise aspects, as well as knowledge transfer, exchange of experience and preparing policy recommendations. Activities to improve the operational potential and energy performance of electric public transport may be included.

Project Budget: between EUR 4 to 6 million each

Funding rate: 100%

Source: European Commission official website

For further information please contact us

European funding for innovation

Towards the energy efficient and emission free vessel

Deadline: 18th March 2014 (for pre-proposals)

The challenge is to support developments that make new and existing vessels used in maritime operations (including leisure) and in inland navigation significantly more efficient and less polluting through solutions addressing four ship sub-systems: engine, pollution abatement systems, propulsion, energy sources and management including the efficient operation of on-board systems

: In order to meet this challenge, proposals should address one or several of the following aspects:

• Optimisation of conventional ship engines, including fuel flexibility, new materials, lifetime performance and near zero emissions engines.

• Development of low-maintenance, affordable off-the-shelf retrofit solutions for emission reductions of existing engines.

• Development of Liquified Natural Gas/dual fuel powered engines for small and mid-size ships, including the specific aspects of retrofitting, fuel supply and storage, safety (on-board and on-shore) and classification, and solutions to address the risks of methane slip.

• Design and demonstration of new and improved propulsion means and vessel configurations that include the entire drive train and the propeller and hull optimisation for vessels, including applied research in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD).

• Use of new energy sources including renewables, alternative fuels, hybrid and electric solutions with the aim to demonstrate the feasibility of the zero or near-zero emissions vessel.

Project Budget: between EUR 8 to 17 million each

Funding rate: 70% (except for non-profit legal entities, where a rate of 100% applies)

Source: European Commission official website

FUNDS FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Smart Rail Services

Deadline: 18th March 2014 (pre-proposals)

Proposals should address one of the two main challenges:

1) Seamless multimodal travel

2) Logistic Services

Regarding Seamless multimodal travel, research and innovation activities should aim at conceiving and prototyping an on-line, mobile, suite of integrated facilities providing a whole new traveller experience throughout the journey (namely planning and reservation of user-friendly multimodal trips and services, including information related to the specific needs of persons with reduced mobility and to the environmental impact of user choices), easily accessible entitlements, validation and control for all transport modes, en-route assistance including re-accommodation. The whole process should be further supported by the necessary business analytics providing relevant feedback of traveller data with the aim of ensuring more robust and responsive transport operations. Developments should evolve on the basis of robust business models capable of guaranteeing the economics of these e-services in the long-term.

Regarding Logistic Services, proposals should aim at addressing the key challenges of freight through a systematic "top-down" approach that backtracks from the performance indicators to be achieved – either in a geographical reach perspective (i.e. applicability of the solutions on a European scale) or in market segmentation (e.g. trainload/intermodal/wagonload or commodity-based segments) - and define the optimal combination of business, operational and technological solutions that are required for their delivery. In view of the significant financial fragility of the sector, priority should be given to those aspects that maximise potential returns in the short-term and require only moderate investment.

Project Budget: around EUR 12 million for the first challenge (Seamless multimodal travel) and around EUR 6 million euro for the second challenge (Logistic services)

Funding rate: 100%

Source: European Commission official website

FUNDS FOR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT - AVIATION

Competitiveness of European Aviation through cost efficiency and innovation

Deadline: 18th March 2014 (for pre-proposals)

Regarding aircraft, research and innovation actions could target the development of technologies and methodologies which have the potential to save costs and time across the whole life cycle of the aircraft (design, production, maintenance, overhaul, repair and retrofit), including for certification aspects. Research and innovation actions could also target the integration of additional functions (e.g. sensing, actuating) or materials in structural components of the aircraft, the increased use of automation and artificial intelligence in control systems allowing versatility and new capabilities or to provide passenger with additional services on-board of the aircraft or at the airport.

Regarding air transport operations, research and innovation actions could target cost efficiency of ground operations, as well as innovative approaches which can reduce the needs or accelerate the pace of the training of personnel.

Funds for innovation actions

Technologies for “super” low “real world” CO2 and polluting emissions

Deadline: 18th march 2014 (for stage 1)

Proposals for research and demonstration activities should address one or more of the following domains:

• Future spark-ignited non-hybrid engines and their pollution abatement systems for gasoline and bio-based liquid fuels for passenger cars and light freight vehicles focussing on the optimal combination of innovative engine and after-treatment technology and of modelling, sensing on-board emission monitoring and testing to improve the design and control capability.

• Future diesel non-hybrid engines for cars and vans also focussing on the combination of the most appropriate engine and after-treatment technologies and on modelling, sensing on-board emission monitoring and testing to improve the overall design and control capability.

• Preparation of the life-cycle assessment of proposed technology combinations to quantify their environmental impacts along the entire well-to-wheel chain if not already covered by existing studies in the field.

• Low environmental impact brake systems to reduce micro and nano particles emissions while improving the measurement and understanding of their effects on health and the environment.

Project budget: 4-10 million EUR each
Funding rate : 70% (except for non-profit legal entities, where a rate of 100% applies)

Source: European Commission official website

Call for proposals for 'Career Development'

Deadline: 15 April 2014

The European Commission has published a call for proposals for 'Career development'.

The European Union needs highly trained and qualified researchers to improve the well-being of its citizens and ensure economic growth. In this context, this new call aims to support the EURAXESS Services Network and to complement the efforts made so far in support of researchers' career development in an academic environment.

The call builds on the principle that - based on the knowledge, behaviour and characteristics of an individual researcher - career development advice, coaching, and training could further enable a researcher to aspire to excellence, whether inside and outside academia. Researchers will be provided with tools, best practices, advice and training, and they will be able to set personal targets and demonstrate evidence of achievements.

Indicative budget: EUR 0.96 million

Beneficiaries: At least 3 independent legal entities, each of which is established in a EU member state or Associated country, and no 2 of which are established in the same EU member state or Associated country.

For more information, please contact us

Eurotransbio programme

Deadline for submitting the project proposals is 31st January  2014 

Eurotransbio (ETB) programme calls for innovative near to the market Research, development and innovation projects in all fields of modern biotechnology (health, agro/food, industrial biotech, environment, marine/aquatic solutions) 

ETB’s mission is to foster the competitiveness of the European biotechnology industry by supporting research intensive SMEs and their strategic partners (large industries, public and private research organizations/universities) with the aim of achieving a thriving European biotechnology industry. 

Consortia coordinated by an SME and consisting of at least two enterprises belonging to two different countries participating in the 9th ETB Call [Austria, Belgium (represented by the regions of Flanders and Wallonia), Finland, France (represented by the region of Alsace), Germany, Italy, Russia, and Spain (represented by the regions of Andalusia and Basque Country)]  and coordinated by an SME can apply for ETB funding.

A consortium may involve as many additional partners (e.g. SMEs, Large Industries (LI), and Research Organisations (RO) belonging to the participating countries/regions) as necessary to achieve the project goals.  

Budget: EUR 21.000.000

For more information, contact us

Competitive Call for additional beneficiaries

Call deadline: 6 November 2013 

The Human Brain Project (HBP) is a ten-year, large-scale European research initiative whose goal is to understand the human brain and its diseases and ultimately to emulate its computational capabilities. The ramp-up phase of the project (October 2013 to March 2016) has received €54M of funding from the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme. HBP has reserved a portion of its ramp-up phase funding for specific tasks to be carried out by new beneficiaries who will join the consortium in 2014. 

These new beneficiaries will be selected from proposals submitted in response to this Competitive Call. The project will only consider proposals for research. Other kinds of activity will not be funded. 

Call topics 

1 - Human and mouse neural channelomics and receptomics 

2 - Genotype to phenotype mapping of the mouse brain 

3 - Identifying, gathering and organizing multimodal human and nonhuman neuroscience data 

4 - Cognitive architectures 

5 - Novel methods for rule-based clustering of medical data 

6 - Neural configurations for neuromorphic computing systems 

7 - Virtual robotic environments, agents, sensory & motor systems 

8 - Theory of multiscale circuits 

The following are eligible to participate in the HBP Competitive Call: any legal entity established in an EU Member State or an associated country or created under EU law; any international European interest organisation; any legal entity established in an FP7 international cooperation partner countries (ICPC). International organisations, other than an international European interest organisation, or a legal entity established in a third country other than an associated country or international cooperation partner country may also participate but without EU funding.

For further information, please contact us

XIFI Competitive Call for additional Project Partners

Submission deadline: 27 November 2013 

XIFI (eXperimental Infrastructures for the Future Internet), a project currently active in the Seventh Framework programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities contributing to the creation of the European research area and to innovation (2007-2013) requires the participation of new partners to carry out certain tasks within the project. In particular the tasks pertain to the expansion of the infrastructure nodes of the FI-PPP capacity by the involvement of providers and operators of additional infrastructures at locations considering the requirements of the early trial projects of the FI-PPP. 

Maximum budget available for new beneficiaries 2,170,000 € 

Maximum funding request per proposal 200,000 € 

The major objective of XIFI with this Open Call is to enlarge the infrastructure capacity of the FI-PPP by additional nodes aiming at achieving: 

• Balanced geographical distribution of infrastructures across Europe
• Increased heterogeneity of infrastructures and diversity of service capabilities 
• Greater diversity of access technologies including reach to Internet of Things infrastructures 
• Larger scale for Europe-wide early trials in the FI-PPP

For further information please CONTACT US

Community Networks Testbed for the Future Internet

Connected communities: A future internet, built by the people for the people 

 Deadline: 19 October 2013 

The CONFINE project is designing, building and operating a distributed testbed to support experimental research in community networking: Community-lab.net.

Topics of interest for this open call are around community networking, on aspects such as but not limited to:

• Wireless mesh networks 
• Wireless MAC and routing protocols 
• Services and applications for community networks 
• Cross-layer designs
• Hybrid networks with wireless and optical fibre links 
• Tools for bootstrapping and running community networks 
• Performance modelling and evaluation 
• Quality of service provisioning 
• Quality of experience in community networks 
• Community network security and privacy 
• Large-scale management and data collection infrastructures 
• Incentive models for encouraging users and businesses to participate in community networks 
• Socio-technical-economic experiments for community networks 
• Legal aspects of community networks 
• Increasing public awareness about the potential of community networks
• Engaging citizens and local administrations in community network developments

For further information, contact us

European Mobile and Mobility Industries Alliance 2013

Deadline for submitting applications 04/11/2013 

The main objective of the call for proposals is to develop large-scale demonstrators of Copernicus and the European GNSS-based services.

For the purpose of this Call, a large-scale demonstrator will be required to: 

 1. Demonstrate how innovative, added-value services based on Copernicus and the European GNSS could address in an effective manner societal challenges. In this respect, the intention is to support the achievement of targets defined by the Europe 2020 strategy, supporting smart, inclusive and sustainable growth, while ensuring complementarity with the priorities foreseen under the future Horizon 2020 programme and to test the envisaged approach; 

2. Demonstrate how innovative, added-value services based on Copernicus and the European GNSS could support the emergence of new industries in a region or metropolitan area. The potential for export of the developed services to other European regions must also be demonstrated. Take-up of Copernicus services should consider, at least, the already functioning projects stemming out of the 7th Framework Programme. 

Each large-scale demonstrator can propose to tackle only one of activities (1) / (2) or both (1)+(2). 

The large-scale demonstrator shall encourage activities with a strong and visible impact. It shall be based on a holistic approach that brings together a large number of regional innovation actors to create a favourable eco-system for innovative mobile services based on Copernicus and GNSS. 

Regional and metropolitan governments and business communities are thus called upon to create supportive technical infrastructures and business conditions that facilitate the take-up of innovative services based on Copernicus and the European GNSS in a given region or metropolitan area, paving the way for their possible deployment in other regions.

Budget: € 2 375 000

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT US 

RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURES

DEADLINE: 3 December 2013

 

The overall objective of the Research Infrastructures Part of the 'Capacities' specific programme is to optimise the use and development of the best research infrastructures existing in Europe, and to help to create in all fields of science and technology new research infrastructures of pan-European interest needed by the European scientific community to remain at the forefront of the advancement of research, and able to help industry to strengthen its base of knowledge and its technological know-how.

Within the scope of this EU action, the term 'research infrastructures' refers to facilities, resources, systems and related services that are used by research communities to conduct top level research in their respective fields. This definition covers: major scientific equipment or set of instruments; knowledge-based resources such as collections, archives or structured scientific information; ICT-based e-Infrastructures (networks, computing resources, software and data repositories) for research and education; any other entity of a unique nature essential to achieve or enable excellence in research. Research infrastructures may be 'single-sited' or 'distributed' (a network of resources).

Call n.12: Support actions on policy development, including international cooperation, for e-Infrastructures.

Indicative budget: EUR 2.50 million

 

Proposals will aim at providing policy support for e-Infrastructures, in one of the following areas: 

 

• bringing together national and pan-European e-Infrastructure and research infrastructures initiatives and stakeholders (in particular e-IRG and ESFRI) in view of better meeting common research infrastructure needs through e-infrastructure offerings, 
• investigating the feasibility of EU-wide network of HPC competence centres to provide services to industry, in particular to SME's, 
• fostering an increased European role and participation with relevant stakeholders in global data infrastructure initiatives, in particular the Research Data Alliance (RDA); this includes facilitating European industrial involvement in order to exploit emerging opportunities for products and services based on the increased availability of interoperable data, 
• developing a roadmap for broadening e-infrastructures deployment to support the participation of the citizens in all phases of the scientific development process, including the definition of research goals.

 

CONTACT US FOR MORE INFORMATION

TUBITAK Scholarship Programme for Least Developed Countries

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) aims to give scholarships for graduate students from the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in the fields of Natural Sciences, Engineering and Technological Sciences, Medical Sciences, Agricultural Sciences, Social Sciences and Humanities in Turkish Universities for improving science and technology capacity of LDCs and building scientific and socio-economic bridge between LDCs and Turkey.

Maximum durations of scholarship are 2 years for MSc/MA students and, 4 years for PhD students. Additionally, fellows attending a language school may be supported up to one year by 75 % of the full stipend. The fellows should start their fellowship in one year after the announcement of the results.

Fall Term:  19 August-27 September 2013

Further information

Scientific co-operation between Eastern Europe and Switzerland

SCOPES 2013-2016 

DEADLINE: 20 September 2013

 

The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) are launching a new phase of the programme “SCOPES - Scientific co-operation between Eastern Europe and Switzerland”.

 

The programme aims at supporting individual researchers, research teams and research institutions from the target countries in their endeavour to overcome the difficulties of the transition period. From a Swiss perspective, the programme offers the possibility to fund scientific collaborations and promote synergies with the target countries.

Who can apply? Researchers working at research institutions in Switzerland and in countries of Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans and the New Independent States of the former Soviet Union. The main applicant must be employed at a Swiss research institution.

 

In spring 2014, there will be a call for Institutional Partnerships (IPs).

CONTACT US for further information

 

European funding for software-intensive systems and services

ITEA 2 is a strategic pan-European programme. It stimulates and supports innovative and pre-competitive R & D projects that contribute research excellence to European industry in Software-intensive Systems and Services (SiSS).

The ITEA 2 approach is:

• Industry driven;
• Bottom-up to favour innovation;
• Flexible to favour business impact;
• Market oriented;
• Intergovernmental;
• Based on a multi-dimensional concept of excellence for project selection
• Community oriented, easily accessible by industry and SMEs

It is possible to submit any idea that fits in the domain of software-intensive systems and services.

Projects involve between 40 and 300 person-years and typically last up to three years.

                                Download our newsletter for further information

European funding for low-carbon energy technologies.

Deadline: 13th September 2013

EUROGIA2020 goal is to support and promote international partnerships developping innovative projects in low-carbon energy technologies.

It is a bottom-up, industry driven, market oriented programme which addresses all areas of the energy mix, from renewable energy to efficiency, and reduction of carbon footprint of fossil fuels.

EUROGIA2020 is a cluster of the EUREKA network, a decentralized intergovernmental initiative started in 1985 to enhance European competitiveness by supporting businesses, research centers and universities that take part in trans-national projects.

 It adresses all innovative energy technologies that will:

• reduce the carbon footprint of energy production and;
• use develop new technologies for energy such as solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, energy efficiency, etc.

DOWNLOAD OUR NEWSLETTER FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT US

Clean Sky: research project for low-carbon aircraft

DEADLINE: 22 October 2013

Aviation is an essential element of today's global society, bringing people and cultures together (2.2 billion passengers yearly) and creating economic growth (425 billion of world GDP - gross domestic product). The air transport industry is paying a lot of attention to growing public concern about the environmental issues of air pollution, noise and climate change.


Clean Sky, a Public Private Partnership between the European Commission and the Aeronautical Industry, was set up to bring significant step changes regarding the environmental impact of aviation. Clean Sky will speed up technological breakthrough developments and shorten the time to market for new and cleaner solutions tested on full scale demonstrators, thus contributing significantly to reducing the environmental footprint of aviation (i.e. emissions and noise reduction but also green life cycle) for our future generations.

The programme is arranged around the six following Integrated Technology Demonstrators (ITDs):

• Smart Fixed Wing Aircraft
• Green Regional Aircraft
• Green Rotorcraft
• Systems for Green Operation
• Sustainable and Green Engines
• Eco-Design

INDICATIVE BUDGET : € 32 336 250
 

Download here our newsletter

Contact us

Clean Sky programme

European funding for research: Clean Sky

Deadline: 18 April 2013

Clean Sky is the most ambitious aeronautical research programme ever launched in Europe. Its mission is to develop breakthrough technologies to significantly increase the environmental performances of airplanes and air transport, resulting in less noisy and more fuel efficient aircraft, hence bringing a key contribution in achieving the Single European Sky environmental objectives. 

The Clean Sky JTI (Joint Technology Initiative) was born in 2008 and represents a unique Public-Private Partnership between the European Commission and the industry. It is managed by the Clean Sky Joint Undertaking (CSJU). The CSJU will deliver demonstrators in all segments of civil air transport, grouped into six technological areas called 'Integrated Technology Demonstrators' (ITD).