TU Dublin Awarded Disruptive Technologies Innovation Funding for Aerospace Research
A further €17.8 million invested in innovative and novel technologies under calls 4 and 5 of rthe Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund bringing totl investment from the fund to €306 million.
The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, and Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Dara Calleary, today announced funding for a further five innovative projects under the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF). Two projects have been approved funding of up to €9.6 million in the third tranche of awards under DTIF Call 4 and three projects have been approved funding of up to €8.2 million in Call 5 of the Fund. This brings the total allocation of DTIF funding to €306 million, with over €173 million (56%) of the funding awarded to project partners outside of Dublin.
DTIF places a large emphasis on collaboration between enterprises, especially SMEs, and Irish research institutions. All five projects are being led by an SME, who are collaborating with seven other enterprise partners and seven partners from our research institutions. The 91 DTIF projects awarded funding across the five Calls to date contain 340 partners, of which 213 are enterprise partners. The linkages between these SMEs and larger enterprises – especially multinational companies – are crucial in developing ecosystems and mentoring which can help local firms, including High Potential Start Ups (HPSUs), to become embedded in the value chains of FDI-intensive sectors. This will lead to higher domestic value-capture and enable our SMEs and domestic economy to benefit from positive spillovers.
Announcing the two sets of awards under DTIF Calls 4 and 5, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, said:
"I am delighted to be able to announce the funding of three DTIF Call 5 projects and two additional DTIF Call 4 projects. This funding will see almost €18 million shared among the five projects, bringing total government investment to date across five DTIF calls to €306 million. This latest investment will leverage a further €13 million from the enterprise partners, bringing total private sector investment in the 91 projects funded to date to €176 million. It is noteworthy that over 88% of this investment is by our indigenous SMEs, thereby making a significant contribution to closing the innovation gap with the higher R&D performing foreign owned multinational enterprises.
"The three Call 5 projects are focused on advanced manufacturing, which is crucial for every industrial ecosystem across Europe. Such advanced industrial technologies help to sustain our economic resilience and competitiveness and will also facilitate the shift to a circular economy and a rapid decarbonisation of industry."
Simon Harris, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, also welcomed the five latest DTIF awards:
"The projects announced today are fostering new relationships between businesses and the research sector. These relationships are important for providing opportunities for our graduates to nurture new ideas and apply innovative solutions to the challenges facing society. The €124 million allocated to the 20 excellent research and academic institutions participating in the 91 DTIF projects approved to date demonstrates the government’s ongoing commitment to creating high value job opportunities for our highly trained graduates. The Fund is therefore making a substantial contribution to putting talent at the centre of the research and innovation ecosystem, which is one of the five pillars in Impact 2030, our national Research and Innovation Strategy."
Dara Calleary, Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, also welcomed the DTIF funding:
"The five DTIF projects being announced today offer exciting potential in the aerospace, manufacturing, and health sectors, and have the capacity to maintain the strong position of Irish industry at the forefront of technological advancements in these key sectors of the economy. As with many of the previously announced DTIF projects, they are seeking to find solutions to societal challenges, and support our commitments to improve the digital capability of our economy and reduce our carbon footprint. In addition, these projects have the potential to deliver increased trading opportunities and enhance Ireland’s competitive advantage, contributing to our longer-term economic growth. I wish them every success in their ventures."
Leo Clancy, CEO, Enterprise Ireland, in welcoming the funding said:
"The Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund is delivering real benefit to Irish enterprise and with this announcement it is set to deliver even more, particularly for companies within the Advanced and Smart Manufacturing space. Enterprise Ireland welcomes the significant contribution made by Irish companies awarded under DTIF to date. The successful Call 5 projects are using both experimental development and industrial research in their proposed solutions and this support will help our clients compete in rapidly changing global markets, helping them boost productivity, and will give them a significant competitive advantage in their sectors."