Innovation Partnership Programme

The Innovation Partnership Programme encourages Irish-based companies to work with Irish research institutes resulting in mutually beneficial co-operation and interaction. Companies can access expertise and resources to undertake research towards the development of new and improved products, processes, services, and generate new knowledge and know-how. The participating company benefits in terms of its growth, the evolution of its strategic research and development and the creation of new knowledge that it can use to generate commercial advantage. The research institute benefits in terms of developing skill sets, intellectual property and publications.

The proposal application to Enterprise Ireland and the administration of the project is managed by the Principal Investigator in the participating research institute. Upon approval, the grant is paid directly to the research institute.

COMPANY CONTRIBUTION All Innovation Partnership projects require the company partner to provide minimum cash contribution of 20% of the total project cost. In all cases, the company partner must have the resources to contribute its share of the funding for the research and to fund the commercialisation of the research, when completed.

FUNDING Enterprise Ireland Innovation Partnership Programme provides grants of up to 80% towards eligible costs of the research project. Funding from Enterprise Ireland will normally not exceed €200,000. Exceptions to this limit may be made for established clients of Enterprise Ireland and other State development agencies where the Innovation Partnership project and the follow-on activity will clearly lead to a significant increase in the company’s employment and/or sales and exports. Grant funding to projects involving early stage companies and High Potential Start-Up (HPSU) clients will normally be capped at €100,000.

IPP Capital Funding If an IPP project requires the purchase of a large item of capital equipment, a new IPP Capital Funding support may be available to the RPO to 100% fund this capital equipment outside the IPP project budget. The approval is subject to, but not limited to, the following conditions being satisfied:

• The piece of equipment is critical to the successful completion of the project
• The equipment is not readily available locally
• A formal justification being provided outlining a continued industrial need for the equipment and a financial plan showing how the equipment would be serviced and maintained by the institution into the future
• The equipment is reserved for industrial use
• Upon completion of the funded project, the cost of maintenance, service, insurance and all other operational costs are borne by the institution
• The applicant company (and all subsequent users) to be charged a fair commercial rate for the use of the equipment.

Please consult with the Innovation Partnership team before submitting the IPP Capital Funding Application. Please see the Innovation Partnership Capital Funding Guidelines & Business Case Form (.doc) for further details.

A manufacturing or internationally traded services company with an operating base in the Republic of Ireland that wishes to collaborate with one or more research institutes, also based in the Republic of Ireland, is eligible to participate. The company must be a registered client of one of the following state development agencies: Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland, Údarás na Gaeltachta, a Local Enterprise Office. The company must have the full support of their assigned Development Adviser / Agency Contact to participate in the programme. This support must be confirmed before any application forms are submitted. Clusters of companies and/or research institutes are welcome to apply to the programme.