High Tech Materials Call
– spring 2015
Guide for applications
Deadline for submission: Monday June 8 2015, 13.00 hrs (1 pm)
Contactperson: dr. Victor Land
victor.land@fom.nl
(030) 600 12 73
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CONTENTS
1.
INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................... 3
1.1
1.2
Context......................................................................................................................................... 3
This HTM call - fall 2013 ........................................................................................................... 4
2.
GUIDE FOR APPLICANTS .................................................................................................... 5
2.1
2.2
2.3
2.4
2.5
Who can apply? .......................................................................................................................... 5
What can be applied for? .......................................................................................................... 5
How and when can applications be made? ............................................................................ 6
Format of the application .......................................................................................................... 6
Annexes with proposal............................................................................................................ 11
3.
ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE AND PROCEDURE AFTER ASSESSMENT .............. 12
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
3.7
3.8
Formal requirements ............................................................................................................... 12
Appropriateness in High Tech Materials Roadmap ........................................................... 12
Preselection ............................................................................................................................... 12
Assessment by international referees .................................................................................... 12
Rebuttal by applicant and protocol to programme committee ......................................... 12
Funding decision ...................................................................................................................... 13
Procedure after funding decision........................................................................................... 13
Reports ....................................................................................................................................... 13
4.
TIMELINE OF CALL AND FURTHER INFORMATION .............................................. 14
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
Timeline ..................................................................................................................................... 14
Intellectual property (IP) ......................................................................................................... 14
Assessment criteria .................................................................................................................. 14
Assessment scale programme committee............................................................................. 15
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1.
INTRODUCTION
This document describes the High Tech Materials call – spring 2015, with a submission
deadline of Monday June 8 2015 at 13.00 hours, and contains the guidelines that proposals
must satisfy.
1.1 Context
At the initiative of the Top team of the top sector High Tech Systems and Materials (HTSM)
the Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter (FOM) and Technology Foundation
STW, both part of NWO, in collaboration with the foundation Materials innovation institute
(M2i) are organizing five High Tech Materials (HTM) calls, with the aim of giving a boost to
scientific materials research in the Netherlands.
For the calls, FOM and STW alternate as the lead party: fall 2013 (FOM), spring 2014 (STW),
fall 2014 (STW), spring 2015 (this call: FOM) and fall 2015 (STW). In the spring of 2013 an
HTM call with STW as the lead party has already been held.
The applications to be submitted must focus on the development of new scientific insights
and/or technology and must address the priority areas of the High Tech Materials roadmap,
which was drawn up in consultation with scientists and companies 1. A synopsis of the
different priorities that jointly form the scope of the HTM call are described below.
Scope for the ‘High Tech Materials’ call
Fundamental insight in the physical background of materials is required to provide industry with
predictive models describing the link between processing conditions, the obtained structure of
materials and the resulting product and material properties. A selection is made by focusing on
different application categories highlighting a number of new material developments that are relevant
for industry and society:
- Hybrids and composites: the potential is huge by further increasing the strength-over-weight
ratio in combination with cost reductions. Important research issues are: improved toughness,
impact, fatigue and corrosion behaviour, short curing times and minimum shrinkage, improved
resins and resin injection techniques, 3D composites to further increase design freedom, automated
fibre placement and steering, visco-elasticity of elastomer-based nanocomposites, improved
mechanical properties at high temperatures, joining, inspection and repair methods, and recycling
(green production);
- Advanced metals: value chain optimisation in metals production based on total life cycle costs has
many aspects of materials innovation. Key issues are: blast furnace technology, extraction of raw
materials from waste streams and products, CO2 capture and storage technology, waste heat
recovery, ultra low CO2 steelmaking, high-performance aluminium, magnesium and titanium
technology, laser additive manufacturing of metals, Electron Beam Direct Manufacturing,
advanced joining and forming, recycling of rare earth metals from waste and end-of-life products,
processing of high temperature materials, and safety aspects of metals;
1 For all information from the High Tech Materials roadmap:
http://www.hollandhightech.nl/htsm/Innovatie/Roadmaps/High_Tech_Materials
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- Multifunctional textiles: nanotechnology is one of the drivers for improved multifunctional
textiles. Nanofibres, nanoparticles and nanosurface engineering will add new functionalities to
many applications. This needs further development of advanced production technologies. For
example plasma and laser treatment, pick and place robotics and inkjet technology will play a key
role in the introduction of new products to the market. MEMS and conductive polymers are another
example in this respect. New technologies will also enable tailoring of strength, endurance, water
repellence, et cetera;
- Surface and interface engineering: friction and wear should be understood from a fundamental
point of view and controlled by high-tech surface engineering and modification. Many surface
modification techniques are available in this respect. Apart from coating, cladding and thin film
techniques, surfaces can also be modified by direct laser treatment (e.g. 3D micromachining) or the
implantation of nanoparticles. A variety of these surface modification techniques is included in the
various sub-roadmaps. A high tech application can be found in EUV multilayer optics;
- Nanosized and nanostructured materials: tuning materials at the nanoscale allows obtaining
the materials of the future with astonishing optical, mechanical or surface properties in almost any
(industrial) domain. Main research areas are new materials-specific theories for atomic and
molecular interface physics and nanophysics, control over functional nanoparticle solids and
graphene-based electronics. Other examples include nanostructured materials for nanocatalysis and
photocatalysis, plasmonics for PV, graded thin films for SSL, phase change materials and
battery/thermoelectric energy management;
- Smart materials: smart or intelligent materials, like nanomaterials, show a great development in
new applications. The challenge of these materials lies in controlling the macroscopic properties and
behaviour from the micro- or even nanoscopic structure of the building blocks. On different length
scales (nano, micro, meso, macro) all kind of smart functionalities can be added to materials to
create special properties. Examples are drug delivery on demand, selective measure and sensor
techniques in the personal healthcare domain (e.g. lab-on-a-chip technology), photonic sensor
materials for process control and monitoring of ageing, self-healing and debond-on-command
materials, flexible foils for electronic devices like OLED and PV, next generation organic PV,
printable electronics and switchable optical materials;
- Soft materials: roughly 10% of the world energy consumption is used for the transport and
handling of granular materials. Also many foodstuffs, cosmetics and industrial materials (oil
drilling mud, coatings) are soft materials in the sense that large deformations result from small
forces. The challenge for all these materials lies in understanding and engineering their behaviour
at large scales from the organization of the building blocks at much smaller scales. Research
subjects are physics of colloidal dispersions in external fields, physics of granular matter,
innovative physics for oil and gas, and biomaterials/bio-related materials.
1.2 This HTM call - spring 2015
This call in the spring of 2015 is being led by FOM and applications awarded funding will
be realized under the management of FOM. Technical and scientific staff awarded to a
project will therefore be appointed as FOM employees.
FOM/NWO has made a maximum of M€ 1,5 available for the call. Besides the FOM/NWO
contribution, a private cash co-financing of at least 50% is required for each application. For
-5applications submitted in collaboration with companies or a consortia of companies
affiliated to M2i the private co-financing can be paid to FOM by M2i. Per application, the
maximum budget that can be applied for is k€ 450 (including co-financing; the maximum
FOM contribution per application is therefore k€ 225), or k€ 600 under specific
requirements, which are specified in §2.2.
The deadline for submitting applications is Monday June 8 2015; important dates can be
found in §4.1.
2.
GUIDE FOR APPLICANTS
2.1 Who can apply?
Applications can be submitted by professors and scientific staff with a tenured appointment
at one of the Dutch universities, FOM, or other research organizations that are fully or partly
funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.
An application may also be submitted by persons who in the context of a tenure-track
position, Vidi grant or Vici grant do not have a tenured appointment yet. They should,
however, submit a statement from the dean from which it is apparent that they have a
prospect of a tenured appointment after their temporary appointment has come to an end.
Applicants should first of all agree with the management of their research institution
whether an application can be submitted, how the project can be fitted into the research
programme of the institute and (in the event that funding is awarded) that use can be made
of the necessary infrastructural facilities. In cases of doubt a consultation between FOM and
the management of the institution is desirable.
A researcher may only be named as an applicant or co-applicant on two proposals submitted
in the context of this call.
2.2 What can be applied for?
Per application the maximum funding that can be applied for from FOM is limited to k€ 450
including the co-financing (the maximum FOM contribution per application is therefore
k€ 225). The funds applied for can be used for:
1. temporary personnel positions;
2. material budget (consumables, travel costs and publication costs);
3. equipment.
Notwithstanding the above, in case either a significant investment in equipment (at least
k€ 125) is applied for, or two applicants from different research group act as co-applicants, the
maximum funding is limited to k€ 600 including the co-financing (the maximum FOM
contribution in such a case is therefore k€ 300). The latter requirement has to be viewed upon
as a stimulus for an approach with multiple viewpoints towards solving a scientific challenge,
for instance by including experimental and numerical research, or by combining approaches
from multiple (physics) sub-disciplines.
Personnel
A distinction is made between PhDs (4 years), postdocs (max. 3 years per position),
technicians and guests. Personnel to be appointed (with the exception of guests ) will become
FOM employees. For the calculation of the personnel costs the following standard payments
are used (including reservations for possible benefit payments and for possible extensions of
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the contract for PhDs):
PhD
: k€ 216 (total over 4 years; k€ 54 per year)
postdoc
: k€ 72 per year
technician
: k€ 60 per year
guest
: k€ 42 per year
If the application submitted is awarded funding and you have received the granting letter
then you may recruit personnel. FOM uses strict criteria for this. The most recent
appointment criteria can be found on FOM's website (www.fom.nl) under 'Projects and
workgroups'.
Material budget
The material budget covers consumables, support materials, domestic and foreign travel,
recruitment/advertisement costs, costs for foreign travel and congress visits (including
accommodation costs) etc. The following material budgets (consumables, travel costs and
publication costs) can be applied for without specification:
- k€ 15 per year for one experimental position;
- k€ 5 per year for one theoretical/computational position.
If applicants think they need more material budget than this, the entire material budget
should be specified and argued for in the application, so that the desirability of this can be
included in the assessment of the application. Remunerations for indirect or infrastructural
costs, such as tenured personnel already present, the leasing of computer time for
calculation, gas and electricity, cryogenic fluids, workplace costs, administration, etc. cannot
be applied for. In the case of doubt please contact the FOM office.
Please note that the declaration of material budget is to be done including VAT.
The above mentioned amounts for standard material budgets are also including VAT.
Furthermore, do not forget to include any import duties!
Equipment
This covers sustainable goods, such as large and small instruments. These costs should also
be specified. Only the purchase costs are eligible. No costs are accepted for the use of existing
equipment. Please note that for any equipment or surfaces exceeding k€ 207 (incl. VAT), the
European rules for tendering apply. Any equipment not surpassing k€ 72 (incl. VAT) can be
paid via the material budget, in which case no separate investment budget has to be
specified.
Also here, Dutch VAT is to be included, as well as any import duties!
2.3 How and when can applications be made?
You can submit your application and any letters of submission and other attachments as a
PDF file via the electronic submission system Flamingo. Therefore you do not need to send a
printed version of the application to the FOM office by post.
You can access Flamingo via the website of the HTM call. If you are using Flamingo for the
first time then you will need to create an account. With this user name and the associated
password you can log into Flamingo, also for other calls organized by FOM. Further
information can be obtained via the 'help' link on the Flamingo website.
The format your application must satisfy is described in §2.4 'Format of the application'.
Applications that do not satisfy the format will not be considered. The deadline for
submitting applications is June 8 2015 at 13.00 hours (1 pm).
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2.4 Format of the application
There are several general guidelines for the application:
- the application should be written in English so that advice can be obtained from
international referees. - Use only terms that are known in English (so not terms like
'promovendus');
- the application should be comprehensible as a standalone document. References to
internal documents such as annual reports should therefore be avoided;
- only references to the 'open literature' are permitted. If referral to a preprint cannot be
avoided then you are requested to send a digital copy as a PDF file together with the
application so that the referees can consult this;
- it might be the case that you object to certain people being approached to act as referees,
for example due to considerations such as scientific competition or knowledge
transfer/patents. Should this situation arise then you have the opportunity to state in an
annex who you want to reject as a referee together with the reasons why (maximum 5
rejected referees);
- in the same appendix you may also make suggestions for referees (maximum 5);
- you are kindly requested not to include any quotations requested for equipment as an
integral part of your application.
The applications should be written according to the template given below and section
headings should be used in their entirety. The pages of the application should be numbered.
You are requested to formulate your application as concisely as possible and to ensure that
the length of the application bears reasonable relation to the size and costs of the proposed
project. Some annexes are also required; these are listed at the end.
1. Title of the project
The title is short and clear; in any case not an extensive description.
2. Applicant(s)
State the names and titles of the applicants, as well as the contact details of the
laboratory or institute of the principal applicant. If more than one applicant is stated
then we will assume that the applicant named first will act as spokesperson for the
application.
3. Research summary
The scientific summary of the project is brief: a few lines and at most half a page in
which the context, research question, method and expected results are described.
4. Utilization summary
The utilization summary of the project is short, at most half a page. Describe the
opportunities for utilization emerging from the research. Describe the approach, how the
results will be utilized and by who.
5. Research programme
Here a more detailed description of the research programme for the duration of the
project is given. For the formulation of this section you should bear in mind that the
programme committee members are by definition not all specialists in your discipline.
Insofar as it is necessary this section should consider the following aspects:
-8- the innovative and risk-bearing nature of the proposed research;
- the urgency of the proposed research;
- the scientific relevance in relation to similar research;
- method and technique;
- if it is relevant for the research proposed: how the collaboration with other groups
outside of the institute will take place.
In this section other relevant aspects can also be considered.
6. Utilization plan
The utilization plan must give a clear picture of the application area, with sufficient
detail to enable an assessment concerning the expected timeframe until a possible
application of the results in society.
6.1 The problem and the proposed solution
Describe the research problem with respect to societal and economic relevance.
Describe how the problem will be approached and which steps will be taken to
realize an actual application. State how long it will take from the start of the research
before the intended research results could lead to an entirely new method or a new
product, process or service and describe the market for this. State whether the
research results can become part of a standardization or normative guidelines and
describe these.
Provide enough detail for a statement to be made about the feasibility of the
intended application and which boundary conditions are necessary for this.
6.2 Potential industrial users
In the table give the contact details of the interested industrial parties. This can be
both direct users of the knowledge developed as well as end users who purchase the
products from the direct users. You should also describe how you plan to ensure
that the results of the research will actually be applied.
Company
Contact
Company name
Mr/Ms title,
initials, name
Full contact details
Postal address
Phone
E-mail
Size
Co-financer
Yes/No
> or < 250
employees
6.3 Past performance
State whether the research team has realized successful utilization in the past. State
whether scientific results have been marketed. State in which context the
applications were realized (FOM, STW, EU, etc.).
6.4 Relevance to the High Tech Materials roadmap
Describe here how the research proposed in your application relates to the objectives
and research subjects of the High Tech Materials Roadmap. Make this concise yet
detailed enough so that the information can be used to make a clear decision with
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respect to the appropriateness of your proposal within the objectives and themes of
the High Tech Materials roadmap.
7. Infrastructure
State the extent to which the infrastructure needed for the research is already present
within the research group(s). Describe the equipment that needs to be purchased and/or
developed (see also point 10.3).
8. Duration of the project
State when the project will probably start and its probable duration. This period can be a
maximum of 4 years if it concerns a PhD (except for any possible cases where several
PhDs need to be used in a phased manner) and a maximum of 3 years if a postdoc
position is requested.
9. Personnel
This section provides an overview of the personnel who will work on this project from
FOM as well as the university or other funding bodies. For this description of the
personnel the following classification is used.
9.1 Senior scientists
List the names of the senior researchers working on this project; state what their task
in this will be and for what percentage of their work time they will work on the
project.
9.2 Junior scientists and technicians
State how many (and if applicable, which) junior researchers (PhDs and postdocs)
and technicians will work on this project; state what their task in this will be and for
what percentage of their work time they will work on the project.
10. Cost estimates
FOM will not remunerate any direct or indirect infrastructural costs such as for tenured
personnel already present, the leasing of computer time for calculations, gas and
electricity, cryogenic fluids, workplace costs, administration, etc. In case of doubt (for
example if you think that your situation forms an exception to this) then you should
contact the FOM office before you submit your application.
The budget in this section applies for the entire duration of the project.
10.1 Personnel positions
Specify the personnel positions requested; from this specification the FOM office
must be able to estimate the associated costs. Make a distinction between scientific
personnel (PhDs, postdocs and guests) on the one hand and technical personnel
(technicians) on the other. Personnel will be employed by FOM. Possible
secondment costs for a prolonged stay at a foreign host institution should be stated
separately. Please note: remuneration takes place in accordance with FOM
regulations.
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10.2 Running budget
Consumables, support materials, domestic and foreign travel,
recruitment/advertisement costs, costs for foreign travel and congress visits
(including accommodation costs) etc. and small equipment purchases.
The standard running budgets for experimental and numerical positions mentioned
before are already including VAT. Otherwise, do not forget to include Dutch VAT
and any import duties!
10.3 Equipment
This covers sustainable goods, such as large and small instruments. These costs
should also be specified. Only the purchase costs are eligible. No costs are accepted
for the use of existing equipment.
Do not forget to include Dutch VAT and any import duties!
10.4 Budget summary
Give a brief summary of the budget charged to FOM and an overview of the cash
co-financing (use table below).
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
TOTAL
personnel (months):
PhD students
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
postdocs
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
technicians
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
guests
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
personnel (k€)2
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
running budget (k€)
(incl. VAT)
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
equipment (k€)
(incl. VAT)
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
...........
TOTAL COSTS:
(incl. VAT)
........... ........... ........... ........... ........... (≤ k€ 450/6003)
Requested from FOM:
........... ........... ........... ........... ........... (≤ k€ 225/300)
Cash Co-financing
Total 4:
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
Company name 1:
Company name 2:
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
........... ........... ........... ........... ...........
At least 50%
...........
...........
.....
2
Use the rates of §2.2 here
k€ 600 under specific requirements, see §2.2
4 The co-financing from companies (excl. VAT) should be 50% of the total project costs (incl. VAT).
3
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We kindly request you to give a realistic multi-year planning of the expenditure.
Before submitting your application you are also kindly requested to carefully check
and audit all of the figures in the table.
10.5 In-kind co-financing
Here you can give a brief overview of the in-kind contributions from companies for
the proposed research. Briefly state the form of the contribution here (e.g. making
materials available, laboratory space, equipment, analyses, etc.) and the total
amount per company. Consultancy and costs (travel, hours, etc.) for attending
meetings in the framework of the project proposed in the application are not
accepted as in-kind co-financing.
11. Intellectual Property
Give an overview below of all contracts with third parties and of patents that are
important for the realization of the research in the proposal. If you have searched in a
database for existing patents then state these as well. It must be clear that contracts or
patents do not form a hindrance for the realization of the research. The guidelines
concerning intellectual property are stated in §4.2 'Intellectual Property' of this guide.
11.1 Contracts
State whether there are existing contracts (such as licenses or collaboration
agreements) with third parties in relation to the research subject.
11.2 Patents
Give an overview here of patents and/or patent applications from intended
collaboration partners in the area of the research described in the application. State
whether the patents or patent applications are in the name of the research
institution(s) concerned or in the name of third parties.
12. Key publications of the applicants
Give the references (including title) of the five most important publications of the
applicants so that the reviewers can form an impression of the capacities of the
applicants.
13. References
Please provide references to articles relevant for the application and references to an
overview article, book or other basic document that can serve as a reference source for
assessors who are less familiar with the specific area of the research.
2.5 Annexes with proposal
From each industrial partner who states that they want to make a financial contribution to
your proposal we expect a letter of support in English on the company's own letter paper.
The letter of support must contain at least a concise description of the importance of the
proposed research for the organization as well as the importance of the utilization plan and
must state the total cash contribution to the proposal. Furthermore, in the letter the partner
must state that it is aware of the regulations concerning intellectual property within this call
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and that it will abide by these regulations. The guidelines concerning intellectual property
can be found in §4.2 'Intellectual property' of this guide.
In a separate annex you can suggest a maximum of five referees and a maximum of five
rejected referees (non-referees). You should state the reasons for rejecting persons as referees.
3.
ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE AND PROCEDURE AFTER ASSESSMENT
Applications in the context of the High Tech Materials call will be assessed for scientific
quality and utilization. Furthermore, each proposal will be tested for appropriateness in the
High Tech Materials roadmap. Only the most important steps in the assessment procedure
are described below. The important dates for you as an applicant are given in § 4.1
'Timeline'.
3.1 Formal requirements
After your proposal has been received a FOM office employee will assess whether it satisfies
the formal requirements given in the guidelines. If changes are needed then the office
employee will inform you of these and you will be given the brief opportunity to modify
your proposal and resubmit it.
3.2 Appropriateness in High Tech Materials Roadmap
All proposals that satisfy the formal requirements are tested for appropriateness in the High
Tech Materials roadmap by the chair of the roadmap. The testing is organized in a manner
that complies with the NWO Code of Conduct on the Conflict of Interests. If the proposal
does not fit in the roadmap then specific reasons for this are given. Proposals that do not fit
in the roadmap are not considered further.
3.3 Preselection
If the total amount requested is more than four times the available budget then the
programme committee can make a preselection based on the proposals submitted.
The proposals are ranked numerically by the programme committee, without
using external referees (for the assessment criteria, we refer you to §4.3).
On the basis of the ranking and in consideration of the available funds, the proposals are then
divided up into two categories:
Category I: proposals of very good quality, which will be submitted to international referees;
Category II: proposals which, given their ranking and the available budget, will not be
considered further and will not be submitted to referees.
- 13 -
3.4 Assessment by international referees
All proposals that fit in the roadmap High Tech Materials are subsequently submitted to at
least three international, expert referees for review 5. The referees' comments received are
compiled into an 'initial protocol'.
3.5 Rebuttal by applicant and protocol to programme committee
The initial protocol is submitted to the applicant for a rebuttal. The principal applicant is
approached for this by e-mail unless the parties involved indicate otherwise when the
proposal is submitted. The applicant is given 72 hours to formulate and submit the rebuttal.
The referees' comments and the rebuttal are combined into a single 'protocol'.
The protocol is subsequently submitted to the programme committee. The committee has six
members with specific expertise, half of whom are from industry (two affiliated to M2i) and
the other half from the scientific domain. This programme committee assesses the
applications together with the protocols received and formulates a funding advice for the
Executive Board of the FOM Foundation.
3.6 Funding decision
The Executive Board of the FOM Foundation decides which proposals to award funding
based on the applications, protocols and the advice of the programme committee. It may
deviate from the advice issued by the programme committee. Furthermore, the Executive
Board may attach additional conditions to the funding awarded.
As soon as possible after the funding decision the applicants are informed in writing about
the funding or rejection of their proposal.
3.7 Procedure after funding decision
After the funding decision, the projects awarded funding should start as soon as possible. To
this end an agreement about the financial contribution is first of all concluded with the
companies. For applications where the companies are part of the M2i consortium, an
agreement can be concluded between FOM and M2i. As soon as the agreement has been
signed by all parties, the official allocation letter will be sent to the applicant.
Allocated personnel positions will be withdrawn if these are still vacant 18 months after the
moment at which these were first allowed to be filled. The associated material budgets and
investments will then also usually be withdrawn insofar as these have not been used yet.
Projects awarded funding will be embedded in a FOM workgroup or FOM institute. For
projects that cannot reasonably be embedded in an existing workgroup or institute a new
workgroup will generally be set up. The workgroup is headed up by a workgroup leader,
usually a professor, who is appointed by the Executive Board of FOM. The appointment is
usually for the duration of the project.
The project leader is responsible for the day-to-day management of the project and the FOM
personnel appointed to it. The workgroup leader reports regularly to FOM about the
progress made in the research and the use of the financial resources from the projects that fall
under his workgroup. Every project should be closed with a final report from the project
leader. The project leader will receive a request for this in good time from the FOM office.
5
The assessment criteria can be found in §4.3 'Assessment criteria'.
- 14 -
3.8 Reports
Researchers will collaborate with companies in projects. This can be realized via the existing
structures of M2i, or via a committee initiated by the project leader.
FOM requires a report each year from the project leaders. This should include details of the
most important results (scientific output, but also utilization) as well as a brief look ahead.
Furthermore, FOM requires a final report at the end of the project.
4.
TIMELINE OF CALL AND FURTHER INFORMATION
This section provides you as the applicant with important dates for the High Tech Materials
call for fall 2013 and further information that is important for your proposal.
4.1 Timeline
The table below contains the most important dates for applicants. The data are provisional
and subject to change, for example, if more proposals are submitted than expected. The
intended period from deadline call to funding decision is therefore 6 months.
13 April
8 June 13.00 hours
(1 pm)
≤ 12 June
17 to 21 August
13 October
Call open – possibility to submit applications
Submission deadline – applications can no longer be submitted
Testing of formal requirements and appropriateness for HTM
roadmap
Opportunity to issue a rebuttal to referees' comments
Funding decision by Executive Board FOM Foundation
4.2 Intellectual property (IP)
The most important points from the IP agreements for this HTM call are:
- FOM owns the research results generated in a FOM project;
- the research results generated entirely at the costs of an industrial partner are owned
by that partner;
- an industrial partner who pays at least 50% of the total project costs receives an
irrevocable, worldwide, non-exclusive right to the commercial use of the results generated;
- the exclusive right to commercial use or the ownership of the research results by
the industrial partner can be acquired for a remuneration at market rate;
- FOM retains the right to the non-commercial use of the results, such as for research
and education;
- publication of scientific results must always be possible. However, in consultation
with the project leaders a postponement of the publication can be requested for a
maximum period of 3 months so that the possibilities for utilizing the results can be
investigated.
FOM should be properly informed in advance about any obstacles to the free use or
exploitation of the results. If it transpires that there are obstacles to the realization of the IP
policy then FOM will set additional conditions. If it transpires during the realization of the
project that the project leader has failed to state relevant information then FOM can suspend
the project until the obstacles have been removed. In this regard FOM can request to see
contracts and/or patents. Contracts may not be in conflict with FOM's IP policy. If it
transpires that FOM cannot gain free access to the results from the research then FOM can
decide not to fund the project or to stop it.
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4.3 Assessment criteria
Referees will assess the proposals on the basis of the scientific quality but also the
potential for applications. The assessment criteria are, for scientific quality:
- strong and weak scientific points;
- originality of the research;
- expertise of the research group;
- funding requested;
- planning and timeline outlined,
for the applications:
- strong and weak points of the utilization plan;
- commercial and societal impact of the research;
- contributions of the individual researchers and the added value of the group composed;
- possible obstacles in realization due to existing patents or public resistance;
- possibility for collaboration with industry and possibility to transfer the knowledge
generated;
- competence of the research group to transfer the knowledge successfully.
4.4 Assessment scale programme committee
Based on the proposals, the referees' comments and the rebuttals, the programme committee
awards a numerical assessment to the proposals. The following assessment scale is used:
Scientific quality
Excellent
A superb researcher or research team.
A well-chosen problem.
The method is highly original and effective.
Very urgent.
Very good
A competent researcher or research team.
A serious problem.
The method is original and effective.
A fast approach is important.
Good
An average researcher or research team.
A routine problem
The project can be tackled using the method, which has some original aspects, although
other possibilities are conceivable.
Moderate
It is far from certain whether this work falls within the capacity of the researcher and/or the
research team: the actual proposal has no obvious mistakes.
A moderately interesting problem.
It is highly questionable whether the project can be tackled successfully with this standard
method.
The project can very easily be postponed.
Inadequate
The competence of the researcher or research team is considered to be insufficient.
The proposal contains grave errors or mistakes. This dated method is not suitable for this
project. Do not realise even if there is funding left.
- 16 Assessment scale utilisation
Excellent
This will certainly lead to new techniques or to entirely new applications in industry, society
or other scientific disciplines.
This research is urgently needed to be able to estimate the consequences of using this
technology or technique.
The utilisation has been superbly considered and the approach almost certainly guarantees
an effective use of the results.
Very good
This research will probably lead to important new techniques or to important applications in
industry, society or in other sciences.
This research is highly desirable to be able to estimate the consequences of using this
technology or technique.
The utilisation has been well considered and with the approach it is likely that good use will
be made of the results from this work.
Good
This will possibly lead to new techniques or to applications that might be useful to industry,
society or other scientific disciplines.
This research is necessary to be able to estimate the consequences of using this technology or
technique. The utilisation has been sufficiently considered and the approach will probably be
improved during the realisation of the work; use will probably be made of the results from
this work.
Moderate
From a technical perspective this work might someday be applicable or it is conceivable that
another scientific discipline, industry or society might be able to make use of the results in
the future.
There is no current demand for the results from this research but they might one day be
usable if an estimate needs to be made of the consequences of using this technology or
technique.
The utilisation is not good enough. This should definitely be improved, as otherwise it must
be feared that the use of the results from this work will not be adequate enough.
Inadequate
From a technical perspective the work is poor and superfluous, in other words different,
better or comparable yet cheaper techniques are already available.
This research does not contribute to the use of this technology or technique but rather it
increases the confusion that exists about the consequences of this use. The utilisation is
utterly unacceptable.
To be eligible for funding the assessment for both scientific quality and utilisation must be at
least 'Good'.