The Commonwealth will invest $10 million over ten years in SMEs to inspire and attract innovative research proposals from defence industry.
Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne said the funding for the new initiative, called Small Business Innovation Research for Defence (SBIRD) will be provided by the $730 million Next Generation Technologies Fund (NGTF) to build Australia’s Defence capability.
“The focus of this new program is to get our small and medium size companies quickly off the starting block so Defence can capitalise on their expansive potential for innovation and research capabilities,” Minister Pyne said.
“Australia’s small business sector has a wealth of talent and energy and this program is designed to draw out the best ideas to support our Defence capability.”
The two-stage program will provide an initial funding round of $100,000 to research potential Defence technology over a six to nine month period.
The second stage of the technology will be tested against the Defence application, with funding of up to $750,000 over one to two years.
SMEs will be required to address future Defence problems aligned with the priority areas in the NGTF.
Minister Pyne said he strongly encouraged SMEs to take advantage of this dedicated program and contribute to the development of game changing capabilities.
“SMEs can access other funding opportunities under the Next Generation Technologies Fund and the Defence Innovation Hub—a win-win for small business.”
Further information about the SBIRD program and how to participate is available at www.business.gov.au/cdic