SFI Research Centres - Spokes (Rolling Call)
The SFI Spokes programme is a vehicle to enable the addition of new industrial and academic partners and projects to existing SFI Research Centres, allowing the Centre(s) to expand and develop in line with new priorities and opportunities, and enhances the ability of SFI Research Centres to deliver significant economic and societal impact for Ireland.
The Spokes programme also provides a vehicle to link together, in a meaningful and relevant way, SFI Research Centres, and helps to link researchers in partnerships across academia, industry and other co-funding partners, to address crucial research questions, contributing to Ireland’s economy through fostering development of indigenous companies and attracting FDI, together with addressing research questions of national societal importance.
Funding
SFI will support a maximum of 50% of funding of the direct project costs. The co-funding partner(s) must commit to providing a minimum of 50% of the direct project costs in cash. Co-funding partner ‘in kind’ contributions should be specified in the application but cannot be counted towards the required 50% cash contribution from the co-funding partner(s).
Co-funding partners for Spoke applications are typically industry partners, but can also include sources such as funding from charities and philanthropic organisations. In addition, and where strongly justified, exchequer funding may be considered as part of the Spoke cost-share and this will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. In such cases, the total exchequer funding should not exceed 50% (inclusive of the SFI contribution), except in exceptional cases where the exchequer co-funding partner.
How to Apply
The SFI Spokes Programme call is an open, rolling call with no submission deadline.
The SFI Spokes Programme call is an open, non-thematic call with no submission deadline. Potential applicants to the programme should contact SFI (spokes@sfi.ie) to discuss their proposed project and any queries they may have.
Applicants to the Spokes Programme must submit an Expression of Interest (EoI) prior to the submission of a full application. EoI submission is by invitation only and through SESAME, SFI’s online grants and awards management system. Applicants who submit EoIs that are reviewed positively by SFI will be invited to submit a full application which will be evaluated by international peer review.
Proposals submitted to the Spokes Call are expected to be characterised by their high level of strategic importance and urgency to both the Research Centre(s) and co-funding partners. The following should be noted regarding the evaluation of applications to the Spokes Call:
- Timing of the application submission is determined by the applicants and not SFI.
- SFI endeavours to fast-track the review process, where possible.
- Assessment of the proposal is on its own merit and not in competition with other proposals.
