Swiss Israel call for innovative projects

Scope

This bilateral call is open for all disciplines; however, project applications targeting one or more of these three focus areas are appreciated:

Technical

•  Develop technical solutions in the context of U-space implementation
• Certification of related R&D (U-space services, Hardware)
• Technical solutions in the areas of robotics and airspace automation

Operational

• Proof of concept of the operational interface between the airspace traffic management (ATM) and unmanned traffic management (UTM)
• Proof of concept and demonstration of flights beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS)
• Business management innovation in U-space application areas such as last-mile delivery, long-range capabilities, etc.

Public Acceptance

• Develop expertise in terms of noise mitigation, privacy protection, environmental protection, security, etc.

The aim is to benefit from the innovation and expertise in ATM service provision, business and R&D of both countries, as well as provide a platform to stakeholders for testing their products in international space in the framework of INDI and SUSI. The involvement of partners participating at the corresponding demos in project consortia or the testing of specific project settings in future demos is highly recommended.

Timeframe

• Launch of Call 15th Feb 2022
• Partnering Partner search platform available from 01 March 2022.
• Call information webinar 22nd March 2022
• Deadline for proposal submission 29th June 2022
• Communication of the results End of September 2022
  Start of projects Nov 2022

Eligibility

In order to apply for this call, applications must meet the following Eureka and national eligibility criteria

• The project must fit the scope of the call.
• The consortium includes at least two independent partners from Switzerland and two independent partners from Israel;
• The consortium includes at least one (for profit) company and one research institute from Israel and Switzerland;
• The project must benefit all project partners in a well-balanced consortium and the project is significant to both countries involved;
• The project has an obvious advantage and added value resulting from the cooperation between the participants from the two countries (e.g. increased knowledge base, commercial leads, access to data, R&D infrastructure, etc.);
• Collected and/or generated data should comply with the FAIR principles. Data and code used and/or developed in the project should be shared, accessible for all consortium partners.
• The project has an exclusively civilian purpose.
• The maximum duration of the project may not exceed 36 months.
• A signed Consortium Agreement (CA) on the execution and commercialisation of the project is required upon approval, before the actual start of the project. The CA should include, amongst others, the ownership and use of know-how and IPR settlements. The CA including IPR settlements must be in line with national legislations and international agreements in force.

On a national level, additional eligibility criteria may apply. Applicants are strongly advised to inform themselves of any additional national eligibility criteria from the national contact points.

Funding

Each partner of an approved full project will receive funding support by its own national funding organization in accordance with the national laws, rules, regulations and procedures in effect.

Switzerland

Innosuisse funds Swiss consortia members according to the following rules:

• Swiss academic partner and Swiss company share costs of the project 50:50; Innosuisse may fund the share of the Swiss academic partner, i.e. up to 50% of eligible costs;
• Swiss academic partners are funded 100% by Innosuisse. Additionally, 10% of the funding costs of Innosuisse comes in form of a cash contribution (e.g. for material use by the research partner) from the Swiss company.
• Swiss companies get the right to exploit the project results in their specific business area.

Israel

The Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) funds Israeli consortia members according to the following rules:

• The support is in the form of a conditional grant amounting generally up to 50% (+ regional incentives for companies located in a "development zone") of the eligible R&D budget.
• When a project results in sales of a product, service or process, the financial support must be repaid to the Israel Innovation Authority according to its regulations (in general, royalties are paid at rates beginning at 3% of sales, depending on various criteria. Royalties are payable until 100% of the amount of the grant has been repaid with interest as provided in the applicable regulations).
• For further information regarding funding mechanisms of IIA see here: https://innovationisrael.org.il/node/4698/rules

Please note!
The complete and detailed funding conditions for project applications can be found on the respective websites of Innosuisse and the Israel Innovation Authority, shortly after the call launch.

Evaluation

The project will be evaluated under these main criteria:

Impact

• Is the market properly addressed in terms of size, access and risk?
• Is the value creation in terms of growth, employment, environmental and societal benefits properly addressed/
• What would be the competitive advantages resulting from the project?
• Are the commercialization plans (market and implementation plan) clear and realistic?

Excellence

• What is the degree of innovation?The innovation aspect of a project must go beyond the international state of the art.
• How is the new knowledge going to be used?
• Is the project scientifically and technically challenging for the partners?
• Are technical achievability & risks conveniently addressed?

Project Quality

• Is the scope of the project clear and well defined?
• Are project goals & milestones well-planned, realistic and clearly defined?
• Is the cost structure reasonable?
• Are the proposed procedures and resources justified?

Project Consortia & efficiency of the implementation

• Does the consortia have complementary excellence and expertise?
• Is there added value through international co-operation?
• Management ability to successfully carry out the project and implement the results?
• Mutual advancement of R&D through transfer of knowledge and expertise.

Evaluation procedure

Innosuisse and the Israel Innovation Authority IIA will screen and evaluate the project proposals. The evaluation of project proposals will include recommendations of experts involved in SUSI and INDI. Preliminary national evaluation results are discussed during consensus meeting. Based on the national evaluation results both funders agree which projects to approve and recommend for funding. Final decisions are expected within 8 weeks after submission deadline.

How to apply?

The call is set up in 2 steps:

Call Information and Partnering (optional)

• The Enterprise Europe Network EEN supports the search for project partners in Israel and Switzerland. The business to match platform https://israel-swiss-call-2022.b2match.io/  allows establishment of contacts between interested partners raising their chances to build a consortium. The platform opens on 1st March 2022.
• The online webinar (22nd March 2022) provides detailed information on the scope, call process, funding conditions and possibilities for exploring Swiss-Israeli collaborations. This interactive event is a starting point of co-creating full project proposals for high impact R&D projects. Applicants are advised to participate as the quality of the project and consortium is essential for its success.

Submission of full project proposal – Deadline 29th of June2022, 17:00 (CEST)

•  The online Eureka application form  must be submitted by
  29th of June, 2022, 17:00 (CEST).
• In addition to the submission of the Eureka application form, project partners are required to submit a related national funding application to their respective funding agencies, taking into account all relevant procedures and submission rules described in the chapter “National funding conditions”.
• Israeli applicants have to submit to the Innovation Authority as described at https://innovationisrael.org.il/international/rnd
• Swiss applicants have to submit the Innosuisse application as described on the Innosuisse webpage. On the web-based submission portal of Innosuisse (innolink.innosuisse.ch),
• Please mark your project title to begin with “Joint Call IL-CH 2022:”
• Please select option “Bilateral - Israel” for “Are you submitting your funding application within the framework of a special funding measure?”

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