Manufacturing Scale-up Network Plus

What the assessor looks for

• demonstrates a coherent strategic vision and establishes clear outcomes for the NetworkPlus
• is of excellent quality and importance within and across the scope areas
• has the potential to advance current understanding, generates new knowledge, thinking or discovery and enable its application within or across the scope areas to deliver tangible benefit for UK industry
• will enable better national coordination of manufacturing scale up research to better align research capability with industrial need
• will enable the research community to address industry driven scale up challenges
• identifies the potential local, regional and or national impacts, both direct and indirect, and who the beneficiaries might be
• will embed equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) considerations into all aspects of the programme, and how these will guide your aims, as well as other activities such as stakeholder engagement, events and networking
• is effective and appropriate to achieve your objectives
• is feasible, and comprehensively identifies any risks to delivery and how they will be managed
• will maximise translation of outputs into outcomes and impacts
• has been designed so that it will generate local, regional and or national impacts
• describes how your, and if applicable your team’s, research environment (in terms of the place and relevance to the project) will contribute to the success of the work

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• will be effectively governed, including details about advisory structures
• will be effectively and inclusively managed, demonstrated by a clear management plan
• has clear appropriately resourced leadership team roles and responsibilities
• will manage and encourage partnerships with non-HEI organisations across government and industry
• has plans for monitoring your progress as well as self-evaluation throughout the lifetime of your award
• will put in place appropriate governance and administration to deliver the range of devolved funding opportunities
• has equality, diversity and inclusion embedded in plans for convening and engaging with their community and the allocation of the awarded funds

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• supports your objectives
• distributes funding appropriately across a focused set of activities
• where appropriate, distributes funding through robust, transparent competitive processes
• builds capacity in key fields and career stages
• ensures appropriate processes for monitoring, reporting and governance of funded activities
• promotes meaningful industrial engagement and collaboration across the sectors in scope
• addresses industry driven scale-up challenges
• secure matched contributions from industry for activities supported through the flexible fund, including cash and in-kind support where appropriate, and demonstrate how public funding will catalyse additional private sector investment and engagement

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• the relevant experience (appropriate to career stage) to deliver the proposed work and achieve the objectives of the funding opportunity
• the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
• the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
• that sufficient leadership and management staff time is dedicated to the Network.
• contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community
• contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge
• ability to co-create and deliver with business to accelerate routes to successful manufacturing scale up targets
• the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
• contributions to the wider research and innovation community
• contributions to broader research or innovation users and audiences and towards wider societal benefit

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• project staff
• significant travel for field work or collaboration (but not regular travel between collaborating organisations or to conferences)
• any consumables beyond typical requirements, or that are required in exceptional quantities
• all facilities and infrastructure costs
• all resources that have been costed as ‘Exceptions’
• International collaboration costs
• are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
• represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
• maximise potential outcomes and impacts

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• the relevant ethical and RRI considerations, including both the research or topic area and the design and delivery of the project
• the wider implications of the proposed work, and how you will maximise the positive societal, environmental, and economic benefits arising from the project, while minimising unintended negative impacts, such as research misuse or accidental harm
• how you will manage these considerations throughout the lifecycle of the project

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• confirm the partner’s commitment to the project
• clearly explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the work to them
• describe any additional value that they bring to the project
• the page limit is three sides A4 per partner

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• create new interdisciplinary research communities and topics
• provide a critical mass of researchers with a range of expertise and experience
• promote connectivity, collaboration, co-creation between academia, industry and other sectors
• convert UK research strength into repeatable, cost-effective and flexible manufacturing capabilities that will accelerate the growth of UK businesses
• achieve sustainability of impacts beyond the funding requested

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

What the assessor looks for

• lead, manage and monitor the progress of the programme, including consideration of how the flexibility of resources will be managed
• embed creativity and agility into the plans for the programme in order to respond to a changing landscape
• develop and progress the careers of all team members, including academic and non-academic staff
• embed considerations of equality, diversity and inclusion at all levels and in all aspects of the programme

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.