Trains require checking to identify whether items have been left unattended in carriages, especially while the train is in use, so that staff can be alerted quickly. Screening is a difficult process due to the complexity of the areas within trains that would need to be checked.
Scope
In order to make the process more efficient, DASA would like to augment or automate this process. There is a need for a device that is able to scan train carriages and determine if any foreign objects have been left behind. Screening needs to be carried out rapidly, whilst the train is in use and with passengers present.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
In train stations, staff regularly check the public areas such as platforms, concourse and shops to detect threats to the public. This includes any unusual activity and items. Unusual activity is something that a normal train passenger or station user would not be doing, such as trying to avoid staff, staying at a station too long or collecting information about the station.
Scope
DASA are seeking innovative solutions to work in combination with existing railway security measures to detect unusual behaviour. This could also be used to help identify and assist passengers who appear to be lost, those who are vulnerable or possibly considering self-harm. Assistance could be provided by a member of staff equipped with technology, a piece of technology itself, or a member of staff trained in a new procedure.
Project size
£50 – £350k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
Aviation cargo screening can be a laborious process that takes a significant amount of time. Cargo can be either distributed on pallets or in large containers. Currently, aviation cargo is screened for threat items by a variety of methods including x-ray systems
Scope
DASA are seeking novel, innovative ideas that would help increase the speed, accuracy and volume at which cargo is screened to improve the throughput of cargo as well as enhance security. They are interested in screening methods screen dark, dense regions within consignments (such as dense materials or densely packed items), aiding the detection of explosives and hidden weapons.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
Once a metal detector or security scanner alarm is activated on a passenger, the passenger is subjected to a further search in order to resolve the alarm and determine whether the alarm is genuine
Scope
DASA are interested in receiving proposals for the development of hand-held solutions that will help detect both metallic and non-metallic threats on the body while reducing the need for person-person contact, particularly in harder-to-search areas of the body. Any solutions must be safe to use on people and should complement, rather than duplicate, existing screening processes, such as metal and explosive detection.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
DASA has identified concerns understanding how the systemic response to severe traumatic injury affects later regenerative capacity, principally focusing on extremity soft tissue.
Scope
The burden of tissue damage associated with severe traumatic injury can lead to a dysregulation of a variety of systems including immune, metabolic and haemostatic responses. Projects should provide a better understanding of this context and what happens to, for example, the viability, production, differentiation and migration of cells involved in repair and regeneration after severe trauma.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
MOD relies on radar capabilities to provide situational awareness and intelligence, to find and identify its adversaries and target the delivery of its own effects to gain operational advantage
Scope
Seeking to fund initial feasibility studies (TRL1/2) of new and novel concepts and technologies that will transform the UK’s radar sensing capability (Land, Sea and Air domains) to meet the needs of a modern complex battlespace in the next 10-15 years.
Primary areas of interest include wideband arrays, passive and multi-static sensing, cognitive radar and next generation imaging techniques for complex radar applications.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
Everyday household products serve a number of purposes, from cleaning and cooking to DIY and cosmetics, however while these products may be used for legitimate applications, a number of these common products are at significant risk of misuse by terrorist organisations
Scope
We could do more to prevent successful terrorist attacks by modifying the formulations of common household products to make them much harder to misuse. DASA are seeking novel ideas to replace or reduce the potential harm of chemical and explosives precursors in household products.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
Everyday commercially available products are at risk of misuse or exploitation for illegitimate purposes, for example, to conduct an explosive attack. Banning such products is typically undesirable due to anticipated impacts on prosperity, consumer freedoms and lack of alternatives for legitimate use.
Scope
To successfully introduce any alternative products to market we must ensure a level playing field for business is secured while supporting the freedom of consumer choice. One method to achieve the former is through regulation. However, we need to understand how the public would react should we make regulatory changes that require reformulation of their favourite consumer products and how to create a positive customer demand for safer alternatives to current at risk products.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
Less-lethal weapons are used by the Police, security services and other law enforcement professionals to deflect the escalation of conflict in potentially hostile situations.
Scope
DASA is seeking proposals that demonstrate ideas or concepts that could be developed into prototypes for viability assessment as less-lethal weapons. Less-lethal weapons are vital in situations where the use of lethal force is prohibited or undesirable or where the rules of engagement require minimum casualties, or where policy restricts the use of conventional force.
Project size
£50 – £350 k
This is an open call, with the next assessment being the 2 Dec 2019
More information can be found here
The overall programme will be delivered in 2 phases. Only successful applications from phase 1 will be able to take part in phase 2 (opens June 2020). Phase 1 focuses on collaborative feasibility studies. This is to help UK and Malaysian businesses investigate a) the interaction between their innovations and b) how feasible a joint demonstration project would be in responding to Malaysia’s mobility and waste to wealth challenges.
Phase 2 (follow on) projects will provide economical and sustainable solutions to be demonstrated in environments that represent real life operating conditions.
Project size
Up to £30,000 (phase 1)
More information can be found here
Project size
£25,000 – £500,000 (6 –18 months)
£25,000 – £2,000,000 (19 –36 months)
Your proposal must demonstrate:
Projects should take customer and user needs into account to deliver more desirable and useful solutions.
More information about eligibility here
Projects must have the potential to reduce greenhouse gases and/or air quality pollutant emissions from the maritime industry.
MarRI-UK is seeking proposals with the potential to offer significant improvements to systems, timings, processes or technology for clean maritime operations.
Topics include but are not limited to: electrification, innovative energy efficiency measures, alternative propulsion, hazard and safety assessment of new fuels, energy systems and alternate fuels.
Up to £250,000
More information can be found here
**deadline recently extended to 25th October 2019**
The aim of the competition is to advance the commercialisation of quantum technologies in the UK
Projects must address one or more of the following technical challenges: connectivity, situational awareness and computing
Scope
The aim is to accelerate the commercialisation of second generation quantum technologies in the UK and increase private sector investment in the research, development and manufacture of the resulting hardware, software and services.
Second generation quantum techniques are defined as the generation or coherent control and manipulation of quantum states, resulting in superposition and entanglement (single photon generation or detection and quantum computing are in scope).
Project size
£50,000 – £500,000
More information can be found here
This competition aims to spark a tech revolution in countryside communities using the opportunities offered by 5G technology
It will fund up to 10 5G research and development projects to run over the course of 2 years. These projects will trial innovative use cases and technical solutions to build the business case for investment in rural connectivity and explore the capabilities of 5G to benefit rural communities.
Background
A key conclusion of the Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review was that 5G creates an opportunity for market expansion in the type of wireless services available and in the number of providers of networks and services. This includes new approaches to spectrum sharing, and new business models for managing access to spectrum, including spectrum leasing and ‘neutral host’ networks.
Scope
It is expected that projects will demonstrate the commercial and wider social value of 5G in several ways:
Project size
£2m - £5m (10 projects)
More information can be found here
Innovative solutions to improve productivity, quality and performance of the UK construction sector are sought. Demonstrator projects must establish improvements in productivity, quality and performance of the UK construction sector.
The aim of this competition is to present a portfolio of demonstrator projects which showcase close-to-market solutions that go beyond the current state-of-the-art. Demonstrators will apply known approaches on real world projects showing how improvements in the UK construction sector can be delivered at scale.
Demonstrators will include new validations of business models, digital approaches to design, construction and management, advancements in modern methods of construction and approaches to whole-life performance of a building or assets.
£500,000 – £8m
More information can be found here
The aim of this competition is to invest in innovative projects that go beyond the current state-of-the-art. Projects must result in practical and close-to-market solutions that will improve productivity, quality and performance in the UK construction sector
Scope
Projects must focus on one or more of the following themes:
- digital information management, tools, systems and standards
- modern methods of construction (MMC) and platform based approaches
- whole-life asset performance, including active buildings
- business models, procurement, analytics, benchmarking and metrics
- financial, assurance, warranty and lending products
Successful projects will be expected to work with a range of stakeholders including the Construction Innovation Hub and the Active Building Centre.
Project size
£150,000 – £1.5m
More information can be found here
Electro-Optic and Infrared (EOIR) sensors are a key military capability used for surveillance, reconnaissance, target acquisition, threat warning, target detection and more.
Applications are sought for the development of novel and resilient technologies that can function in contested/congested environments, that will extend the range, lower the cost and size, and expand the range of targets that can be addressed by EOIR sensors.
Scope
All sensors and technologies must operate from the Ultra Violet (UV) to the Far Infrared (IR) range
Challenge areas:
- Novel optics and materials
- Novel sensors
- Embedded/Edge Processing applied to EOIR sensing
Project size
Up to £150k
More information can be found here
Large volumes of waste fuel, oil, lubricants and some liquid chemicals are generated across the MOD estate and are currently disposed of off-site through external waste management companies, at cost to the tax-payer.
The aim of the competition is to develop an end to end solution that produces reusable by-products from these waste materials
Scope
This competition is focused on traditional fixed systems but also on a portable (transported by aircraft) bioprocessing system that can be used by MOD on world-wide deployments and potentially by aid organisations for disaster relief operations.
DASA is looking for innovations from bidders using existing and new capabilities to:
- develop a prototype bio-processing system to break down the waste into its natural by-products
- develop the most effective microbes, microbe mixes or non-microbial agents, to optimise growth environments to achieve this breakdown for different waste products
- identify the recycling potential of the by-products to prove that there is a market and use for them
Project size
Up to £330k
More information can be found here
Seeking projects with the potential to transform lives in developing countries, through market-creating innovation
Scope
Funding will enable businesses to collaborate with end users and other stakeholders. Together they can demonstrate the potential of new processes, products and services and their associated business models in transforming the lives of people and economies in developing countries. Projects must contribute to at least one of the following sustainable development goals:
1) good health and well-being
2) quality education
3) clean water and sanitation
4) decent work and economic growth
5) sustainable cities and communities
6) responsible consumption and production
7) climate action
8) life below water
9) life on land
10) peace, justice and strong institutions
Project size
Up to £120k
More information can be found here
Seeking clarificiation on which security surveillance systems and associated analytics can work in a station environment without disrupting the rail network
Scope
The goal is to install surveillance analytics to enhance existing systems. The objective is to enhance safety and to reduce delay minutes resulting from station incidents caused by unusual, unsuitable and undesirable behaviours.
Project size
Up to £121k
More information can be found here
Funding to support the development and demonstration of new capability in automated tunnel examination
The aim of this competition is to improve the accuracy, efficiency and safety of tunnel examinations resulting in a safer and more reliable operational railway
Scope
Projects should reduce the time taken to complete examinations through improved automation and increased repeatability and reproducibility of data. They must also mitigate the risks associated with lower quality examinations due to challenging access constraints and human centric bias. Solutions should be demonstrated on the live railway.
Project size
£300-500k
More information can be found here
Seeking projects to transform food production systems, improve productivity and sustainability, and help the industry move towards net zero emissions by 2040
Scope
Projects must create integrated, data-driven solutions to drive agricultural productivity as well as target net zero emissions. Projects funded under this competition must address one of the following:
- the development of new, resource efficient, low emission food production systems
- the technological and other bottlenecks that prevent existing state-of-the-art systems from supplying mainstream consumer markets
Project size
£1 - £10 m
More information can be found here
Loans are for highly innovative late stage projects with the best game changing and/or disruptive ideas or concepts. There should be a clear route to commercialisation and economic impact.
Scope
The aim of this competition is to help businesses overcome barriers to the best cutting edge, game changing innovations becoming a successful commercial reality. This includes making a considerable economic impact and/or resulting in significant, sustainable business growth.
Projects should last up to 5 years, of which up to 3 years can focus on late stage R&D, and up to 2 more years on establishing a clear route to commercial success. Loan repayments will be required over a further period of up to 5 years.
£100,000 to £1m
More information can be found here
The aim is to encourage collaborations to develop and demonstrate how products, services and business models which support people as they age will be adopted at scale. This is stage 1 of a 2-stage competition, in stage 2 consortium can bid for a share of £36 million
Scope
The aim is to develop a business plan and demonstrate readiness in order to obtain funding for a stage 2 Trailblazer project.
Themes have been drawn from the Healthy Ageing Challenge Framework, the principal focus is on projects that:
- Sustain physical activity
- Maintain health at work
- Design for age-friendly homes
Project size
Up to £100k
More information can be found here
In January 2019 the UK government published the ambitious Maritime 2050 strategy, setting out a long-term vision for the future of the UK maritime sector. The maritime sector is likely to undergo significant changes as technology revolutionises the way it operates and environmental concerns create new and more stringent requirements for the maritime industry.
This is an expression of interest competition with two stages
Scope
Projects are in scope if they:
Examples of ways in which maritime operations could be supported include:
The funding can be used either to develop an initial prototype, a proof of concept or a feasibility study that demonstrates the project's potential application to maritime operations and/or services.
Successful applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal (Stage 2).
Project size
Up to £170k
More information can be found here
DASA is scoping the potential for an innovation challenge, seeking capability for remotely handling and manipulating highly sensitive liquid and solid explosives
Scope
The hazards of highly sensitive explosives and the associated health and safety concerns mean that manual handling of significant masses is undesirable.
A remote handling and manipulation capability is essential for the UK to allow the required work with sensitive explosives to be safely undertaken. DASA are engaging the market in order to gain an understanding of whether this capability can be realised by:
- adapting technologies from other market sectors
- adapting capabilities already in development
- using one system or a system of systems
- developing novel innovations
Project size
TBC
More information can be found here
