FAQ

The SmartX project defines smart textiles as materials, components, products or product-services using a combination of textile fibres, yarns or fabrics combined/integrated/ assembled with (micro)electronic components such as conductive wires, microsystems, sensors, actuators, energy capture or storage devices, heat, light or sound-emitting devices etc. to realise a smart function that adds value to the end user of the enabled product or service.

Carefully read the Guide for Applicants available on the application page www.smartx-europe.eu/application. Pay special attention to SME and start-up criteria, eligible countries, targeted end markets, technology readiness level (TRL) and financial viability criteria.

The Expression of Interest is a compulsory step in your application process. It helps the SmartX coaches to quickly assess the eligibility of your project idea and avoids unnecessary effort in case your idea is out of scope.

It also enables SmartX to allocate an appropriate application coach that will help you to develop a strong application. For this reason, the call for Expressions of Interest closes about one month before closing of the application deadline to give you ample time for the preparation of your application and the coaching process.

Yes, through your Expression of Interest form you can indicate one of 12 SmartX project partner organisations as your preferred coach.

However, if you are unsure which organisation is best placed to support you, you can leave this to SmartX to find a competent coach based on your Expression of Interest.

The application coach discusses your project idea with you in detail, tries to help you find partners/competences you may need to carry out your project.

The coach is available to read your draft application documents, gives you recommendations concerning content and form to improve your chances of being selected and checks that all documentation is complete.

However, the coach does not write your application, doesn’t intervene in your selection of partners or the financial/intellectual property or commercial agreements between you and your project partners. Application coaches can spend on average up to 16 hours per project application.

No, the costs of the application coach are fully covered by the SmartX programme.

Yes, SMEs can submit several proposals. However, the maximum financial support that can be allocated to each SME is € 60,000 across all three SmartX calls.

Any organisation (research centre, university, large company etc.) can form a partnership with an SME to apply for SmartX funding.

However, the application must be led and submitted by an SME and only SMEs can directly receive funding in the SmartX programme. Costs of non-SME partners can only be covered from the up to 60,000 € of funding allocated to the applicant SME.

Yes, you may re-submit the same project amended according to the comments of the Selection Committee, or submit a different one.

Yes, any SME can submit several proposals. However the maximum financial support that can be allocated to each SME is € 60,000 across all three SmartX calls.

No, unless the money is used in fraudulent conditions or for illicit purposes, the support allocated is a grant, not to be refunded.

Yes, with the exception of the SmartX project partners, you can contract any European partner of your choice and pay for their services with part of your SmartX grant.

SmartX support is dedicated to help bridge the industrialisation gap that currently often exists between the proof of concept phase and market launch. Therefore, projects with TRLs of 6 and above will be favoured.

Using the SAT is not mandatory at the application stage, but it could help your coach to better understand your situation and the kind of support you might need.

Your application coach is here to help you if necessary. In any case and whatever your scoring if you complete the SAT, the results will not be taken into account in the evaluation of your application.

Carefully read the Guide for Applicants available on the application page www.smartx-europe.eu/application. Pay special attention to SME and start-up criteria, eligible countries, targeted end markets, technology readiness level (TRL) and financial viability criteria.

Carefully read the Guide for Applicants available on the application page www.smartx-europe.eu/application. Pay special attention to SME and start-up criteria, eligible countries, targeted end markets, technology readiness level (TRL) and financial viability criteria.

SmartX calls are now closed. The following information were the rules that applied for selection.

Carefully read the Guide for Applicants available on the application page www.smartx-europe.eu/application. Pay special attention to SME and start-up criteria, eligible countries, targeted end markets, technology readiness level (TRL) and financial viability criteria.

You will not access their scores – and they will not access yours – on an individual basis, but as an anonymised consolidated measurement.

A benchmark facility to help respondents compare their profiled scores with the community averages will be available as soon as a minimum number of assessments have been reached, for confidentiality and statistical reliability purposes.

To make it happen faster, do not hesitate to urge other SMEs to register and use the SAT!

All consortium partners and all Selection Committee members have signed a confidentiality contract.

In addition to that, please note:

You don’t need to disclose technical information, just give an overview of your project idea. Only SmartX consortium partners will have access to the Expressions of Interest.

If the eligibility check is positive, you will be offered to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with your coach and start working through the technical documents requested for the calls.

Please first note that every member of the  SmartX team and of the Selection Committee has signed a non-disclosure agreement that ensure full confidentiality of your data and project within the whole team.

Your application coach will be in full contact with your proposal and underlying information you may give to him/her. If your proposal is eligible, your coach may seek advice or in-depth information on a particular aspect by contacting other SmartX partners and keep you informed of the result obtained.

Each applicant will be offered to take part in a pitching session at the beginning of September 2020, to present their projects to all SmartX partners, and gain advice on how to improve their applications and chances for success.

When finalized, your application form will then be transmitted to the Selection Committee members (list here) to be assessed during the Selection Meeting.

In case of a potential conflict of interest, you may request that some member(s) of the Selection Committee should be excluded from evaluating your application.

Moreover, you may choose to restrict access to parts of your application to individual Selection Committee members and to individual SmartX project partners, except the project coordinator Textile ETP, by completing the “Restricted Information” section in the application form. In such cases, the full 10-page application form will not be disclosed to the parties for which access has been restricted. Access to the 6-slide pitch deck cannot be restricted.

If your project is selected, you will be required to sign a contract (sub-grant agreement) with Textile ETP. A model of the sub-grant agreement is available on the application page of our website www.smartx-europe.eu/application

IP rights will be ruled according to the Contractual Agreements you are going to sign with your partners (service providers, other SME, etc).

Neither SmartX nor SmartX partners will claim any of the IP generated by your project.