Start-up and early-stage funding is a challenge and one that has been recognised by the EU and national level innovation support for many years. In these times more grants are being awarded on a competitive basis which makes getting the application right first time imperative. There is also an increasing need to be able to show detailed market research and to have established the beginnings of relationships with potential first customers.

Finland and Scotland have a range of grant support available for companies wanting to create new products and also for researchers wanting to create new companies. Both countries have an enviable track record in innovation and a solid reputation for respecting environmental needs, which makes their researchers and young companies well positioned for being included in consortia-style applications.

SSC is able to boast of an impressive track record in helping with funding assistance both in Scotland and in Finland. Multiple applications for Tutli/Research 2 Business have been successful, we have helped TWEDFA get selected onto the prestigious Unlocking Ambition, secured COVID related loan support for start-ups and many other innovation related funding areas.

Recently we have formed a partnership with Culmentor of Finland to enhance our abilities and resource to offer support for EU-funding applications, not only for Scottish and Finnish companies but for any early stage innovators that want our assistance. This will be an area that will become increasingly important for all researchers academic and industrial as the world responds to the need for rapid transition to green technologies and sustainable business practices and offers a great opportunity for international solutions for some of the biggest global challenges.  EU Horizon Europe funding gets underway early next year.

If you are considering local, national or EU level funding applications next year, please get in contact to see if we can help to improve your chances of success.

“We received valuable support for evaluating the potential of our Insect Repellent Tutli-project from Anna-Marja (Strategic Scientific Consulting Finland)” Preethy Paul, Project Researcher, Åbo Akademi University

(SSC also offer support for Innovate UK applications)

This year SSC has been giving others a helping hand through some mentoring and advice sessions. We ran a mid-summer competition offering 3 mentoring sessions as a prize to young companies that needed a little extra support.

In Finland we have been working with FinnAdvance, (https://www.finnadvance.fi/) a biology solution company in Oulu who are developing organ-on-chip which closely replicate the in human environment for the pharmaceutical industry.  SSC have been providing a sounding board to assist them in finding the next steps for funding their product development. Most of our discussions have been about the maze of grant applications and how to best navigate them.

Finland has a great choice of support mechanisms at local (ELY), at national (Business Finland) and international (EU Horizon Europe) levels. Increasingly all of these are looking for opportunities to support business to expand their teams, to expand their export potential and also to incorporate more sustainability goals into their thinking.

Jari Moilanen, COO says “It is always helpful to talk with others who have more experience and working with SSC has been an easy way to better understand the challenges and to improve our proposals.”

Over the past couple of months SSC have been busy helping new start-ups find their feet.

TWEFDA in Aberdeen, Scotland is a pre-operations renewable energy company that Cait is helping to prepare for funding applications from grant bodies and for pitches to interested investors.

TWEFDA Ltd is developing an Energy Device (Es-Wave)  with dual functionalities production and storage, addressing the two biggest challenges that the Energy Market is facing right now with one single device. It is also capable of economically repurposing aged offshore oil & gas producing assets after their end of economic recovery.

They have a patent applied for innovation that will provide sustainable renewable energy and energy storage of marine and tidal energy that can be deployed in Scotland and any coastal region globally. This tackles the major challenges of renewables: providing reliable 24/7 supply to the grid from a relatively small footprint that does not harm marine life.

TWEFDA’s MD, Javier Dominguez explains

I'm a Marine Engineer, an Associate Member of The Royal Institution of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers, and I have been awarded the Euro Engineer distinction after more than 20 years in the industry. I was also part of the 2nd Cohort of Grey Matters.

I am an entrepreneur by nature. I have owned and managed a 24-people company with a €1 million turnover, as well as an LED bulb and control system business in Aberdeen. As an inventor, I patented internationally a ‘Folding Package with Variable Volume’ which was awarded the Silver Medal at the 27th International Invention Fair of Geneva, back in 1999.

Cait is helping me to really clarify my thinking about how to explain TWEFDA as a company and the first product ES-WAVE to the world. Together we are creating a proper portfolio of business documents to present to potential investors and also to support grant applications alongside costed work-plan to take the idea from TRL 2 to commercialisation and market. I have directed businesses before but my language needs to progress to be able to communicate with ‘money people’ and working with SSC who can understand my technology but who also understand the funding maze has been invaluable.

More information on this company at www.twefda.com