Materials Innovation Programme Digital Materials Sandpit
- Funder
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)
- Award amount
- Up to £7,120,000
- Deadline
- November 26, 2026
- Eligible countries
- United Kingdom
Real odds
About 1 in 5 funded · 21% · Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), all funding decisions, 2024-25
Source: UKRI investment and outputs data, table 2.1
What this number means
This is the funder’s published average for the whole program in a past year, not a prediction for any one application. Targeted calls, resubmissions and how well a proposal fits all change the picture.
UKRI divides applications awarded by applications assessed in the financial year, across all of the council’s schemes (research grants, fellowships and directed calls).
2024-25: 659 funded out of 3,187.
The year before (2023-24): 28%.
Summary
Open UKRI funding opportunity · Grant. Closes 2026-11-26. Total fund £7.13 million. Opportunity page: https://www.ukri.org/opportunity/nmip-sandpit-digital-materials-for-accelerated-innovation/
Apply to attend a four-day sandpit to develop high-impact projects on the challenges and opportunities of digital integration to accelerate materials research translation. Selected participants must attend online and in-person days.
You must submit an expression of interest to apply.
You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for EPSRC funding. Industry partners are welcome to attend the sandpit and develop projects as a partner but are not eligible for EPSRC funding through this opportunity.
We expect between three and eight projects, up to 33 months, will be funded, sharing up to £7.12 million. EPSRC will fund 80% of the full economic cost.
What we're looking for Aim
This funding forms part of the National Materials Innovation Programme (NMIP) announced as part of the Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy. The NMIP aims to establish a nationally coordinated approach to the UK advanced materials sector, driving the translation and adoption of materials across key industrial sectors.
The National Materials Innovation Strategy identified the transition to a digital enabled materials sector as a core-cross cutting theme, Materials 4.0. This is synergistic with the digital materials research area that applies digital technologies to the design, development, characterisation and lifecycle management of materials. It integrates computational tools, automation and data-driven approaches to accelerate innovation and lower costs associated with bringing materials to market and improve sustainability across the sector. The objective of Materials 4.0 is to enable information to flow effectively across the entire materials lifecycle creating a connected digital ecosystem supporting innovation from initial discovery through to…
Summary as listed by the funder. Always read the full announcement for eligibility, limits and how to apply.
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