The aim of TDAP is to help micro, small and medium sized enterprise (SMEs) technology developers to access new market opportunities and drive growth and lower carbon emissions in on- and off-road applications across the automotive sector. It also provides money-can’t-buy support that enables the SMEs to be commercially viable more rapidly and helps them identify routes to market and speed up development cycles.
Speaking exclusively to Eureka!, Les Gill – head of SME programmes at the APC, said: “Our automotive customers tell us they get innovator and SMEs knocking on their doors daily with the next fresh idea. Through the TDAP Programme, we provide support to open doors to this automotive network faset than these SMEs could on their own.”
To date, the APC has helped facilitate the investment of £520m to 13 projects by 120 organisations. These projects have saved 27.4m tons of CO2, the equivalent of taking 1.5m cars off the roads, while safeguarding 19,033 UK jobs.
The APC is looking for independent, limited, UK-based SMEs, or foreign SMEs looking to do R&D in the UK, with grassroots level innovative disruptive technologies in energy storage and energy management, thermal propulsion systems and powertrains, electric machines and power electronics, lightweighting that will fit into the supply chains of bigger automotive OEMs in the future.
“We want to provide an infrastructure of SMEs that’s going to bring forward the revolution in technology that will help OEMs towards zero emission legislation,” added Gill.
Any SME that is working on technology, from any sector, that is applicable and will bring positive impact to the UK-based automotive industry can apply to be considered for the programme on Wednesday 6th 2017. The window for applications closes on the 17th November 2017. The APC will have a team of people at Cenex-LCV 2017 for anyone who wants to talk face-to-face with them about the programme. They will also be showcasing two of the projects that have gone through the first wave of the programme at the event.
