Tandem Industry Academia 2021

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Tandem Industry Academia 2021

• Apply funding for joint research projects between academia and industry
• Funding will be granted to a university or research institute (“academic partner”) for the purpose of hiring a postdoc researcher for two years
• The postdoc researcher will spend one year working at an academic organization and one year in the industrial partner’s organization. The researcher will remain in the academic partner’s employ throughout the two-year period
• The application shall be filed by the research team’s Principal Investigator (PI) together with the Industrial Supervisor representing the industrial partner. The application can also be completed by a delegate within the academic organization
• FRIF will provide funding to cover full project costs in accordance with full cost model for one year and the postdoc researcher’s salary and other personnel costs for another year. Applications for funding to cover other expenses will also be considered.
• The allocation of time spent in the two project organizations shall be detailed in the project plan.
• The same company may be involved as a partner in more than one application filed with FRIF.

Funded by the Finnish Research Impact Foundation, Tandem Industry Academia (TIA) intends to support joint research projects between academic and industrial partners and to promote mobility across the academia-business interface. The TIA funding model has been developed by FRIF with a view to encouraging ambitious precompetitive projects that further the aims of both leading-edge academic research and business and industry.

FRIF has not singled out any specific research themes for the call, but it is keen to support new innovative approaches, multidisciplinary cooperation and new consortia between academic and industrial partners that can produce high-impact outcomes for business and industry and for the economy as a whole.

The application shall clearly demonstrate the benefits and impacts of collaboration for both parties and for society and the economy more widely. All applications will be reviewed by outside experts of scientific and industrial impact. Projects funded are expected to produce high-quality research publications and immaterial property rights with substantial innovation potential.

This is the second round of TIA funding calls. The first TIA call in 2020 attracted 92 eligible applications, and 11 successful two-year projects received a total of two million euros in funding from FRIF. The Foundation is looking to award funding to roughly the same number of projects in the spring 2021 call.

The Finnish Research Impact Foundation’s mission is to strengthen collaboration between academia and industry and in this way to increase the impact of research. Ultimately these efforts will contribute to bolster Finnish business and industry through world-class research and at the same time create a stronger platform for Finland’s renewal and regeneration and the development of Finnish know-how.