FAQ – IMPACT Connected Car

Only SMEs legally established in any of the following countries (hereafter collectively identified as the ‘Eligible Countries’) will be eligible for the <IMPACT> Connected Car Smartization Programme, more information of the eligible countries here^[1]:

− The Member States of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom.

− The Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT) linked to the Member States: o Anguilla, Aruba, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Falkland Islands, French Polynesia, Greenland, Montserrat, New Caledonia, Pitcairn Islands, Saba, Saint Barthélémy, Saint Helena, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten, Turks and Caicos Islands, Wallis and Futuna.

− The Countries Associated to Horizon 2020: the latest information on which countries are associated, or in the process of association to Horizon 2020 can be found in the in the online manual.

− The following countries, except exclusion rules that might be applicable by H2020 programme in the deadline date of the open call (see footnote) and provided that natural or legal persons, groups or non-State entities are not covered by the Council sanctions in force. Please see: the consolidated list of persons, groups and entities subject to EU financial sanctions, available at http://eeas.europa.eu/cfsp/sanctions/consol-list_en.htm:

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Congo (Democratic People’s Republic), Congo (Republic), Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Buissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, Korea (Democratic Republic), Kosovo*, Kyrgyz Republic, Lao, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Micronesia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palau, Palestine**, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

(* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status and is in line with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence).

(** This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member States on this issue).

Moreover, to be eligible, your proposals have to fully comply with the eligibility criteria indicated in the ‘Guide for Applicants’, which are:

• Projects have to be in a TRL 7 “System prototype demonstration in operational environment”, TRL 8 “system complete and qualified” or TRL9 “Actual system proven in operational environment” development phase.
• Projects will have to show their potential to build new industrial value link-chains, as well as any partnership or commitment with a corporate or equivalent strategic partner.
• Projects has to be submitted in English.
• Only one proposal per SME can be submitted. SMEs having submitted more than one proposal will be excluded from the evaluation process.
• Applicant shall not have any conflict of interest.

[1] Concerning the list of eligible countries, including Associated Countries, it will be considered the updated list in the Horizon 2020 portal in the cut-off date of the Open Call.

As you can see in the Guide for Applicants, Section 3 a product development partnership, focused on technical or technology collaboration, is a criterion to obtain financial support, and will be considered in the pre-scoring phase (Section 5 of the Guide for Applicants), but is not a pre-requisite.

In any case, other kind of partnership, e.g. business partnership or more specifically crossed share capital participations with a large company should not breach EC RECOMMENDATION of 6 May 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (notified under document number C (2003) 1422) (2003/361/EC).

If the large company owns more than 25% of the SME’s shareholders capital, this would most probably mean that the small daughter company could NOT be considered an SME.

The <IMPACT> Connected Car Consortium is looking for high growth projects with an already existing market footprint (TRL 7, 8 or 9) and the ability to generate economic and societal value. Projects will have to show their potential to build new industrial value link-chains, as well as any partnership or commitment with a corporate or equivalent strategic partner.

Transversal criteria such as ‘Environment and low carbon economy contribution’ (e.g. reduction of greenhouse emissions), ‘Equal Opportunities’ (e.g. gender balance) and ‘Social Impact’ (e.g. job creation) will be taken into account in the final decision.

Transversal elements are recommended, but not mandatory. The more closely the projects match these criteria, the more likely they will be considered for funding. The fulfilment of the eligibility criteria described in section 2 of the Guide for Applicants is mandatory.

Because <IMPACT> Connected Car is looking for high potential of growth projects with an already existing market footprint (TRL 7, 8 or 9). They will have to show market attractiveness demonstrating the level of users, sales and profitability they expect to generate. This can be demonstrated using measurable indicators such as engaged users, revenues, profits, expected evolution of the services or product.

Inside the online application form there is a specific field for attachments (e.g. video) to show your product. Also, you can provide a technology map to better illustrate your solution.

It would be recommended to apply as SMEs in constitution process at this stage because only SMEs participating on their own are eligible to receive funds.

For this reason, if you have already incorporated your company and you only need the registration number, you can apply as an SME. We will ask you the documentation to prove that you are an SME, once the evaluation process is finished and before starting the Smartization Programme, so well after the closing date for applications.

In any case, although you can apply as SMEs in constitution process, if you are selected as a beneficiary, <IMPACT> Connected Car project will ask you to be incorporated as an SME before the start of the <IMPACT> Connected Car Smartization Programme.

No, according to <IMPACT> Connected Car Open Call eligibility criteria: only one proposal per SME or individual can be submitted. If more than one proposal per SME is identified by the <IMPACT> Connected Car team, only the first proposal which has been submitted in order of time, will be evaluated.

It is not a requirement, but it would be positively evaluated.

Yes, as long as the programmes don’t overlap or incur in double funding. If you are selected, you will have to sign a Declaration confirming that you will not take part in another Acceleration Program in case you become beneficiary of <IMPACT> Connected Car Smartization (Acceleration) Programme.

You can apply for the call through the following link: http://iccar-opencall.fundingbox.com/

It shouldn’t take long (1-2 working days as an average). You will have to fill in the contest application form. Specific character limits have been established in each section of the online application form.

We encourage you to keep your proposal focused on the requested information keeping in mind the challenges and topics covered object of this 1^st Call.

We recommend you to start the submission process quit before the deadline in order to avoid last minute circumstances.

The ‘Guide for Applicants’ is the main reference document. It provides detailed information about the requirements of the evaluation and selection process, and the Smartization Programme offered by <IMPACT> Connected Car.

Additionally, an Open Call Helpdesk service is on hand to clear up any doubts you may have relating to the application process (eligibility rules, application form information requests, etc). It will be available through the Open Call community spaces available for such a purpose at http://iccar-opencall.fundingbox.com/spaces

Finally, a Technical Helpdesk service (info@fundingbox.com) is also available if you encounter any technical problem when filling in the application form.

The deadline for the first call is 10 January 2018 at 13:00 (CET). No applications will be accepted after this deadline.

The <IMPACT> Connected Car selection process has been designed to be fair, fun and interesting for you. The selection process will be as follows:

• Proposals reception: On receipt of each proposal, the system will send an Acknowledgment of receipt to the proposer. Late submissions won’t be accepted
• Phase 1. General Eligibility Check
  • Comply with all the ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA listed in Section 2 of the Guide for Applicants.
  • Be submitted through the FundingBox online platform [http://iccar-opencall.fundingbox.com/]. Proposals submitted by any other means, will not be considered for evaluation.
  • Be submitted before the deadline. Applications must be submitted by the closing time and date of the contest round. The time recorded during the submission process of the FundingBox Platform, will be the official time of submission. Late proposals will not be evaluated.

• Phase 2. Pre-scoring: Eligible proposals will then be AUTOMATICALLY SCORED by the FundingBox System according to the following criteria, scoring up to 100 points as follows:
  • Team skills. Based on the “more and more varied skills, the best” (up to 15).
  • Founders dedication to the project. Based on “the more committed dedication, the best” (up to 15)
  • Traction in terms of stage of product development. Based on “the more developed, the best” (up to 20)
  • Based on the proved experience in the target market (up to 10)
  • TRL, Technology Readiness Level. As described above, we expect products on TRL7 to TRL9 (up to 20)
  • Partnership, having or in advanced stage of commitment with a corporate or any equivalent strategic partner and the purpose of such agreements, if any (up to 15)
  • Amount of investment received, founders own equity and sources of money (up to 5)

• Phase 3. External Evaluation: All applications having successfully passed phase 2 will be assessed and scored by three INDEPENDENT EXPERTS (from the Experts Panel created by the <IMPACT> Connected Car consortium for each vertical/challenge), on the following criteria:
  • Business Opportunity.
  • Strategic Fit.

Additionally, Transversal Criteria, will be taken into account in the final decision to rank finalist proposals, in case of tied scores.

• Phase 4. Technical Evaluation and Consensus Meetings: The Evaluation panel will provide a list of a yes/no assessment of pre-selected applicants. The evaluation will be carried out by experts from CTAG, INSERO and MOV’EO.

After this assessment, the internal committee will decide the best proposals per challenge based on the external evaluation results and taking into account the selection criteria specified above. Please note that during this phase transversal criteria such as Environment and low carbon economy contribution’, ‘Equal Opportunities’ and ‘Social Impact’ will be considered in the final decision.

The highest 25 ranked proposals, will participate in the Disruptive Boot Camp, a 3-day workshop where the selected SMEs will discover the challenges and business niches from the large companies. After their participation in the Bootcamp, the best 15 will be selected to participate in the Stage 2 of the ICCAR Smartization Programme: Ignition Plan.

For more information about the evaluation process, consult the “Guide for Applicants.”

If you are selected by the <IMPACT> Connected Car Selection Committee, you will have full access to the following resources:

• Business Coaching: one-on-one sessions with an assigned business coach that will act as entrepreneur in residence during 6 months.
• Technical Coaching: one-on-one sessions with an assigned technical coach that will act as CTO in residence during 6 months (up-to 84h/SME).
• Technical support & lab hours: Direct access to engineering and validation services including access to technical facilities of the Competence Centres involved in the <IMPACT> Connected Car community network (up-to 84h/SME).
• Corporate Coaching: one-on-one sessions with international top-notch mentors and business leaders from Leading Corporates or relevant organizations of the targeted sectors.
• Funding Coaching: sessions on how to get additional funds to continue the project execution beyond <IMPACT> Connected Car support.
• Boot-camps: oriented to help beneficiary SMEs in expanding their business by connecting them with ‘rooted companies’.
• Project monitoring in order to validate the project performance and to approve the related payment
• PERKS package including Technical services, Marketing services, Legal services, Talent Recruitment.
• Participation in an Investors Day to raise funds.

The <IMPACT> Connected Car funding scheme is based on a series of payments against proofing the achieved milestones. Meaning that payments, will only be made upon receiving and validating the beneficiary’s previously agreed milestones. Therefore, there is no advanced payment.

Payments will be made in different instalments subject to the achievement of certain milestones. Participants will receive €60,000 equity free in cash with the following milestones:

• 25 beneficiaries up to €3,000: month 0 to participate in the Disruptive Boot-camp (1^st stage of the Smartization Programme).
• 15 beneficiaries up to €7,000: month 2 to launch the Ignition Plan (2^nd stage).
• 13 beneficiaries up to €50,000: month 6 to put in place the 3^rd stage, product development.
• The most promising beneficiary, the best-in-class performer, will receive up to €200,000 through crowdfunding services at the end of the 3^rd phase process.

Dates are estimated and might change depending on the final payment from the EC. 15% of the funding will be linked to the last EC payment to the Project Coordinator, foreseen to be six months after <IMPACT> Connected Car ends (September 2019).

In order to properly monitor the startups’ and SMEs’ performance, beneficiaries will go through a ‘Projects Review Meeting’ in order to validate the project development and to approve the related payment.

An Interim Review will be done two months after the beginning of the Smartization programme (end of Ignition Phase) to all beneficiaries taking part in the 2^nd phase of the Smartization programme (Ignition phase). After this review the 13 beneficiaries with the highest scores will pass to the 3^rd stage of the Smartization programme.

Beneficiaries participating in the Product development phase (3^rd phase) will be evaluated during the Final review at the end of the Smartization programme.

Review Meetings will be applied in 3 steps to better understand the SMEs’ performance and progress following the below mentioned criteria:

• Business performance: This will be evaluated in terms of deliverable compliance (30%), Business/Technical Performance Indicator (30%), SMEs Performance Indicator (25%), deadlines compliance (15%). All these criteria will be established in the Individual Mentoring Plan.
• Technical potentiality: It will be evaluated by CTAG and technical partners based on the real potentiality of the project to influence the value chains of existing industries.
• Coaching meeting: This will ratify project performance and will take the final decision regarding beneficiaries who haven’t reached the threshold.

Yes, all activities included in the ‘Smartization Programme’ are compulsory.

Yes, your project is UNIQUE and so are your training needs. The <IMPACT> Connected Car team will help you identify your needs and those of your team, providing the necessary tools and training to ensure the experience is of maximum benefit for your project.

No, it isn’t. Every beneficiary can operate in their home country.

The project monitoring, both financial and technical, is done remotely via the logbook. However, as beneficiary you will have to take part in different events which will require your relocation for short periods of time, namely:

• For the Disruptive boot camps (the Jury Day will take place the last day of the boot camp).
• For the Investors Day, during the Smartization Programme.
• For the on-site technical training offered by <IMPACT> Connected Cars partners.

If you are interested, <IMPACT> Connected Car can offer beneficiaries office spaces at attractive rates through agreements with partner entities. Just ask the <IMPACT> Connected Car team if you need more information regarding this service.

Beneficiaries will have direct access to engineering and validation services including access to technical facilities of the Competence Centres involved in the <IMPACT> Connected Car community network, with a limit of 84h/SME/6 months.

Yes, all the activities included in the Smartization Programme are free of charge for beneficiaries. Selected projects will receive €3,000 to take part in the three day, on-site Disruptive boot camp, including Jury Day. Travel and accommodation for meeting attendance are to be paid by the selected participants. The grants will help cover those expenses.

Projects passing to the next phases, 2^nd and 3^rd, participating in the Demo day and the Investors Day will be able to cover travel and accommodation expenditure with the grant.

Beneficiaries will also have the chance to benefit from technical support delivered by the project members and access to their facilities during phase 2 and 3 without any costs, except the travel and accommodation expenditure to go to the Competence Centres involved in the project, which expenditure should be covered by the grant too.