Summary

The Technology Strategy Board, in partnership with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, is to invest up to £4.5m in innovative collaborative research, development and demonstration projects. The projects will integrate 'smart' meters with communications to make a 'smart' system that will have an impact on the demand for, and usage of, energy in the home.

This competition aims to accelerate the speed at which innovations are able to enter the market. We are particularly interested in projects which help to understand the way in which consumer demand for energy might change in the light of the integration of smart home technologies.

The competition is open to energy, communications, technology and other companies. Consortia must be business-led and can be science-to-business or business-to-business interactions.

We are particularly interested in projects from those already involved in smart home development.

We expect projects to start in July or August 2010 and all projects must be completed by end of March 2011. We expect to fund projects with a total project value of £400k-2m.

This Technology Strategy Board programme is committed to facilitating business growth and technology-based innovation. It complements other programmes being run by the Technology Strategy Board, in particular those being run as part of the Digital, Low Impact Buildings and Assisted Living programmes.