Foundation Industries
Situated in our industrial heartlands, these sectors include metals, ceramics, glass, chemicals, paper and cement, producing 28m tonnes of material per year, and are worth £52bn annually to the UK economy.

The Foundation Industries (metals, ceramics, glass, chemicals, paper and cement) produce 28 million tonnes of materials per year in the UK, but in doing so are by far the UK’s biggest industrial polluters: around 50 million tonnes of CO2 per year, or 10% of the total CO2 emitted by UK homes and businesses. If we are to meet our Paris Climate Change Agreement to reduce our CO2 emissions by 80%, a transformational change is needed by these industries in how materials are sourced and processed, and the types of products manufactured. Developing a resource and energy efficient foundation industry will also help anchor production in the UK through increased competitiveness.
The UK funding landscape evolves at a rapid speed, with new initiatives and opportunities constantly announced. The TFI funding landscape will ensure you are up to date with key opportunities and developments so that you can be best equipped and prepared in accessing this funding.
The TFI funding landscape covers a wide range of opportunities related to the Foundation Industries. This includes an overview of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) opportunities, Global Challenges Research and Newton Fund, Eureka and Horizon Europe, equipping you with knowledge of the external landscape to ensure that you are aware and prepared for upcoming opportunities.
Lead Contact: Ajay Kapadia
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Related Opportunities
Launchpad: Net Zero, CR&D Tees Valley, Round 2
Opens: 13/02/2023 Closes: 29/03/2023
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £3m for business led projects that grow activities in the net zero innovation cluster centred on Tees Valley.
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Launchpad: Net Zero, MFA, Tees Valley, Round 2
Opens: 13/02/2023 Closes: 29/03/2023
UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £3 million for projects that grow activities in the net zero innovation cluster centred on Tees Valley. This Minimal Financial Assistance (MFA) funding is from Innovate UK.
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Resource efficiency for materials and manufacturing: CR&D
Opens: 31/03/2023 Closes: 26/05/2023
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £12 million for ambitious collaborative R&D projects to support UK materials and manufacturing organisations to become significantly more resource efficient.
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Sustaining the Future: The Case for Investing in Foundation Industries
Innovate UK KTN are bringing together cutting-edge companies working in and around the foundation industries to a curated group of investors to discuss the exciting innovation in this area. The aim is to demonstrate the benefits of investing in these industries through insights from companies, end-users and investors. There will be an opportunity to network with investors and companies in the room.
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Programmes related to Foundation Industries

Women Innovators in the Foundation Industries (WINFI)
On International Women in Engineering Day 2022, the Innovate UK KTN Materials Team and the Transforming Foundation Industries Challenge launched the Women Innovators in Foundation Industries (WINFI) programme.