INDUSTRY COLLABORATION SUPPORT SCHEME
The Numbers
The Industry Collaboration Support Scheme (ICSS) provides financial support for Research Fellows and Associate Investigators and aims to increase collaboration with our Partner Organisations and Industry Affiliate Members, as well as encourage new collaborations with key industry and government stakeholders.
Funding under the Industry Collaboration Support Scheme is available to support small to medium research projects that help develop Research Fellow and Associate Investigator careers and at the same time develop the Centre's objectives. In addition to supporting research projects, the scheme also supports funding for extended research visits around Australia and overseas, funding for media, outreach or stakeholder activities, and for students to undertake these activities.
Researchers can request up to $20,000 per annum, per application. Where an industry partner makes a cash contribution that exceeds $20,000, the Centre may match the industry contribution to a maximum of $40,000.
ACEMS particularly encourages early-career researchers to apply to gain experience with writing grant applications, developing and monitoring research project budgets, supervising a research assistant, administering successful research projects and working with government and industry.
In 2021, the Centre approved one new application and confirmed funding for an application that was conditionally approved subject to external funding being received. This saw an additional $45,000 being awarded under the Industry Collaboration Support Scheme, increasing the Centre’s total investment into the scheme to $222,484 across 12 projects since the establishment of the scheme in 2018. As well as the Centre’s contributions to the scheme, these two projects also attracted external co-funding commitments totalling $44,354 from collaborating parties.
These projects involved investigators from multiple nodes, Partner Organisations and Industry Affiliate Members, and external collaborators from around Australia.
2021 Industry Collaboration Support Scheme Projects
| Project Title | Lead Investigator/s | Co-Investigators | Project Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Combining computer vision and data science to improve river monitoring and prediction** | James McGree (QUT) | Matthew Dunbabin (QUT), Alistair Grinham (UQ), Catherine Leigh (QUT), Paul Maxwell (Healthy Land and Water), Kerrie Mengersen (QUT), Erin Peterson (QUT), Hongbo Xie (QUT) | Jul 2019 – Jan 2021 |
| Detecting 3D printing faults using machine learning ** # | Simon Denman (QUT) | Sam Fogarty (FLEW Solutions), Michael Larkins (FLEW Solutions), Ammar Mousali (FLEW Solutions) | Feb 2021 – Sept 2021 |
| Developing Bayesian methods for modelling the dynamics of complex systems in sports: performance vs injuries ** | Clara Grazian (UNSW), Paul Wu (QUT) | Wade Hobbs (Triathlon Australia), Jeffrey Greenhill (Queensland Academy of Sport), Tim Kelly (Australian Institute of Sport) | Nov 2020 – Sep 2021 |
| Supporting traditional owner marine monitoring through two-way knowledge sharing ** | David Warne (QUT), Julie Vercelloni (UNSW) | James McGree (QUT), Manuel Gonzalez-Rivero (AIMS), Juan Carlos Ortiz (AIMS), Matthew Wyatt (AIMS) | May 2021 – Oct 2021 |
| Tree detection bias in Australian landscapes * | Yanan Fan (UNSW) | Andrew O'Reilly-Nugent (Climate Friendly), Gregor Sanders (Climate Friendly) | May 2021 – Sep 2021 |
* Applications approved in 2021
** Applications active in 2021 but approved in previous years
# Funding relinquished due to COVID-19 related disruptions
Due to the repeated and ongoing disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, several projects were rescoped and funding was redirected to support other project activities. For example, significant travel and workshop funding was repurposed for hiring a research assistant and extending project scope and timelines.
In some cases, the challenges due to COVID-19 resulted in some activities being reduced and thus some projects being underspent. However, unspent ICSS project funds were redirected to the Centre’s new Research Sprint Scheme which supported 21 sprint projects.
While the COVID-19 pandemic created challenges for some Industry Collaboration Support Scheme projects during 2020 and 2021, the scheme has been incredibly successful. It provided additional support and opportunities for new students and early-career researchers, facilitated research workshops and seminars, led to the preparation and submission of papers to peer-reviewed journals, enabled travel for collaboration where possible, and importantly, supported new and extended collaboration with the Centre’s Partner Organisations and Industry Affiliate Members, as well as new industry and government collaborations, many of which will continue after ACEMS concludes.