Last week I introduced the first few steps in initiating contact with AusIndustry and starting the application process for a Climate Ready R&D grant. To make it for the first round I needed a detailed draft application by this week but as the deadline approached I was overtaken by the flu which means I’ll miss the first round and will now aim for the second round which opens at the end of October. I suppose these setbacks are part of the real-life experience of people working towards making their venture a success.

A disadvantage of a delay in submitting a grant application is that any money spent on R&D before an application is accepted by AusIndustry can not be counted as eligible expenditure. As the pool of resources is whittled away it means the amount of money sought in the grant becomes less and less due to the necessity for the grant being matched dollar-for-dollar by the applicant. Another disadvantage is simply an extended amount of time before knowing if a grant is successful or not. It takes up to three months from the time the application is accepted to when AusIndustry informs the applicant of their success or otherwise. Any money spent on the project in that time will be matched by the grant only if the grant is successful. It’s a bit like gambling which is lucky as it adds some excitement to the whole process.

An advantage for me in the delay in submitting an application is that I have extra time to address the weaker parts of the application. In particular I need to spend more effort quantifying the level of interest in the market place for the product I am developing. Another advantage is that the reader gets to see my posts on this riveting topic for months to come. You lucky things!