SMART Funding Awarded
From 2009-07-17 to 2009-12-31
To: All SMART Applicants
On Friday, July 17, 2009, all outstanding SMART applicants were informed on the decision of their funding applications. All awards have now been granted. For some applicants, the news created excitement within their companies. For others, there was disappointment.
The SMART Program proved to be very successful. Although final numbers are not yet available, preliminary numbers indicate that there were more than 1,800 funding applications submitted with 430+ awards being made. From March to May 15, 2009, over 900 applicants were received. Every application received an extensive overview by both SMART staff and by the respective SMART Industry Experts. There were many good applications that were submitted. The SMART Industry Experts evaluated each application on the following criteria:
· The project plan clearly describes what must be done
· The project plan has reasonable metrics
· The stated resources (budget, manpower, management) are sufficient to complete the project on time
· Management has the right tools and skills to manage the project effectively
· Management is committed to the project and to manufacturing productivity.
· The project is likely to result in the benefits proposed
· The project will have will have a significant impact upon the company’s operations
· Overall Evaluation: The project has a high probability of success
Afterwards, applications were rated by the Industry Experts as follows:
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Rank |
Description |
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|
|
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1 |
Excellent application. Project clearly defined. Management team in place to administer the program. Project costs clearly defined. Benefits fully quantified and match to Project Description. Financing in place. SMART should fund. |
|
2 |
Good application but some concerns and/or lack of clarity over one of the above critical elements. (List what it is.) . SMART should consider funding if there are adequate funds left over from funding excellent applications. |
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3 |
Average project. Project appears to have benefit to the company. However, there are concerns over (list). Company should consider going ahead with project but SMART funds should not be used for this project. |
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4 |
Weak project as written. There are deficiencies in the writing of this application. (List concerns). This project is rejected by SMART For funding. |
Due to the overwhelming success, only projects that received two, “1” ratings were funded.
In the next two weeks, SMART will be processing Contribution Agreements with those manufacturers who were just recently awarded grants. There may be some adjustments in the number of applicants and which manufacturers have been awarded funds. SMART has discovered that from the time that an application has been submitted to the time that a Contribution Agreement has been signed, the proposed project may have been cancelled or changed significantly to void the grant. Upon the final return of the last Contribution Agreement, SMART will publish a list of all award recipients which will be posted on this website.
For those manufacturers that were not successful in receiving a grant, there is no appeal process since all the monies have been allocated. Should you wish to find out what the final rating is for your project, you can forward an email to info1@cme-smart.ca . Please allow 5 business days for a response.
Thanks to the Ontario Government and the sponsorship of the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters and participation from Ontario manufacturers, the SMART Program has proven to be highly successful.
SMART continues in discussions with Governments for future funding. Please periodically check this website for any updates. Also, if new funding is received, SMART will notify you by email of it.
Additional Information
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