NATIONAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION COMPETITIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMME FUNDING SCHEME DETAILED GUIDELINES. (Version 4 dated 31 Jul 2009)

Transcription

1 NATIONAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION COMPETITIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMME FUNDING SCHEME DETAILED GUIDELINES (Version 4 dated 31 Jul 2009)

2 VERSIONING TABLE Versions NRF CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Guidelines (Version 1) NRF CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Guidelines (Version 2) NRF CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Guidelines (Version 3) NRF CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Guidelines (Version 4) Date 13 November June December July 2009 Page 2 of 22

3 COMPETITIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMME GUIDELINES FOR APPLICANTS (PART I) 1 Objectives 1.1. The Competitive Research Programme (CRP) Funding Scheme (subsequently referred to simply as CRP) will support R&D programmes, each comprising multiple related projects under a unifying theme, through a competitive bottom-up approach. Each CRP award is for a maximum of S$10 million per programme, over three to five years (see Section 9 for details on funding support) The aim of the CRP is to complement the existing Strategic Research Programmes that have been identified top-down, by funding a broad base of research ideas at the programme level to identify potential strategic research areas in which Singapore can invest to develop new industries for the future. Thus, preference will be given to areas that fall outside of the focus of existing NRF-funded Strategic Research Programmes, such as Biomedical Sciences Translational and Clinical Research (BMS), Environmental and Water Technologies (EWT), Interactive and Digital Media (IDM) and Clean Energy Open to both public and private sector participants (see Section 3 for full eligibility details), the CRP also aims to encourage collaboration and partnerships between academia and industry. By funding programmes, the CRP facilitates a more coordinated, integrated and sustained way of supporting high-impact interdisciplinary research as a larger budget can be allocated to fund a number of related projects to address a defined problem. The tight linkages amongst the projects within a programme will also facilitate exploitation of the eventual research results. 2 Overview of CRP Funding Scheme 2.1. The CRP comprises a General CRP variant and a Scenario-based CRP variant. General CRP 2.2. The aim of the general CRP is to allow Principal Investigators (PIs) to surface any new research area with potential economic and/or societal benefits for Singapore through a bottom-up approach. Calls for proposals are open to R&D programmes in all areas of science and technology Each proposal should be submitted by a Lead PI, who is expected to be actively involved in the overall management of the programme and who will be accountable for the programme and its deliverables CRP proposals submitted to NRF should demonstrate the following:- Page 3 of 22

4 i. Internationally competitive R&D projects with cutting edge science; ii. iii. iv. Contribute towards building up of research infrastructure, manpower and capabilities in Singapore; Competent team consisting of individuals with relevant track records; Excellent execution of projects that form a coherent programme aimed at achieving the programme s objective(s); and v. Potential to generate economic and/or societal benefits for Singapore, e.g., by creating new industries or advancing existing industries, through technology transfer, spin-offs, industry involvement or otherwise. Scenario-based CRP 2.5. The aim of the Scenario-based variant is to build up research capability to address major societal challenges relevant to Singapore. This will encourage use-inspired and interdisciplinary research and challenge the research community to seek disruptive technological breakthroughs In each Scenario-based CRP grant call, NRF will articulate a scenario that describes a major potential problem or challenge 1 that could benefit from Science and Technology research and development (R&D). The scenario is non-exhaustive and serves mainly to inspire and stimulate thinking about how R&D can create new and innovative technologies. The Singapore research community would then be invited to submit proposals for programmes that address key scientific and technological problems relevant to the given scenario In addition to the basic evaluation criteria for proposals submitted under the General CRP calls refer to paragraph 2.4 above Scenario-based CRP proposals would be evaluated on the following additional criteria:- i. Extent to which the proposed R&D programme and its identified research problems to be tackled address the challenges and/or opportunities posed by the given scenario for novel innovations; ii. iii. Relevance and importance of the proposed R&D programme in terms of the economic, technological, social and/or environmental impact it could have on Singapore s technology export opportunities; and International competitiveness of the proposed R&D programme, as compared to other efforts in a similar area of focus. 1 Scenarios chosen should focus on broad areas of strategic relevance to Singapore i.e. those that pose potential challenges and/or opportunities for Singapore, even though the problems articulated within the scenario may be (and likely will be) of global relevance as well. Page 4 of 22

5 2.8. The Scenario-based CRP variation outlined above would create a tighter linkage between programmes surfaced and potential challenges and/or opportunities for Singapore. This will complement the existing CRP general grant calls and help to surface truly use-inspired research programmes that can produce strategic breakthroughs for Singapore via the CRP Funding Scheme. 3. Eligibility 3.1. As the CRP is a national programme, PIs from all Singapore-based institutions of higher learning (IHLs), public sector agencies and research institutions, not-for profit hospitals/research laboratories as well as companies and company-affiliated research laboratories/institutions, are eligible to apply for funding support under the CRP Under the CRP, private sector funding support (i.e., for Singapore-based companies and company-affiliated research laboratories/institutions) would be on a co-funding basis, commensurate to the stage of R&D (upstream vs. downstream) of the collaboration (refer to paragraph 9.4 for details) Only research conducted in Singapore may be funded under the CRP R&D proposals already funded by other agencies or being considered for funding by other agencies would not be considered under the CRP. PIs need to declare their other funding sources during the application. 4. Application and Call Processes 4.1. To apply for CRP funding, applicants (Lead PIs) will first need to sign up for a free user account on the NRF s Research, Innovation and Technology Administration (RITA) system ( if they do not already have an existing RITA user account, in order to submit proposals to NRF All host institutions 2 with PIs applying for CRP funding must also designate a Director of Research (or equivalent) to be registered with NRF. The office of the Director of Research will have the following responsibilities to the NRF with respect to all applications and/or funded programmes of that R&D organization under the CRP scheme:- i. To undertake, in endorsing its PI s application, that the host institution:- a. Supports the grant application, has no objection to the project being undertaken in its premises and is committed to fully supporting the PI s programme (in terms of providing other support outside of the direct research costs of the proposed programme for which CRP funding is being sought) to ensure its success if it is funded; 2 Host institution here refers to the R&D organisation to which the Lead PI belongs, which will provide the primary support for the proposed programme if it is funded by NRF. Page 5 of 22

6 b. Has confidence that the proposed programme team has the necessary competencies and track record to bring about the successful completion of the proposed programme; and ii. To ensure that the host institution has the resources and infrastructure to effectively carry out such operational processes as may be necessary for the administration of any grants received, including the management of funds, asset inventories, collation of programme reports, etc To register a Director of Research with NRF, host institutions should write in to NRF to confirm the authority of the said Director of Research to act in such capacity and provide his/her name, designation, official mailing address, contact number, fax number and address All attachments uploaded on RITA as part of the CRP process must be clearly labelled to facilitate easy identification of the attachment s contents. CRP Call Process 4.5. The CRP call process has two stages: (i) White Paper stage; and (ii) Full Proposal stage. (I) White Paper Stage 4.6. In response to a CRP call for proposals by NRF, Lead PI applicants should first submit a White Paper of up to 5 pages in minimum size 12-point font with reasonable margins, describing the research programme being proposed. Only CVs (2 page per PI, Co-PI or collaborator in the format specified at Annex A.) and references (up to 2 pages per White Paper) may be attached as annexes that will not be subject to the 5 page limit White Papers must be submitted using the RITA White Paper application form. All relevant sections of the RITA White Paper application form should be filled out completely, with the 5 page White Paper and supporting documents uploaded as separate attachments. At the White Paper stage, it is not necessary for all Co-PIs and collaborators to sign up for a RITA UserID; only the Lead PI submitting the application needs to do so. Co-PIs and collaborators with existing RITA UserIDs should be listed in the Collaborators section of the RITA application form, but those without RITA UserIDs may simply be listed as part of the research team details in the White Paper itself (see paragraph 4.8(vii)) While no fixed format is required for the 5 page White Paper, it should minimally include the following information presented in a clear and organised manner:- Page 6 of 22

7 i. Objectives of the proposed research programme (both scientific as well as in terms of potential economic and other impact on Singapore); ii. iii. iv. Brief overview of the individual projects within the programme (including how they relate to each other and to the objectives of the programme); Novelty of proposed research viz-a-viz the current state-of-the-art in that field (including an assessment of the international competitiveness of the programme against other efforts by competitors around the world); Expected research outputs and outcomes, and proposed key performance indicators (KPIs) for the programme (which should be linked to measuring progress towards the objectives of the programme); v. Budget for the entire programme (broken down into the following broad categories as defined in Annex B, mainly: (a) expenditure on manpower (EOM); (b) equipment; and (c) other operating expenditure (OOE), with sub-categories for conferences/overseas working visits/meetings, materials and consumables (including animal costs if any), use of services/laboratory space within the host institution and miscellaneous costs or others); vi. vii. viii. ix. Timeline of the programme (including intermediate milestones over the duration of the programme); The proposed research team s expertise and relevant prior work/experience, including the roles and contributions of industry PIs or partners where relevant (2 page CVs in the format specified at Annex A are required for the Lead PI, Co-PIs and all collaborators; these should be attached as an annex to the White Paper and will not count against the 5 page limit); Justifications for NRF funding support for the proposed programme; and Other relevant information as determined by the Lead PI All proposals must identify a Lead PI, who is expected to be actively involved in the overall management of the programme and who will be accountable for the programme and its deliverables. All Co-PIs and collaborators listed as members of the research team are expected to be actively involved in the research activities of the programme, even though this may be in varying degrees All White Papers and supporting documents as requested above must be submitted via RITA. Separate submissions outside of RITA will not be considered. Submission of the White Paper using the RITA White Paper Page 7 of 22

8 application form will constitute an electronic signature of the undertaking required in Section 4 of the RITA White Paper application form by the Lead PI. Hard-copy of the White Paper is NOT required at this stage Once PIs have submitted their documents online, their applications will be routed to the Director of Research of their respective host institution for online endorsement. This online endorsement will constitute an electronic signature of the undertaking required in Section 4 of the RITA White Paper application form by the host institution White Papers and supporting documents are only considered to be submitted to NRF if the RITA White Paper application form with the relevant attachments is submitted by the specified call deadline and the online endorsement by the respective Director of Research is completed on RITA by the endorsement deadline given (usually 1 day after the specified call deadline). NRF will not entertain any submissions after the specified call deadline or any requests to extend the endorsement deadline All endorsed White Papers eligible for funding will then be forwarded to the CRP Local Evaluation Panel to shortlist promising White Papers to be developed into Full Proposals, which will be put through an international peer review process before final selection of proposals for award by the CRP International Evaluation Panel. (II) Full Proposal Stage Lead PIs of the short listed White Papers will be invited to submit Full Proposals on RITA using the standard RITA application form. All relevant sections of the RITA application form should be filled out completely as it will serve as the official summary of the programme being submitted for consideration In addition to the basic information required in the RITA application form, please note the following instructions on specific information to be provided in the relevant sections of the RITA application form:- i. Section 2 Details of Research Proposal A comprehensive case for support of up to 20 pages in minimum size 12-point font with reasonable margins should be uploaded as an attachment in this section. The case for support should include the following sections and information specified in the following table:- Sections Required Objectives of the Research Programme Information to be Provided This section should articulate clearly the useinspired objectives and expected outcomes of the programme and how it would contribute towards achieving the objectives of the CRP scheme. Page 8 of 22

9 Description of Projects Economic Potential and Other Contributions of Programme This section should describe the complementarity / synergies of projects within the programme towards achieving the overall programme objectives. Details should be provided on the individual projects objectives, the scientific challenges they are meant to address and the proposed methodology/approach to solving these challenges. PIs should highlight in this section the importance of the problems being addressed, how their work would create new knowledge or advance existing understanding, the novelty of their proposed approach and the potential for this to produce breakthrough work. The Lead PI and team members for each project should also be given in this section, highlighting any competitive advantages of individual PIs in terms of unique capabilities and/or experience relevant to the project s scientific focus. This section should also be used to highlight the international competitiveness of the work being carried out in terms of scientific merit with mentions of existing work being carried out by other teams around the world. This section should be used to describe the contributions of the programme in terms of potential economic and other benefits to Singapore. Details of any industry collaborations and/or cofunding should be included in this section, with details on the extent and role of industry participation in the programme and plans for commercialization if any. Letters of commitment stating the level of contribution from the industry collaborators would be favourably considered. PIs should highlight how the programme would generate economic payoffs for Singapore, e.g., through the potential to create new industry or advance existing industry, create spin-offs /IP/licensing, produce innovations that would disrupt existing industries if successful, etc. PIs should also highlight other contributions of the programme, e.g., towards building up research infrastructure, manpower and capabilities in Singapore, etc. Page 9 of 22

10 Research Team This section should highlight the relevant track record and capabilities of individual PIs in the team, their international standing and any unique competitive advantages that they bring to the team in achieving the programme s objectives. Programme Management and Budget CVs (maximum of 2-pages for each PI, Co-PI and collaborator in the format specified at Annex A) should be attached as an annex, which will not count against the 20 page limit. [Note: For the Full Proposal stage, all co-pis and collaborators must also sign up for a RITA UserID and be listed in the Collaborators section of the RITA application form.] PIs should use this section to highlight any plans to leverage on collaborations (local/international) and articulate the value of such collaborations to the programme. PIs should mention in the proposal their working relationship with their collaborators, including details of past collaborations. This section should provide an overview of the proposed programme management structure and plans to increase the likelihood of success, in terms of the programme achieving its objectives. PIs should also highlight the international competitiveness of the overall programme being proposed here. A summary of the overall programme budget should be provided in this section, broken down into broad categories of EOM, equipment and OOE. Justification for the proposed budget in each category should be clearly articulated here. PIs are asked to provide accurate and reasonable budgets in their submissions. Please note that over-budgeting is strongly discouraged and that NRF may ask PIs to revise the requested budget before award if this is found to be the case. For programmes involving private sector participants or other external funding sources (i.e. where NRF funding is sought for only part of the programme), the summary of the overall programme budget should give a clear indication of the total research budget required for the programme, broken down by the amount of NRF funding sought under CRP and the amount of Page 10 of 22

11 funding to be sourced/provided for externally. In particular, the budget requested should also indicate clearly the amount that would be drawn by private sector participants from the CRP fund, as support for this would be on a co-funding basis. The detailed budget breakdown by line item should be provided in Section 4 of the RITA application form. Budget line items that would incur overheads (general overheads and support for IP protection and commercialisation) should be marked as such (refer to paragraph 9.5 and Annex B). Deliverables of Programme A summary of the KPIs for the programme should be provided in this section. KPIs proposed should be linked to the objectives of the programme and provide appropriate means of tracking/measuring the success of the programme. PIs should also use this section to highlight important outcomes that can be expected from the successful execution of the programme. The detailed listing of activities and KPIs should be provided in Section 5 of the RITA application form. ii. Section 3 Declaration of Other Funding Support Details of all grants currently held or being applied for by the PI, Co-PIs or collaborators who are expected to receive funding from NRF under the proposed programme, in related areas of work, must be declared in this section. Failure to do so will be considered a breach of the undertaking required by all PIs and collaborators in Section 7 of the RITA application form and may render the application invalid. iii. Section 4 Proposed Budget PIs should fill in the detailed budget breakdown in this section of the form, broken down into the categories and sub-categories as defined in Annex B, mainly: (a) EOM; (b) equipment; and (c) OOE, with subcategories for conferences/overseas working visits/meetings, materials and consumables (including animal costs if any), use of services/laboratory space within the host institution and miscellaneous costs or others. Exceptional items, if any, should be listed under the relevant broad category e.g. EOM, equipment or OOE and flagged as such. Any additional information (e.g., equipment quotations for items with unit cost over $100,000, OOE details) should be uploaded as Page 11 of 22

12 separate attachments. The full budget details provided on the RITA form, with further line item breakdown if necessary (e.g., consumables, if given as a single line item in the RITA application form, should be broken down into sub-categories by type), should also be uploaded as a separate attachment in Excel table format at the bottom of this section under Full Details of Proposed Budget. Only details for the amount of NRF funding sought under CRP should be provided in this section; other sources of funding for the programme should be indicated in the Programme Management and Budget section of the case for support (see paragraph 4.15(i) above). Note: Details of the budget phasing for the programme (i.e., the estimated budget projection for each year of the programme) may be entered as the average yearly cost of the programme during the proposal submission stage. However, if awarded, the detailed schedules and budget phasing would need to be provided to NRF prior to the disbursement of funds for the programme (see paragraph 10.1). iv. Section 5 Activities and Performance Indicators PIs should provide full details of any relevant KPIs for their programme in this section. As the RITA application form only provides a listing of possible KPIs for PIs to choose from, any additional relevant KPIs not listed should be included in a separate attachment in this section. v. Section 6 Suggested Names of International Reviewers Each Full Proposal submission must include 8 recommendations of international peer reviewers in this section (local reviewers should not be listed), who could potentially be requested to evaluate the Full Proposal. In submitting recommendations for international peer reviewers, PIs must ensure that the recommended reviewers:- a. Are experts in the subject matter and capable of offering unbiased expert opinions on the scientific merit of the proposed programme; b. Have broad knowledge of the field that will enable them to evaluate the broader multidisciplinary, educational and societal impact (including economic and other benefits) of the proposed programme; c. Have good knowledge of global developments in the field to be able to evaluate the international competitiveness of the proposed programme; and d. Have no relationship, direct or otherwise, with the PI, Co-PIs and/or collaborators that would create a real or apparent conflict of interest. 3 3 In particular, a reviewer is not permitted to take part in the review of a proposal that originates from his/her home institution (i.e., if the PI or Co-PIs of the proposals are from his/her home Page 12 of 22

13 4.16. Full Proposals submitted should contain all relevant information required for a proper and complete evaluation of their merits without the need to go back to applicants for additional information. Relevant privileged or confidential information should be disclosed if necessary to help convey a better understanding of the proposed project. However, such information should be clearly marked in the proposal Full Proposals and supporting documents are only considered to be submitted to NRF if the RITA Full Proposal application form with the relevant attachments is submitted by the specified call deadline and the online endorsement by the respective Director of Research is completed on RITA by the endorsement deadline given (usually 1 day after the specified call deadline). In endorsing the application, the Director of Research is not required to comment on the scientific merit of the proposed research programme as this will be provided by international peer reviewers that NRF will approach. However, the endorsement must include a statement to the effect that the host institution will fully support the proposed research programme to ensure its success if it is awarded a grant by NRF In addition, one original hard-copy, signed by the Director of Research, the Lead PI and all co-pis and collaborators, of the Full Proposal (inclusive of the RITA application form and all attachments submitted online), must be forwarded to the NRF for certification and archival purposes. The signed hard-copies should be sent to the following address and should reach the NRF within one calendar week from the endorsement deadline for the relevant call:- Competitive Research Programme Funding Scheme c/o: National Research Foundation 100 High Street, #03-02 The Treasury Singapore To facilitate the participation of overseas collaborators, a complete set of signatures may be provided using multiple copies of Section 7 (the undertaking section) of the RITA application form and fax copies of signatures will also be accepted. The hard-copy provided will be assumed to be identical to the online submission and, in the event of any discrepancy, the online submission will be taken as the final and complete version of the Full Proposal. institution); or if any of the proposal s personnel are closely related to the reviewer, e.g., household family members, partners or professional associates including thesis advisor/advisees; or if the reviewer has a financial interest in the proposing institution, e.g., ownership of stock or securities, employment or arrangements for employment; or if the reviewer or his/her professional associates (e.g., from his/her home institution) have submitted substantially similar proposals for the same grant call. Page 13 of 22

14 4.20. Submissions which are incomplete (e.g., missing hard-copy signatures), late or not endorsed online by the corresponding host institution in the RITA system by the close of the relevant call will not be considered All Full Proposals will be sent for international peer review and will be evaluated by a minimum of 3 international experts in the relevant subject matter. International peer reviewers will assess and comment on the strength of the proposed research programme in terms of its intellectual significance, potential to generate economic and other benefits, capabilities of the research team, programme management structure and proposed budget The comments and ratings of the international peer reviewers will be forwarded to the CRP International Evaluation Panel (IEP) for consideration as part of the final evaluation. The CRP IEP will make the final selection and recommend to NRF the Full Proposals to award for each round of CRP calls. NRF s decision on approval of Full Proposals to be awarded funding is final. 5. Research Approvals 5.1. All Lead PIs must comply with the relevant ethics and other regulatory approval requirements needed to carry out their programmes and projects, as per their host institution s policies and regulations. 6. Progress Reports, Reviews and Final Reports 6.1. All Lead PIs are required to submit regular progress reports to their host institutions at least once every 12 months. Host institutions must submit consolidated progress reports for all CRP awards by 1 October each year covering all awarded programmes, except those which have been in operation for less than 6 months (i.e. those programmes with an official start date after 1 April in that same year). NRF reserves the right to request progress reports more frequently when necessary. Final reports on the overall achievements of completed research programmes must be submitted to the NRF by the PIs through their host institutions within 3 months from their respective programme completion dates Progress reports will be reviewed regularly by an NRF-appointed review panel for satisfactory progress in terms of the programme achieving its stated objectives and approved KPIs. In addition, a comprehensive mid-term review will be organised by NRF, at which Lead PIs will also be required to present their research findings at a public forum. NRF reserves the right to terminate awards for any programmes that are found by the review process to be unsatisfactory in making progress or in achieving its stated objectives. 7. Intellectual Property Management Page 14 of 22

15 7.1. Background IP (or BIP) is defined as any existing IP brought by parties into a research collaboration funded under the CRP Funding Scheme. Foreground IP (or FIP) is defined as new IP developed as a result of the research collaboration funded under the CRP Funding Scheme. (I) Background IP 7.2. All research collaborators involved in research projects or collaborations funded by NRF will grant each other free access to any BIP necessary for the purpose of carrying out the research collaboration to develop potential FIP. Exceptions to this may be made in cases where the BIP is already encumbered, e.g., where prior licensing or other arrangements prevent free access to other parties other than the IP owner, even for research purposes only. However, in such instances the research team should assess whether the encumbered BIP is critical for developing and exploiting any potential FIP and make an informed decision on how to proceed with the intended collaboration No party is allowed to use, disclose or license another party's BIP, outside of the scope allowed for in paragraph 7.2 above, without the relevant BIP owner s approval The FIP owner or its designated commercialisation entity will request in writing to the BIP owner to provide information on any licence rights that may be available with respect to the BIP that would be necessary for the subsequent commercialisation of the FIP. If the FIP owner or its designated commercialisation entity, so requests in writing, such BIP owner shall, to the extent not prevented by then-existing agreements or obligations to the contrary, for at least six (6) months following such request, refrain from granting any exclusive license under such BIP that would prevent the grant of a non-exclusive license to the FIP owner or its designated commercialisation entity. If necessary for the subsequent commercialisation of FIP, the terms and conditions for the use of any BIP should be negotiated separately with the relevant BIP owner. (II) Foreground IP 7.5. Disclosures of new FIP shall be formally evaluated by the host institution to determine who should be listed as their inventor(s)/creator(s) under the host institution s policies. Only those who are determined as inventor (s) or creator(s) may be listed as such FIP shall be jointly owned in undivided equal shares between the host institution of the researcher (whose research are funded by NRF) and the research collaborator(s) employer when both are listed as inventors or creators of the FIP, as determined in the evaluation referred to in paragraph 7.5 above Due consideration shall be given to ensure that the host institution retains the right to use and exploit the FIP when negotiating IP ownership rights in Page 15 of 22

16 collaborative projects with the relevant industry. The host institution must also be mindful of the potential problems caused by the fragmentation of IP ownership, which could cause impediments to effective exploitation, especially where there is a need to bundle IP that may be owned by different industry collaborators for effective commercialisation If the party or parties with the right to take up ownership of the FIP, as determined by the principles outlined in paragraphs 7.5 to 7.7 above, decide not to take up ownership of the FIP within six (6) months from the date of disclosure of the FIP, the inventor(s)/creator(s) will be allowed to protect and commercialise the FIP at his/her own expense. Under such circumstances, the following conditions will apply:- i. The distribution of any revenue arising from successful commercialisation of the FIP should be in accordance with the principles outlined in paragraph 7.11 below; and ii. Commercialisation rights for such FIP would revert back to the party or parties with the original right to take up ownership of the FIP, if the inventor/creator is unable to commercialise the said FIP within a time period of three (3) years The Singapore Government and public sector agencies shall reserve a nonexclusive, non-transferable, perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free right and licence to use, modify, reproduce and distribute the FIP for noncommercial, R&D and/or educational purposes only IP management, use and/or commercialisation of the FIP should, to the extent possible, be based in Singapore. This is to encourage technology transfer activities to be anchored in Singapore, increasing the chances of exploitation in Singapore or by Singapore entities, and creating additional avenues for training of technology transfer and IP management professionals, hence accruing benefits to Singapore as a whole. The host institution, or its designated commercialisation entity, shall make reasonable efforts to commercialise the FIP and give right of first refusal to Singapore-based companies for commercialisation and/or to license the publicly-funded research results to Singapore-based companies, with a view to enhancing value and benefit for the local economy All those who have made inventive/creative contributions to the development of the FIP shall receive a share of the benefits. A portion of the net IP revenue (i.e. the amount remaining after deducting administrative costs for IP commercialisation and patenting, and applicable taxes, if any) shall be shared with inventor(s)/creator(s) and host institution as well as the employer of the other inventor(s)/creator(s) if any, in a fair manner, based on a formula agreed upon upfront in writing. The balance of such revenue, after such portion has been distributed to reward those who have made inventive/creative contributions to the development of the FIP, shall be allocated to support further research/innovation. Page 16 of 22

17 7.12. Assignment of the FIP to third parties shall only be undertaken after due consideration of the facts and circumstances, and with the necessary approval from the host institution, and taking into consideration that assignment of such IP:- (i) (ii) Shall not be against the public interest of Singapore; and Shall not restrain the freedom of the host institution to further use, develop or exploit the IP, either through further research and/or collaboration NRF shall be notified, in writing, in advance of the assignment of any FIP to third parties. (III) Disclosure Management and Publications NRF expects Lead PIs to play a proactive role in working with their research teams as well as their respective host institution s technology transfer offices or equivalents to effectively protect, commercialize and exploit intellectual assets or IP arising from the funded research. This includes ensuring that disclosures of new IP are promptly reported by their research teams All publications of any material (including web pages) based on or developed under NRF-supported programmes and projects must include an acknowledgement of NRF support as follows: This material is based on research/work supported [for cases of multiple funding support, the phrase in part should be inserted here] by the Singapore National Research Foundation under CRP Award No. [the NRF CRP award number given in the Letter of Award should be inserted here]. NRF support should also be acknowledged orally during all news and media interviews Except for articles or papers published in scientific, technical or professional journals, the following disclaimer must also be included in all publications arising from the funded research: Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Singapore National Research Foundation The host institution s policies and requirements in terms of publication approval and submission processes would apply. Host institutions are expected to ensure that commercialisable research results are appropriately protected and suitable processes are in place to facilitate this Information on disclosures of new IP, patents and publications arising from the funded research should be provided to NRF as part of the regular annual and final progress reports submitted (see Section 6). 8. Letter of Award & Acceptance Page 17 of 22

18 8.1. Notification of CRP awards, in the form of a Letter of Award, will be sent to the Director of Research for the respective Lead PIs host institutions and copied to the Lead PI Written acceptance of the terms and conditions of the award, in the form of a Statement of Acceptance signed by the Director of Research (or equivalent) of the Lead PI s employing organisation and by the Lead PI, must reach NRF within 3 weeks from the date of the Letter of Award. The date of signing of the Statement of Acceptance will be taken as the official start date of the programme The names, designations and contact details of the Lead PIs that have been awarded CRP grants will be posted on the RITA website, together with the title of the successful proposal, for public information. 9. Funding Support 9.1. Under the CRP scheme, the NRF offers funding support of up to S$10 million (total cost) per programme over three to five years. The total cost of the programme includes all approved direct costs, overheads and support for IP and commercialization activities. All expenditures should be budgeted inclusive of any applicable Goods and Services Taxes (GST) at the prevailing rates Budget items are categorized as direct or indirect cost items. Direct costs are defined as the incremental cost required to execute the programme. This excludes contributions in-kind, existing equipment and the cost of existing manpower as well as building cost. Indirect costs are expenses incurred by the research activity in the form of space, support personnel, administrative and facilities expenses Any direct cost charged to the CRP grant must be reasonable and for the proposed research activities of the programme. Supportable direct costs can be classified into the following four cost categories:- i. Expenditure on manpower (EOM); ii. Expenditure on new equipment; iii. Other operating expenses (OOE); and iv. Exceptional items (in preparing budget submissions, these should be indicated under the relevant type of expenditure above) NRF will support 100 percent of the approved direct cost for Singapore-based IHLs, public sector agencies and research institutions, as well as not-for-profit hospitals/research laboratories. Private sector participants (i.e., Singaporebased companies and company-affiliated research laboratories/institutions) will be required to co-fund a minimum of 30 percent of the approved direct cost that they would incur for R&D under the programme. The actual percentage of NRF funding supportable to private sector participants will depend on the stage of R&D (upstream vs. downstream) of the collaboration, Page 18 of 22

19 i.e., more downstream collaboration would require a higher percentage of cofunding by private sector Support for indirect costs, in the form of overheads and support for IP and commercialization activities, will only be provided for Singapore-based IHLs, public sector agencies as well as not-for-profit research entities. In terms of overheads, funding support of 20 percent of the total qualifying approved direct costs (i.e., less exceptional items) will be allowed. An additional 10 percent of the total qualifying approved direct costs will be given to the Technology Licensing Office (TLO) or equivalent in the host institution to support for IP protection and commercialisation activities. Host institutions will be responsible for administering and managing the support provided by NRF for the indirect costs of research, i.e., indirect costs funded by NRF need not be used solely for the funded research programmes The table below shows an example of how the total grant amount to be awarded is calculated, for a proposal requesting funding of S$6 million:- Items Calculation Cost Supportable direct cost approved (including any exceptional items that were allowed, i.e. the approved direct cost ) Refer to Annex B S$ 6 mil Exceptional items Refer to Annex B S$ 1 mil Qualifying approved Refer to Annex B S$ 5 mil direct cost Overheads 20% x S$5mil S$ 1 mil Support for IP & (5% + 5%) x S$5mil S$0.5 mil commercialisation activities Total amount awarded S$6mil + S$1mil + S$0.5mil S$7.5 mil 9.7. Please refer to Annex B for a detailed guide on supportable and nonsupportable cost items as well as items that qualify for overheads or IP and commercialisation support funding. NRF s decision on the funding support to be awarded for each programme is final. Page 19 of 22

20 COMPETITIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMME GUIDELINES FOR ADMINISTRATORS (PART II) 10. Disbursement of Funds Following confirmation of CRP awards and signing of the Statement of Acceptance, Lead PIs must submit detailed schedules and budgets at the programme and project level, including research KPIs/milestones and budget phasing or expected drawdown requirements for the duration of their programme to their respective host institutions, using the templates provided in the CRP Funding Scheme Submission Templates & Forms document Host institutions should coordinate these submissions and provide NRF with a consolidated 3-year funding request schedule, showing the annual projected drawdown across all awarded programmes, within 6 weeks from the date of the Letter of Award for the first set of CRP awards, using the template provided in the CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Guidelines Submission Templates & Forms document. This funding request schedule should subsequently be submitted to NRF on a yearly basis by 1 October of each year, to include updates in view of new awards in subsequent CRP rounds Funding requests for any given year shall not exceed the approved phasing award for that year. The approved funding drawdown will be disbursed directly to the host institution of the respective Lead PI Host institutions should in the first instance pay for the expenditure incurred for approved projects and subsequently claim reimbursement from the NRF. The finance department of the relevant host institution should submit reimbursement claims on a quarterly basis, using the template provided in the accompanying CRP Funding Scheme Submission Templates & Forms document Final claims for approved projects should be made within 6 months from the date of completion of the project (as given in the detailed project schedule submitted). 11. Grant Management Research activities must commence within 2 months from the date of signing of the Statement of Acceptance, which is taken as the date of acceptance of the Award Any material variation to the approved scope of a programme or project, in particular its stated objectives, aims and proposed outcomes must be approved by the NRF The authority to manage budget allocations between cost categories or votes (i.e., virement), without an increase in overall budget, is delegated to the Page 20 of 22

21 internal approving authority of the host institution of the Lead PI, subject to the following conditions being met:- i. The approval authority for virement of funds is the Director of Research or his/her officially endorsed designate; ii. iii. iv. The approval authority for such virement of funds only covers programmes awarded under the CRP scheme; The approval authority for such virement of funds: (a) between EOM, equipment and OOE cost categories within projects, is subject to a cumulative amount not exceeding 30% of the original grant awarded for the project, and (b) between project votes within the overall programme, is subject to a cumulative amount not exceeding 30% of the original grant awarded for the programme; Further delegation of such approval authority to individual PIs for subamounts is for the host institution to determine, provided that this is inline with institutional practices and is formally approved by the host institution NRF approval must be sought for any virement outside of the scope described in paragraph 11.3 above, using the relevant form provided in the CRP Funding Scheme Submission Templates & Forms document Purchase of additional new equipment is not allowed within the 6 months prior to the scheduled project completion date Requests for programme extensions must be made to the NRF at least 6 months before the original programme completion date, with justification given, using the relevant form provided in the CRP Funding Scheme Detailed Submission Templates & Forms document. NRF may choose to grant an extension of up to 12 months with no additional funding allocated Change in the Lead PI is normally not allowed as the grant would have been approved taking into consideration the expertise and track record of the PI. In exceptional cases, where a change in the Lead PI is required (despite all conditions of the undertaking required by the Lead PI having been met), host institutions must submit a written request to NRF, using the relevant form provided in the CRP Funding Scheme Submission Templates & Forms document, to nominate a new Lead PI, who must be able to take on and successfully execute all the duties required by this role. In the event that the host institution cannot find any suitable person to fulfil this role, or that the nominated individual is not approved by NRF, NRF reserves the right to terminate funding for the programme In cases where the Lead PI moves to another Singapore-based organisation, and the host institution and new employing institution respectively agree to transfer the administration of the grant and take on the duties of a host institution, NRF may allow for the transfer of the grant awarded. In such Page 21 of 22

22 instances, the host institution must first submit a written request to NRF for approval. The new employing institution must be Singapore-based and must provide the same written undertaking required of the original host institution in endorsing the programme (refer to paragraph 4.2) In line with the need to ensure that the National Research Fund is utilised appropriately, host institutions may be subject to audit by the Internal-Audit of the Accountant-General's Department (AGD) in terms of accounting for the funding disbursed by NRF as well as for compliance with the CRP guidelines. Host institutions are expected to keep proper accounts and to have in place established governance structures and processes to account for the funding disbursed by NRF. The respective Directors of Research will be held accountable for the proper usage of funds disbursed by NRF and for ensuring that auditing requirements are met In accounting for the usage of overheads and support for IP protection and commercialisation, which is managed centrally by the host institution, host institutions only need to provide NRF with records of the disbursements of such funding to the relevant host institution departments e.g. the administrative or technology transfer offices. Host institutions will be held accountable for the proper usage of overheads and support for IP protection and commercialisation provided by NRF. 12. Changes to Guidelines NRF reserves the right to make changes to the above guidelines and the CRP Funding Scheme Submission Templates & Forms document as and when it deems fit. Page 22 of 22

23 ANNEX A: FORMAT FOR CVS All CVs submitted for CRP applications must not exceed 2 pages and should use the following format (in terms of sections required and the order of the sections), to highlight key information relevant for the evaluation of proposal:- A. EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS B. PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE C. SELECTED PUBLICATIONS MOST CLOSELY RELATED TO THE PROPOSAL D. SELECTED OTHER PUBLICATIONS (THAT THE REVIEW PANELS SHOULD NOTE) E. PREVIOUS AND CURRENT RESEARCH GRANTS IN RELATED AREAS F. LIST OF RECENT COLLABORATORS G. LIST OF ADVISEES (INCLUDING STUDENTS MENTORED) H. GRADUATE ADVISORS

24 ANNEX B: GUIDE ON PROJECT COST ITEMS Type of Expenses Description Expenditure on Manpower (EOM)-Related Expenses PIs and co-pis EOM includes salaries, CPF and EOM fringe benefits including medical, dental, contribution to welfare fund, bonuses, incentive payments etc. Supportable? No Qualify for overheads & IP/comm. support? No Salaries, CPF and fringe benefits including medical, dental, contribution to welfare fund, bonuses, incentive payments etc. for other research staff (excluding PIs and co-pis) As part of overall compensation to employees provided such costs are reasonable and are incurred under formal established and consistently applied policies of the host institution. The salaries offered to staff should be reasonable, in line with local market benchmarks and comply with the formal established pay scale of the host institution that is consistently applied regardless of the source of funds. Overtime pay is not supportable. Local & international students fees or other stipends or awards to students For postgraduate research students receiving research training in Singapore-based universities while working on the project, including the stipends of part-time graduate research students employed specifically for the funded project. Annual leave The number of days of leave accorded to staff must be in accordance with the formal policies of the host institution that are consistently applied regardless of the source of funds. Staff insurance As part of overall compensation to employees provided such costs are incurred under formal established and consistently applied policies of the host institution.