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New arrangements for the Design Research Scheme (DRS) and the Design-Business Collaboration Scheme will make the DesignSmart Initiative more user-friendly to the industry and the design community.
Under the new arrangements, the DRS will open to year-round applications as with all other funding schemes of the DesignSmart Initiative, with immediate effect.
Moreover, "applications to the DRS will no longer be limited by pre-set themes in a bid to encourage more organisations to do research in design or branding related areas," a spokesman for the Innovation and Technology Commission said today (June 18).
The DRS supports research in design or branding-related areas to provide a platform for attaining greater awareness of and knowledge critical to the effective utilisation and deployment of design in mainstream industrial or business processes. In the past, the DRS invited applications from time to time for specific themes.
Another funding scheme under the DesignSmart Initiative is the Design-Business Collaboration Scheme (DBCS) which promotes collaboration between design companies and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to help upgrade the latter's products and services through design. Funding support under the DBCS is provided by way of a grant up to 50% of the total approved project cost or $100,000, whichever is lower. Local design companies are eligible to apply.
The new arrangements will empower SMEs to play a bigger role in the DBCS. The design company and the SME will be co-applicants in a project application and either of them, with the consent of the other party, is eligible to lodge an application.
"To incentivise SMEs to do a more diligent search for design companies to maximise the value of the DBCS funding to them, the scheme will be re-oriented to become a voucher system, with each applying SME eligible to a maximum grant of $100,000, for four projects at most. Applying SMEs will also be required to provide the 50% matching funds in cash, to demonstrate the worthiness of their projects," the spokesman said.
"The new arrangements will take immediate effect save for the lodging of DBCS applications by SMEs. Pending some system amendments, SMEs may expect to start lodging applications within the third quarter of 2008, exact date to be announced," the spokesman added.
The $250 million DesignSmart Initiative launched by the Government in 2004 comprises a Design Support Programme with four funding schemes to support design projects and the setting up of an InnoCentre as a one-stop shop for design clustering. Apart from the DRS and the DBCS, the other two funding schemes are the Professional Continuing Education Scheme which aims at developing professional continuing education courses in design and its application, and the General Support Scheme which aims at promoting and honouring design excellence in Hong Kong.
"The new arrangements are the result of our on-going efforts to take into account the genuine needs of the industry and the design community, and they were worked out with advice from relevant stakeholders and the DesignSmart Initiative Assessment Panel," the spokesman said.
The number of the help-desk for enquiries on the DesignSmart Initiative and the new arrangements is 2737 2462. Further details are available from the website at www.designsmart.gov.hk, or from the DesignSmart Secretariat at the Innovation and Technology Commission, 20/F, Wu Chung House, 213 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai (email:enquiry@designsmart.gov.hk).
Ends/Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Issued at HKT 18:03
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