Circular Economy Markets Fund: Materials – Stream 1: Research, Development and Demonstration 

The Circular Economy Markets Fund supports research institutes, industry and business to develop and commercialise new uses for recycled materials.

The Fund is distributed through 2 funding streams:

• Stream 1: Research, Development and Demonstration grants support projects that develop, demonstrate and validate new innovative uses for recycled materials. This page is about Stream 1.
• Stream 2: Commercialisation Support grants support activities directly related to the commercialisation of a novel product or process containing recycled materials.

Stream 1 and Stream 2 are open for applications.

Applications must be submitted by 11:59 pm, Thursday 2 June 2022. Late applications will not be accepted except under exceptional circumstances.

Read more about Stream 2.

This grant is part of the Recycling Victoria policy funding.

The following are the guidelines for applying for Stream 1.

Information bulletin

Find out more in the Information bulletin.

1. Fund overview

1.1 Fund objectives

Projects must meet one or more of the following objectives:

• Identify and develop new domestic uses for recyclable materials, including those that may otherwise go to landfill or be stockpiled.
• Commercialise innovative products and processes that contain recycled materials and meet end user needs.
• Improve confidence in, demand for and uptake of recycled products in Victoria.
• Boost Victoria’s economy through local circular economy initiatives, helping businesses to grow in new ways, and creating new jobs.

1.2 Funding available

Grants of between $30,000 and $400,000 excluding GST are available per project.

1.3 Co-contribution

Applicants must contribute at least $1 for every $1 funded.

Co-contributions can be either financial (cash) or in-kind. Up to 100% of the co-contribution can be in-kind.

For research and development projects, the Industry Partner must contribute at least 20% to the co-contribution.

2. Eligibility

2.1 Who can apply

All applications require a single Lead Applicant, who will be the responsible Contracting Party. See Section 9: Definitions for more info.

To be eligible for funding, projects that include any lab based research and development component, the Lead Applicant must be a Victoria-based Research Institute and have at least one Industry Partner as part of a Collaborative Partnership. If the project has more than one Industry Partner, the Lead Application must nominate a Lead Industry Partner.

For demonstration and validation projects (without lab based research) the Lead Applicant can be any of the following:

• Research Institute (See Section 9: Definitions).
• For-profit business.
• Not-for-Profit.
• Social Enterprise.
• State government entity.
• Incorporated association.
• Industry association or peak body.

A Research Institute can submit more than one application and is eligible to collaborate with other research institutes (both within Victoria and in other states).

For projects involving lab-based research, or those proposing to develop a standard or specification, privately owned research facilities must provide evidence of accreditation (e.g. National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia or similar standard).

All applicants must:

• have a current Australian Business Number (ABN). Project Partners must also have an ABN
• have operations in Victoria
• complete the project within 18 months of signing the funding agreement with Sustainability Victoria.
• agree to comply with the Terms of Participation in Grant Programs
• agree to comply with the funding terms and conditions:
  • for grants $50,000 or less read the Short-form grant funding agreement
  • for grants more than $50,000 read the General grant funding agreement.

Applicants and/or Project Partners with less than 2 years operating history are eligible to apply and are encouraged to secure established project partners or identify appropriate external expertise where appropriate. They may be subject to additional information requests to undertake a risk assessment, and/or additional funding conditions.

Applicants who do not agree with the Grant Funding Agreement Terms and Conditions will be asked to provide full details of proposed amendments that would render the contractual provision acceptable to the Applicant in the SmartyGrants application form. Applicants should note that significant or substantive variations will not be viewed favourably unless the Applicant is able to demonstrate the necessity for such variations. Should applicants be successful, no further amendments to Sustainability Victoria's standard terms and conditions will be considered beyond the variations included in the application form.

We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations.

Sustainability Victoria manages several grants. Although you can apply for more than one grant for a project, you can only receive one grant per project. If you’ve already applied for a Sustainability Victoria grant and now find this grant is more relevant or suitable for your project, you can withdraw your application by emailing us.

2.2 Who cannot apply

For projects that include a research and development component the Lead Applicant cannot be any of the following organisations:

• Sole traders.
• Government (federal, state and/or local), Incorporated Association, Industry Association, Industry peak body, Commercial/for-profit business, not-for profit or a social enterprise

For demonstration and validation only projects the Lead Applicant cannot be any of the following organisations:

• Sole traders.
• Local governments.

2.3 What will be funded

Stream 1 funding is available to support the technical development of new or existing products and/or processes using recycled materials. While activities funded under Stream 1 are focused on the research, development and demonstration of new or existing products and/or processes, applicants will also be asked to demonstrate the commercial pathway and end market opportunity as part of their funding application.

Eligible materials

RVMAF will prioritise projects that address the materials subject to the national waste export bans (paper and cardboard, plastics, tyres and glass).

Projects proposing solutions to other arising materials streams such as e-waste and textiles will also be considered. Organics are not eligible.

Applicants will need to explain why the material is a problem and how their project will effectively address this problem.

Eligible activities

Funding will support projects that undertake one or more of the following:

• Research and develop, demonstrate and/or validate new or existing products and/or processes using eligible recycled materials.
• Investigate the feasibility of innovative manufacturing technology to increase and accelerate the use of recycled materials in products.
• Improve and/or develop product standards and specifications to include eligible recycled materials.
• Demonstrate how product/process meets existing standards and specifications or supports development of new ones.
• Demonstrate new products and/or processes using priority recycled materials in a real-world application.
• Demonstrate technologies that enables increased use of priority recycled materials by increasing performance and consistency, lowering costs of production or testing automated systems to produce recycled products.
• Provide product information or validation to increase procurement and end market development for recycled materials, including environmental product declaration, life cycle analysis, testing against a standard in a NATA accredited lab against Australian and International Standards etc.
• Investigate end of life recovery opportunities for new or existing recycled product/s.

Project costs must be directly related to the project and can include:

• staff costs incurred specifically to undertake the project (including project management and research)
• Research and Development (R&D) activities including product design and development, laboratory testing and altering existing processing approaches
• procurement of materials and services supporting R&D and demonstration
• costs that support development of specification and standards
• prototype development including any costs associated with manufacture
• leasing of equipment for product testing and validation
• capital purchases (e.g. infrastructure or equipment) essential to achieving the stated research, demonstration and/or product validation outcome
• installation costs (for example machinery hire, additional external labour resources)
• consultancy or contract work, including outsourcing testing to an accredited laboratory (NATA or equivalent). Note: projects may outsource a specific component to an inter-state facility
• product testing and validation to ensure environmental and human health performance
• testing against an Australian (AS) or International (ISO) standard
• undertaking a life cycle analysis, environmental product declaration, product certification and/or accreditation.

Where relevant, quotes should be provided for any third party services.

Projects must:

• focus on developing projects to be implemented in Victoria
• use credible research or evidence validating a proof of concept
• include a clear testing methodology either in the lab or in the field (i.e. testing schedule to meet ISO or AU standard)
• be complete by 30 April 2024.

You can submit multiple applications. Each application must be for a different project. An application must not be for multiple projects. Applicants can apply for funding under both streams provided each application is for a different project.

2.4 What will not be funded

Funding will not be provided for projects that:

• focus on organics and waste to energy.
• are funded under Stream 2 – Commercialisation support
• focus on products or processes that have already been fully commercialised (see definition in Section 9
• research addressing separation, collection or sorting of waste for recycling
• use native forestry materials and wastes as a feedstock
• do not clearly demonstrate a need for government support
• do not demonstrate good value for money
• have received funding or support for the same activities from other sources
• make requests for retrospective funding, where the activities that you are seeking funding for have commenced or are completed prior to signing a funding agreement with Sustainability Victoria
• are being undertaken to comply with regulation or a regulatory notice or order.

The following costs are ineligible for funding:

• capital purchases (e.g. infrastructure or equipment) used to sort recycling material inputs
• marketing, advertising and promotional costs
• lease or purchase of land
• permit, licensing and approval costs
• routine or cyclical maintenance works
• repair of facilities damaged by vandalism, fire or other natural disasters where the damage should be covered by insurance
• operating costs such as, but not limited to, salaries, electricity, water and other utilities. This includes the salaries of existing FTE that are not dedicated to the project
• purchasing of vehicles (e.g. front-end loaders, forklifts)
• business case development and feasibility studies
• pre-construction (site preparation) such as site clearing, earthworks or site accessibility works
• travel, conferences and other educational activities
• contingency costs.

3. Assessment process

3.1 Assessment criteria

The assessment panel will assess the application based on merit according to the criteria below.

What

Weighting: 30%

Describe how the project meets one or more of the objectives of the Fund.

Describe what the project you will do, including:

• the problem the project seeks to address
• the material the project targets and material details
• the objectives of the project, and desired product development and/or end market outcomes
• the stage of technical and commercial development the product is currently at in terms of the Technical Readiness Level (TRL 1-9) and Commercial Readiness Index (CRI 1-6)
• the activities and major outputs the project will deliver
• how the project supports social and sustainable procurement objectives
• how you intend to address structural or market challenges in commercialising the product.

Outline any prior research, demonstration and/or validation and commercialisation activities undertaken that demonstrate that the product or process is technically and/or commercially viable.

How

Weighting: 30%

Demonstrate viability to successfully deliver the project including:

• project plan including activities, milestones and deliverables
• project costs, details of contributions and evidence of financial capacity to deliver the project
• risk identification and appropriate mitigation measures
• a strong data collection, monitoring and evaluation framework to track performance
• consideration of:
  • environmental impacts of your product (including whole of life sustainability and greenhouse gas emissions)
  • human health (e.g. OHS)
  • economic viability (e.g. cost benefit analysis).

Applicants must attach any quotes relevant to third party providers and construction costs and complete the Risk Management Assessment in SmartyGrants.

Why

Weighting: 20%

Demonstrate why the project is needed including:

• the need for government financial assistance, including any impacts on scope and timing if not funded
• economic benefit (including value for money for Victorians and job creation)
• environmental benefits (e.g. potential for recycled content use, reduction in waste to landfill)
• other benefits (e.g. diffusion of knowledge).

Describe how the project will improve market confidence and demand for recycled materials.

Who

Weighting: 20%

Demonstrate the Lead Applicant and Project Partners’ capability and capacity to successfully deliver the project, including:

• experience and capabilities relevant to deliver the project
• appropriate contractual agreements including Intellectual Property arrangements
  
• access to the appropriate commercial and technological expertise to achieve project outcomes
• details of any external expertise to be engaged
• stakeholder engagement considerations to support the implementation of the project.

3.2 Diversity consideration

Sustainability Victoria may overlay rankings to achieve an overall mix of projects that represent:

• a geographical spread across Victorian regions
• spread across industries and types of applicants
• a mix of project types (e.g. projects targeting different material types and industry applications – manufacturing, civil construction, infrastructure, etc.).

3.3 Due diligence checks

A risk-based approach will be used to assess the Applicant’s social, economic and environmental risks in relation to the project. This assessment will include the Applicant’s Related Entities and may include Project Partners (see Section 9: Definitions).

Applicants (and their Related Entities and, if applicable, their Project Partners) must:

• have had no Environmental, Safety or Workplace Breaches in the last five years or, if there was a breach, Sustainability Victoria may assess that the Applicant’s breach poses a satisfactory level of risk;
• have not been the subject of an enforceable undertaking or successful litigation by the Fair Work Ombudsman for a breach of the Fair Work Act 2009 or a fair work instrument within the last five years;
• demonstrate financial capability to undertake the project;
• have adequate insurance as outlined in the funding agreement such as:
  • Public liability $10M minimum
  • Professional indemnity $5M minimum
  • WorkCover.
• have not failed to satisfactorily progress or complete previous projects funded by Sustainability Victoria within funding program timelines and without sufficient reason; and
• manage any conflicts of interest adequately.

Assessment of satisfactory level of risk will include but not be limited to Sustainability Victoria’s consideration of:

• the seriousness of any finding/s;
• whether the finding/s has been resolved to the satisfaction of the relevant enforcement agency, or the Applicant can demonstrate it is working effectively to resolve the finding;
• the efforts made by the Applicant including implementation of management systems, to ensure no further finding/s occur; and
• whether, since the finding, the Applicant has had a satisfactory level of compliance with relevant Environmental and Safety Laws and Workplace Laws.

Sustainability Victoria may conduct due diligence checks on the Project Partners involved in the delivery of the project. The Applicant must ensure that any Project Partners agree to cooperate with this requirement and will provide information at Sustainability Victoria's request.

Sustainability Victoria reserves the right not to award funding to Applicants where the due diligence risk (including that of Project Partners) is unsatisfactory or not able to be managed.

4. Funding conditions

Successful applicants approved for funding must do the following.

4.1 Before starting the project

• Participate in an inception meeting to discuss the project and funding agreement.
• Agree to realistic evidence-based and performance-based milestone payments.
• Provide Sustainability Victoria with insurance certificates of currency.
• Sign Sustainability Victoria's funding agreement within 30 days of approval.
• Provide a project plan and signed Memorandum of understanding with Lead Industry and/or Lead Project Partners.
• If you receive funding of more than $250,000, plan for capital works signage.

4.2 During and after the project

• Deliver the project as outlined in the application and comply with the funding agreement.
• Contribute to regular project progress updates or meetings.
• Provide evidence of funding expenditure and performance at agreed milestones.
• Notify Sustainability Victoria immediately about any delay or change to the project.
• Provide updated reports to Sustainability Victoria at agreed milestones with evidence of expenditure, progress and performance
• Provide adequate monitoring and evaluation of the project according to the funding agreement.
• Collect and provide baseline and ongoing project outcome and evaluation data to Sustainability Victoria.
• Provide Sustainability Victoria with high-level reports, case studies and data, excluding commercial-in-confidence research findings (Non-Confidential Project Intellectual Property) for general publication
• Contribute to the project’s promotional activities (for example, provide Sustainability Victoria with support by reviewing and approving written stories or videos).
• Participate in and contribute to Sustainability Victoria activities to distribute the findings to broader stakeholders (for example, government and industry).
• Acknowledge that Sustainability Victoria has contributed funding in all communications related to the project.
• Make efforts to commercialise the research findings developed as a result of the project (Confidential Project Intellectual Property) over a 3-year period after completing the final milestone. Commercialisation activities will be reviewed annually for up to 3 years by Sustainability Victoria and if the Project Intellectual Property is not satisfactorily commercialised, the applicant will make the Project Intellectual Property available to Sustainability Victoria for broader publication.

5. Timeline

Dates may change.

There is no date for announcement. We will provide applicants with updates as much as possible and when necessary.

Applications open: 21 April 2022

Information session: 9 May 2022

Applications close: 2 June 2022 

Notification of outcome: September 2022 

Funding agreements established: November 2022 

Projects commenced by: November 2022 

Project completed by: April 2024 .

6. How to apply

Before applying, we recommend you attend an information session.

The grant program involves a competitive, merit-based application process.

1. Ensure that your organisation can apply.
2. Ensure that your project meets the criteria for funding.
3. Read Sustainability Victoria’s funding agreement. You must meet the terms and conditions to ensure funding. Where applicable, you should ensure a representative from your legal department has read and is comfortable with the terms and conditions prior to submitting your application. For any questions regarding terms and conditions, please include these in your application.
   1. For grants $50,000 or less read the Short-form grant funding agreement.
   2. For grants more than $50,000 read the General grant funding agreement.
4. Read Sustainability Victoria’s Terms of participation in grant programs.
5. Create an account and start your application on the SmartyGrants website.
6. Submit your application by 11:59 pm, 2 June 2022. Late applications will not be accepted except under exceptional circumstances.

Your application

• Allow adequate time to plan, research, gather supporting documentation and draft your application.
• As this is a competitive grant, we cannot review drafts or provide feedback.
• You must use SmartyGrants, unless you have written permission from Sustainability Victoria.

7. Assistance available

7.1 Information session

There will be one information session held online. An information bulletin will be available after the session.

7.2 Contact us

We cannot review drafts or provide feedback.

Phone: +61 3 8656 6757 Monday to Friday, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

Email: grants.enquiries@sustainability.vic.gov.au

In the subject line, use the grant name Recycling Victoria - Markets Acceleration Fund – Materials: Stream 1 – Research, Development and Demonstration.

8. Why the Victorian Government is providing this funding

This fund is released as part of the Victorian Government’s Recycling Victoria policy and represents the Government’s plan to establish a recycling system Victorians can rely on, and the need to invest in market development for recycled materials.

Key Commitment 8.1 of the policy is to increase the use of recycled materials. The $30.46 million Recycling Markets Acceleration Package is being delivered under this commitment, in partnership between Sustainability Victoria, the EPA and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning.

As part of this package, Sustainability Victoria is delivering the Markets Acceleration Program to drive demand for recycled materials across the economy by supporting the development of innovative products and improving market confidence in recycled products. This fund is a component of this program.

9. Definitions

Applicant

The applicant who applies for the funding and is responsible for all details in the submission of an application and the contractual obligations under the funding agreement with Sustainability Victoria if successful for grant funding.

Co-contribution

The Applicant’s required cash or in-kind contribution to the total project income.

Collaborative Partnership

A relationship established between a Lead Applicant and Project Partner/s for the purposes of meeting common project objectives and outcomes. Collaborative Partnerships need to be demonstrated by a formal agreement between the partners that outlines the governance, financial and intellectual property arrangements and roles and responsibilities of each party. A formal agreement must either be in place or be finalised before commencement of the project.

Commercialisation

The process through which R&D is transformed into marketable products, capital gains, income from licences and/or revenue from the sale of new product or processing approach.

Demonstration

A practical exhibition and explanation of how something works or performs in a real-world application. Demonstration projects must use existing R&D and/or credible evidence for experimentation outside of the laboratory environment and prototype manufacture, supporting the products pathway to commercialisation. Demonstration projects will provide information on a product/ process performance, constructability, cost-effectiveness, environmental impacts, occupational health and safety and technical specifications.

Direct Jobs

Actual new full-time positions created by your business. This can include training or upskilling of employees who would otherwise be made redundant through the implementation of your project.

Environmental and Safety Laws

Environmental and safety laws are the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004, Environment Protection Act 2017 or any other legislation, regulation, order, statute, by-law, ordinance or any other legislative or regulatory measure, code, standard or requirement relating to the protection and safety of persons or property or which regulate the environment including laws relating to land use planning, pollution of air or water, soil or groundwater contamination, chemicals, waste, the use, handling, storage or transport of dangerous goods or substances, greenhouse gas emissions, carbon trading, or any other aspect of protection of the environment.

Environmental, Safety or Workplace Breach

An environmental or safety breach is any past or current prosecution, reportable incident, investigation, notice, penalty, warning, regulatory intervention or enforcement action from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA), Victorian WorkCover Authority (WorkSafe) or Fair Work or failure to comply with any environmental, safety and workplace laws.

Full-Time Equivalent Employees (FTE)

The hours worked by one employee on a full-time basis.

Calculating FTE

The calculation is used to convert the hours worked by several part-time employees into the hours worked by full-time employees. For example, you have three employees working the following - 40, 40 and 20 hours per week, giving you 100 hours per week in total.

Assuming full-time hours are 40 hours per week, your full-time equivalent calculation is 100 hours divided by 40 hours which equals 2.5 FTE.

Indirect Jobs

Jobs created by other businesses that come into existence due to the economic growth of your business.

Industry Partner

Is any organisation listed below operating in or representing manufacturers seeking to use recycled priority materials in a product or a process including through the development of specifications and standards.

These include:

• government
• industry association or peak body
• commercial/for-profit business
• not-for-profit or a social enterprise.

An Industry Partner is any organisation assisting in the delivery of the Lead Applicant’s research project. There is no requirement for any minimum length of operation for Industry Partners. All Industry Partners must have a current Australian Business Number (ABN).

Industry Partners who are not listed as the Lead Industry Partner do not need to have operations in Victoria.

In-kind Contribution

An in-kind contribution is a contribution of a good or a service other than cash.

In-kind contributions should include the cost for activities that are directly related to delivering your project. Examples include:

• staff time to manage project implementation (project management and installation costs that utilise existing internal resources);
• time spent on project activities by volunteers; and
• donated goods or services related to the project.

The following activities cannot be considered as in-kind contributions:

• operating expenses that are not directly associated with delivering the project; and
• opportunity costs such as staff ‘downtime’ during the installation of equipment or implementation of activities.

Applicants must fairly justify how they determined the dollar value for in-kind contributions.

Innovative

An Innovation is something new, different, or better, that creates value. It may be the first of its kind, inspired by others’ solutions, or copied. For this grant program, it must not have been done before in Victoria.

Lead Applicant

The listed applicant for the purposes of a Collaborative Partnership. The Lead Applicant will be responsible for all details in the submission of an application and the contractual obligations under the funding agreement with Sustainability Victoria if successful for grant funding. The Lead Applicant is also responsible for managing the project outcomes and deliverables of the Collaborative Partnership.

Lead Industry Partner

 If the project has more than one Industry Partner, the Lead Applicant must nominate a Lead Industry Partner. The Lead Industry Partner, can be defined as above under ‘Industry Partner.’ The nominated Lead Industry Partner must contribute a minimum of 20% of the co-contribution for the research project and provide evidence of partnership (i.e. MoU or similar agreement). For any additional Industry Partner(s) evidence of partnership is required such as a letter of support. The Lead Industry Partner must have a current Australian Business Number (ABN) and have operations in Victoria. There is no requirement for any minimum length of operation for Lead Industry Partners.

Not-for-Profit (NFP)

An organisation that provides services to the community and does not operate to make a profit for its members (or shareholders, if applicable).

Operations in Victoria

To be eligible to apply for funding the Lead Applicant and its Lead Industry Partner must have an office or staff permanently based in Victoria.

Process

Includes investigating the feasibility of an innovative process that increases the use of recycled priority materials. This can include a series of operations or steps to change a recovered material or reprocessing system such as melting, extruding or crushing to enable the material to be used in the manufacture of a new product. It does not include separation, collection or sorting equipment or infrastructure.

Product validation

Activities aimed at confirming or verifying a product meets its intended use and needs of its users, including performance against relevant standards and/or specifications. For this fund, it includes activities related to proving the technical qualities and performance of a product or process including environmental product declarations, life cycle analysis, testing to Australia (AS) and International (ISO) standards and/or certifying to achieve accreditation for recycled products.

Project Partner/s

An organisation/s in a Collaborative Partnership with a Lead Applicant that have a critical role in the project and a formal commitment to delivering the support required to ensure the project’s success.

Recycled Content

Waste material that has been recovered, reprocessed and recycled in the creation of a new product. Waste materials include those:

• diverted from the waste stream during a manufacturing process
• or after use by households, businesses or industrial facilities.

Recycled Product

Any product that incorporates a percentage of waste material that has been recovered, reprocessed and recycled (see Recycled content).

Related Entities

Entities which are related to the Applicant, including:

• Holding companies of the Applicant
• Subsidiaries of the Applicant
• Subsidiaries of holding companies of the Applicant
• Companies with common directors or shareholders as the Applicant
• Companies that are a beneficiary under a trust of which the Applicant is a trustee
• Trustees of a trust under which the Applicant is a beneficiary
• Companies that conduct business at the same address as the Applicant, or the same address as the location of the activity for which the funding is sought

Research and Development (R&D)

R&D activity is generally considered to be characterised by originality. The primary objective is investigation with the outcome being new knowledge with a specific practical application, or new or improved materials, products, or processes. R&D ends when work is no longer primarily investigative. For this Fund, the following R&D activities related to the recycled priority materials include:

• product design and development, including life cycle analysis and prototype manufacture
• investigating new or altering existing processing or manufacturing technology
• laboratory testing to validate a product or process.

Research Institute 

An organisation that can carry out R&D activities as defined in the R&D definition above. A research institute can be a tertiary education institution, a government agency established for the purpose of research, a Cooperative Research Centre, an Institute or Centre for Research or a privately owned and accredited research facility, that is based in Victoria. Consultancies are not considered to be research institutes for the purposes of this grant program.

Social Enterprise

A social enterprise is a business that trades to intentionally tackle social problems, improve communities, provide people access to employment and training, or help the environment.

They:

• are driven by a public or community cause, be it social, environmental, cultural or economic
• derive most of their income from trade, not donations or grants
• use the majority (at least 50%) of their profits to work towards their social mission.

Workplace Laws

Workplace laws are the Fair Work Act 2009, or any other legislation, regulation order, statute, by-law, ordinance or any other legislative or regulatory measure, code, standard or requirement relating to the provision of fair, relevant and enforceable minimum terms and conditions for all persons and to prevent discrimination against employees.