Any small and medium-sized manufacturing businesses in the East of England (Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire)
Made Smarter Adoption East of England
The Made Smarter Adoption programme connects manufacturers in the East of England to digital tools, innovations, and skills that can revolutionise their operations.
Made Smarter Adoption East of England aims to drive growth among the region’s manufacturing businesses and contribute to advancing the UK economy by fostering the development and adoption of cutting-edge technologies.
Start Your JourneyWhat’s on offer in the East of England?
Specialist Advice and Support
Digital Transformation Specialists will assess each business that registers with the programme to ensure that they receive the specialist support they need.
The next stage in your journey will bring in manufacturing specialists to help businesses develop a digital roadmap, followed by intensive business support to support industrial digital technology adoption.
Grant Funding
Up to 50% match funding (Maximum of £20,000) is available for equipment and/or specialist advice to implement projects
Guidance on creating an effective digital roadmap to ensure the technology is taking your business in the right direction.
Organisational & Workforce Development Specialists
Operational Managers can access specialist help through a cohort approach supporting them to deliver any workforce and organisational opportunities identified in your roadmap to help fulfil your industrial digital technology journey
Join cohorts of fellow industrial peers to network, overcome barriers to growth and ultimately share best practice borne out of different sub-sectors.
Leadership & Management Training Couse
We would like to invite senior business leaders to take part in this exclusive course tailored to digital adoption in manufacturing. The programme is free of charge.
Internships
Empower the next generation of engineers and managers by partnering with top academic institutions to provide exceptional internship opportunities for engineering and computer science undergraduates.
The expected timeline for grant applications
- Initial Call with your local Growth Hub
A quick 30–60 minute call to explore your needs and opportunities. We’ll then be able to recommend joining the Made Smarter programme or point you to other support that’s right for you. - Map your path forward
A Made Smarter advisor will work with you to create a digital roadmap. This usually takes 3–4 days, but we can spread it out over a few weeks if that suits you better. - Apply for grant funding
Once we have scoped out your project, we will support you to apply for grant funding. This stage can take anywhere from a day to a month—depending on your experience with funding applications. - Application review
Your application will be sent for due diligence checks and presented for panel decision. This takes about 4–8 weeks. - Funding approval
Once your grant has been approved, the project can begin.
Please note this timeline can change.
Made Smarter Adoption in the East of England
Case Studies - Our impact as told by our clients