UK electronics firms receive invite to apply for funding

According to a statement, the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) will contribute up to €4m (£3.4) and the European Commission will provide additional support up to €2m to co-fund participation by UK companies.

This is part of a larger European ERA-NET Plus competition with total funding of up to €18.2m. The funding competition opens on 24 October 2011 and first-stage applications must be submitted by 31 January 2012.

Organic and large area electronics (also known as plastic electronics, printed electronics or organic electronics) allow electronic circuits and devices to be produced using relatively low-cost printing processes onto any surface over large areas.

The TSB believes it will lead to the creation of whole new generations of products, such as conformable and roll-able electronic display screens, large-area efficient lighting, low-cost solar cells, low-cost radio frequency identification (RFID) and memories, plus flexible and environmentally friendly batteries.

The global market value for OLAE technology is reportedly forecast to increase from a little more than €1bn today to more than €200bn by 2027.