Basic Equipment for Research Themes in Chemical Focus Areas (BAZIS)

BAZIS is the Dutch acronym for Basic Equipment for Research Themes in Chemical Focus Areas (zwaartepunten). The grant is intended for requests for workhorse equipment to strengthen a Research Theme in a Chemical Focus Area (zwaartepunt) as defined in the Sector Plan Physics and Chemistry. The BAZIS grant will enable a rectification to the shortfall in equipment, something that is both very desirable and necessary within chemistry. Unlike Investment Subsidy NWO Medium, no matching of the institutions will be requested.

The M€ 6 per year with which CW will implement the Sector Plan Physics and Chemistry will be – next to the usual free competition (TOP, ECHO and Investment Subsidy NWO Medium) - spent as follows:

In 2010-2011 and 2011-2012:

BAZIS grants (Basic Equipment Critical Areas In Chemistry) for ‘workhorse’ equipment. You will find further information about this grant in this brochure.

In 2011-2012 and 2012-2013:

ECHO-STIP grants (Excellent Chemical Research – Sector Plan Indirect Government Funding Newcomers Project). With this grant, CW will create a low threshold entry point to indirect government funding aimed at new professors who submit an outstanding project proposal within the critical areas of the Sector Plan. Four million euro per year will be available for this.

In 2013-2014 and 2014-2015:

TOP-PUNT grants for further strengthening the critical areas from the Sector Plan. This grant can be applied for by professors/teams of professors who are working in the critical areas at the chemistry departments of the Physics and Chemistry Sector institutes. Eight million euro per year will be available for this on top of the normal TOP/ECHO free competition. This will enable further strengthening of the critical areas.

Further information about the last two grant instruments will be published later via the NWO-CW website: www.nwo.nl/cw

Who can apply

Applicants should state under which focus area their proposal falls. In this round only one BAZIS proposal can be submitted per focus area. The proposal should be submitted by a legitimate representative of the institute(s) to which the focus area belongs. The proposal should include a list of the group leaders from the research groups of the focus area who will use the equipment applied for.

No similar proposal from the same Research Theme in Chemical Focus Area may be submitted in the Investment Subsidy NWO Medium funding round for 2011-2012.

Focus areas to which a BAZIS grant was awarded in the previous funding round (2010-2011) may not apply for a BAZIS grant again.

What can be applied for

BAZIS grants are for an amount between € 100,000 and € 1,000,000. No cofunding is requested from the institute. The application can consist of one piece of workhorse equipment or a package of workhorse equipment. The equipment must clearly contribute to strengthening the zwaartepunt. If a package of equipment is applied for then you should list the equipment in order of priority.

Only the acquisition costs of the equipment applied for are fundable.

When can be applied

• Closing date for submitting applications was 31 August 2011, 17:00 hrs.

Extra Information

Applications are submitted via the electronic application system Iris. To gain access to the Iris system you must request an access code via the NWO website [www.iris.nwo.nl]. Further information about Iris can be found on the NWO website. For technical questions please contact the Iris helpdesk (iris@nwo.nl, tel. +31 900 696 4747).

Only complete applications submitted on time and which fall under ‘What can be applied for’ (see Section 3.2 of the call for proposals) will be processed.

Criteria

BAZIS grant proposals will be evaluated against the following criteria:

I Importance of equipment for the Research Theme in Chemical Focus Area

This covers the following aspects:

• The need/urgency of the investment for the Research Theme in Chemical Focus Area. To what extent is the equipment necessary for strengthening the critical area/the continuation of the research within the critical area? (e.g. in view of the equipment already present);
• Effectiveness of the investment. What is the relationship between the size of the investment and the number of users and/or usage? What is the expected utilisation rate of the equipment?;
• When a set of equipment is applied for, you should list the equipment in order of importance. For each piece of equipment (or coherent set of equipment) you should discuss the need/urgency and effectiveness on the application form.

II Financial/technical criteria

For this last criterion the application will be assessed for:

• Soundness of the budget;
• The extent to which the accommodation and maintenance of the investment are safeguarded;
• The extent to which the investment is embedded in a satisfactory infrastructure;
• The extent to which replacement/modernisation are anticipated in the future;
• The extent to which the continuity of the investment is safeguarded after the grant period.

Procedure

In a written assessment round the members of the selection committee assess each application submitted. After this written assessment round the applicants are given the opportunity to respond to the questions of the selection committee.

During an evaluation meeting, the selection committee shall then discuss each application submitted. The application and the applicant's responses to the questions posed provide the basis for the committee’s final assessment. The committee supplies the application with a reasoned assessment supported by figures. It then ranks the proposal. Each of the evaluation criteria are assessed separately.

The selection committee then advises the divisional board about the research proposals submitted to it.

Based on this advice and the funds available, the divisional board then decides which proposals will be funded. The Chemical Sciences Divisional Board reserves the right to require an application to be shortened or amended on scientific, policy or budgetary grounds as a condition for a possible award.

Committees

The applications for the BAZIS grant will be assessed by CW’s NWO Investment Subsidy Medium committee. The composition of the committee will be announced after the conclusion of the BAZIS round.

Budget

The budget for the BAZIS subsidy round 2011/2012 is 3 million euro.

Financiers

NWO Division for Chemical Sciences

Contacts

• Cynthia Markus MSc
  phone: +31 (0)70-3494 438, e-mail: c.markus@nwo.nl