To lead a project as a solution provider your organisation must be a UK registered:

• micro, small or medium sized enterprise
• academic institution
• research and technology organisation (RTO)
• community interest company (CIC) or charity
• subcontractors are allowed in this competition

Subcontractors can be from anywhere in the UK and you must select them through your usual procurement process.

Your project must:

• have a grant funding request of up to £25,000
• last for three months
• must end by 31st March 2027

Any funded organisation needs to carry out their project work in the UK and must intend to exploit the project results from or in the UK.

• Launch of the Competition: 28 April 2026
• Deadline for applications: 5 June 2026
• Selection and notification of finalists: 22-23 June 2026
• Pitch Day: 9 July 2026
• Confirm selected solution provider by: 17 July 2026
• Submission to Innovation Funding Service (IFS): 5 August 2026
• Project length: 3 months

The winning applicant, as selected by the company, will then be eligible to apply for £25,000 grant funding to kickstart the development of the proposed solution through a 3-month project.

Selected solutions will be trialled by Tata Steel with potential for further adoption if trials are successful.

Existing background IP associated with a potential solution will remain with Solution Provider(s). Where any new IP generation is envisaged, it will be subject to the mutual IP agreement of the solution provider(s) and challenge holder.

Any commercial deployment of a transferred solution or newly developed solution, through licensing, joint venture, partnership, or direct investment, will be subject to the commercial agreement between the solution provider(s) and challenge holder.

Where necessary, a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) may be signed to uphold confidentiality in the engagement between the solution provider(s) and challenge holder. (This would be expected to be after company selection, it is suggested that details of IP be not disclosed, focus on the outcomes of the technology proposed).

Innovate UK and Innovate UK Business Connect do not take any share of IP ownership or enter commercial ventures through the iX programme.

Functional Requirements

The solution must / should:

Sampling & Material Handling

• Extract representative samples (50–10,000 kg) suitable for manual inspection and 1–10 t melting trials
• Capture material during or immediately following unloading, or via controlled material flow (e.g. loading shovels, conveyors, hoppers)
• Batch sizes will vary from 500kg small loading shovel, 25t lorry load to multiple 1500t trains per day
• Handle large, irregular scrap geometries without introducing new hazards

Operational Performance

• Avoid bottlenecks and maintain unloading throughput
• Operate safely around rotating container discharge, mobile plant, heavy vehicles, and lifting equipment
• Enable repeatable, consistent sampling across deliveries and various batch sizes
• Be suitable for outdoor use, with equipment that is weather‑resistant / protected from rain, dust, vibration, and temperature extremes
• Safe around heavy vehicles and lifting equipment

Scalability & Deployment

• Be scalable across different unloading or stockyard configurations
• Allow integration with downstream inspection, segregation, or digital characterisation workflows
• Support manual to semi‑automatic or fully‑automatic operation

Technical Requirements

The solution must / should:

• Take representative cross‑sections of bulk heterogeneous scrap
• Avoid bias toward size, density, geometry, or material type
• Produce samples compatible with requirements for melting‑scale testing 1-10t
• Function reliably in dusty, wet, high‑vibration outdoor stockyard conditions
• Be mechanically robust, low‑maintenance, and operator‑friendly
• 50kg -10t samples need to be provided in suitable containers for handling with forklift or other mechanical handling equipment
• Be ideally TRL 6+, with a clear path to field trials and near‑term deployment.
• Concept ideas and designs below TRL 6 can be considered.

Operating Conditions

The solution must / should:

• Operate safely and reliably in outdoor scrap‑yard environments, withstanding exposure to rain, dust, vibration, high noise levels, and variable temperatures.
• Equipment should be self‑contained to enable flexible deployment within the stockyard.
• Be capable of assessing predominantly shredded steel scrap with a top size of ~100 mm, alternative method may be needed for larger scrap items up to 2.5 m in length.
• Samples obtained should be between 50kg and 10t
• Process must not interrupt or delay scrap‑handling operations.
• Operate in areas where space approx. 20*20m alternative sizes can be considered
• Comply with all Tata Steel site safety requirements, including permits, operating rules, and mandatory PPE (gloves, helmets, visors, hearing protection, etc.).
• Any onsite work must be done via site approved contractor or appropriate supervision process
• Make use of reasonable support that can be provided on site, including access to mobile plant and other required services.

The application form for this challenge will require applicants to provide company information and answer 3 questions – Idea Summary, Technology Readiness and Intellectual Property – each with a limit of 300 words.

Additionally, the following documents must be attached for your application to be considered:

• Project plan
• Project costings – only eligible costs will be funded, please read the Innovate UK Costs guidance for further information

We recommend that you complete the application form in Google Chrome as other browsers may have compatibility issues. The application form does not need to be completed in one session and can be saved for future edits. Please ensure that you toggle “Stage Complete” for each section before submission. Note that you will no longer be able to edit your application once you have clicked “Submit Idea” at the bottom of the Summary page.