Government grants

Enterprise Connect

This is an Australian Government initiative that supports small businesses. There are two types of funding available:

1. Researchers in Business Grant
This supports the placement of researchers from universities or public research agencies into businesses, to help develop and implement a new idea with commercial potential. Enterprise Connect will provide you with funding for up to 50 per cent of salary costs, to a maximum of $50,000, for each placement for between two and 12 months.

2. Tailored Advisory Service (TAS) Grant
The TAS grant gives you the chance to engage a consultant/s to make the improvements that your Enterprise Connect Business Adviser recommended in your Business Review. Enterprise Connect will reimburse your business half the cost, up to a maximum of $20,000 (excluding GST), of engaging the consultant/s.

To be eligible for a Business Review, all businesses must:

• Possess an Australian Company Number (ACN) or, in the case of Remote Enterprise small and medium sized business, an Australian Business Number (ABN)
• Meet the relevant turnover or expenditure thresholds
• Be solvent
• Have filed Business Activity Statements for at least three consecutive years
• Operate in one of the following sectors or regions:
  • Manufacturing or manufacturing-related services
  • Resources technology
  • Defence
  • Clean technology
  • Creative industries
  • Remote Australia
• Not have received an equivalent Business Review service, that provides a holistic analysis of the business, from another government (Australian, state or territory or local) program within the last three calendar years
• Comply with its obligations under the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act 1999 (EOWWA). Companies on the current list of non-compliant organisations, available at www.eowa.gov.au are not eligible to apply. Note: The EOWWA currently applies to organisations with 100 or more employees

DEEDI – Jobs Assist

Jobs assist is an initiative of the Queensland State Government’s Department of Employment Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI).

The program provides assistance and support to help businesses to help themselves to protect jobs in order to ensure that the Queensland economy is in a strong position to take advantage of future growth. It focuses on providing strong support for businesses that have been identified as financially vulnerable and require support services.

Jobs Assist will provide support to vulnerable businesses with 10 or more full time equivalent employees (FTEs) within the Priority Employment Areas identified by the Federal Government under the Keep Australia Working strategy or to businesses in other areas with 10 or more FTEs that are in key sectors considered to be critical or strategic to the State, region or industry.

Support is provided in two stages:

Stage 1 will provide up to $3,000 to engage a consultant to conduct a complete business assessment of your business and develop an Action Plan to address all strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats including deficiencies in the working capital, and effectiveness of the business’s reporting process. The Action Plan will also include strategies and actions to support and improve the business.

Stage 2 will provide up to $5,000 to guide and support the implementation of the activities identified as immediate priority tasks in the Action Plan and can include:

• Funding for the engagement of a specialist selected from the consultant database to provide mentoring and support while you implement the priority tasks identified in the action plan
• Funding for all, or a contribution towards a State and/or Federal support or training program that has been identified as an immediate priority task in the action plan

Funding for other support services identified as immediate priority tasks in the action plan. This can occur through the engagement of business experts who can design / develop strategies or processes required and provide support during the implementation process.

Eligibility:

1. You must be one of the following:
   • Located within a Priority Employment Area under the Federal Government’s Keep Australia Working Strategy
   • Fall within a key industry category and be considered of critical or strategic importance to the state, region, industry or in a significant sectoral supply chain
2. Be experiencing one of the following:
   • There is a variation in working capital that is negative and has declined by more than 25% between the two points in time ie. 30 June 2009 and the most recent reporting period, or
   • The business begins the two point period with negative working capital and remains in that position at the end of the two point period
3. Employ 10 or more FTEs
4. Have an established operating base in Queensland
5. Have an ABN (registered in QLD) and be registered for GST

QMI Solutions

QMI Solutions is a not for profit organisation dedicated to helping develop manufacturing industry excellence through research, education and the implementation of world class practices and technologies. QMI offers a number of fully and partly subsidised programs through each of its operating units. The programs include:

1. The Best Practice Support Project (BPSP) which provides a 50% subsidy for eligible companies to engage a manufacturing specialist for up to 25 days to help adopt or investigate a new technology or process that will improve the effectiveness of the business. It is aimed at companies who are serious about initiating intensive continuous improvement programs
2. The Major Projects Supplier Program (MPSP) fully subsidises the cost for a consultant to facilitate a diagnostic test that will assess your company’s readiness to engage with the principals on major infrastructure projects and develop an action plan to improve your supply chain capability
3. The Enterprise Development Program (EDP) provides a fully subsidised analysis of the People, Process and Culture issues in the business and an action plan to address any issues that are identified

Each program has a set of criteria that must be met for eligibility however, in most instances, Queensland based, small to medium businesses in manufacturing or the manufacturing supply chain are likely to qualify.