Materials Innovation Programme Digital Materials Sandpit
Materials Innovation Programme Digital Materials Sandpit supports researchers and innovators developing collaborative digital materials projects to accelerate research translation and industrial adoption.
Funder: UK Research and Innovation
Due Dates: November 26, 2026, 4:00pm UK time (EOI) | Week commencing March 22, 2027 (Full application, expected)
Funding Amounts: £7,125,000 total fund; three to eight projects lasting up to 33 months; 80% of full economic cost
Summary: Supports collaborative projects integrating digital approaches to accelerate materials research translation and industrial adoption.
Key Information: Selected participants must attend the entire residential sandpit and online introduction; attendance does not guarantee funding.
Description
UK Research and Innovation’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) runs this four-day sandpit as part of the National Materials Innovation Programme. It brings together multidisciplinary researchers, innovators, technology developers, end users and problem owners to develop collaborative projects advancing Materials 4.0: a connected digital ecosystem spanning materials discovery, development, scale-up, deployment and end-of-life recovery.
The programme targets barriers including fragmented materials data, inconsistent metadata, unclear provenance, quality metrics and interoperability. Relevant approaches include data stewardship, digital twins, automation, artificial intelligence, advanced characterisation, manufacturing and systems integration. The aim is to identify high-impact interventions, reduce duplication and accelerate industrial adoption of materials innovations at lower cost and with improved sustainability. Projects emerge through intensive collaboration and real-time peer review during the sandpit.
