Australia: Made in Queensland Program (Round 6)

The MIQ Program is aimed at supporting existing manufacturing jobs and creating new jobs of the future in Queensland manufacturing businesses and in the state’s supply chains, to grow Queensland’s economy. Applications from manufacturers supporting the Queensland Government’s Critical Industries are encouraged.

Objectives

The objectives of MIQ (Program Objectives) are to support the Queensland Government’s objectives for the community, Advance Queensland Priorities and the Department’s Strategic Direction by:

• increasing the productivity, profitability and international competitiveness of Queensland-based manufacturing SMEs
• encouraging Queensland-based manufacturing SMEs to become Advanced Manufacturers by adopting industry leading equipment, technologies, processes and systems
• supporting traditional manufacturing jobs and creating the new high-skilled manufacturing jobs of the future.

Funding Information

Grants are available:

• between $50,000 to $2.5 million (excluding GST) per grant.

Eligible Projects

• To be an Eligible Project, the project must:
  • be consistent with the Program Objectives
  • be for one or both of the following industry leading activities
• implementing advanced robotics and/or Industry 4.0 and/or 5.0 equipment, that demonstrates it will enable the applicant’s products/processes and markets to be different from those of its Queensland manufacturing competitors
• implementing a sector-relevant technology, system or process
• be designed to achieve significant business transformation (i.e. not duplication of the applicant’s existing equipment or system updates) that embraces Industry 4.0 and/or 5.0 (e.g. digitisation, interconnected factory, big data analytics)
• demonstrate expected outcomes, such as productivity, profitability and international competitiveness improvements, for the applicant’s existing business activities
• have a project site address in Queensland
• be able to be completed within 12 months of execution of a Funding Agreement
• not have commenced, and not be scheduled to commence, until after a Funding Agreement has been executed

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for an MIQ grant, an applicant must be one standalone entity or a group of entities:

• is a Queensland-based business whose principal activity and majority annual turnover is derived from manufacturing, as defined under Division C of the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) 2006
• is registered for GST and holds an active Australian Business Number (ABN)
• operates independently and has control of its own corporate governance and decision making
• is an SME with between five and 200 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees. A minimum of five FTE employees must be located in Queensland
• owns the existing equipment used in its manufacturing operations and will own any equipment to be purchased under the proposed Eligible Project
• has the financial capacity and standing necessary to successfully undertake and complete the proposed Eligible Project recognising that grant payments are made in arrears
• accepts that the Department may require security over any or all of Eligible Project items for the duration of up to seven years.

For more information, visit Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water.