Made Smarter Adoption North East
Supports Tees Valley manufacturers through advisory and equipment grants after digital workshops.
Made Smarter Adoption North East is a UK government-backed programme supporting small and medium-sized manufacturers in the Tees Valley and wider North East to adopt digital technologies. Delivered regionally by the Tees Valley Combined Authority and the North East Growth Hub, the programme operates as a national DBT Made Smarter initiative. It provides two tiers of grant support: advisory grants of up to £3,500 for accessing specialist technical advice, and equipment and software grants of up to £20,000 covering up to 50% of total costs. Both grant tiers are only available after the applicant has completed all three mandatory programme workshops.
Eligibility is restricted to SME manufacturers — service businesses are not eligible. The three workshops, which must all be completed before any grant becomes accessible, cover Business and Digitalisation Strategy, Lean Thinking and Process Mapping, and Change and Project Management. These workshops address common manufacturing pain points including machine downtime, difficulty meeting customer demand, manual task delays, and insufficient data for decision-making. The programme targets businesses that need to develop a digital roadmap and build capability to implement industrial digital technologies such as automation, IoT, and data analytics. Advisory and equipment grants are subject to budget availability.
The programme is accessed via TVCA's business growth support pages. Prospective applicants should contact TVCA or the North East Growth Hub to enrol in the workshop sequence. Manufacturers who complete all three workshops and have a clearly scoped digital technology investment will be in the strongest position to access grant funding. Given that grants are subject to availability and the workshop completion requirement, early engagement with the programme is advisable for businesses intending to claim in the current funding cycle.
Digital technology adoption by SME manufacturers in the Tees Valley and North East, including advisory support and grants toward digital equipment and software.
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