Digitally enabled local-for-local textile and apparel production (Textiles for the Future Partnership) (IA)

The grant opportunity titled "Digitally enabled local-for-local textile and apparel production (Textiles for the Future Partnership) (IA)" is part of the Horizon Europe Programme and aims to support the modernization of the textile industry in the EU through digital innovation and sustainable practices. Eligible applicants include small and medium-sized enterprises, start-ups, larger companies, and consortia comprising partners from at least two EU countries, preferably involving advanced technology providers and end-market-facing companies.

The funding type is primarily a grant provided under the Horizon Europe’s Innovation Actions framework, specifically utilizing a lump sum model. The call requires consortia to demonstrate collaborative international efforts, focusing primarily on EU member states and associated countries, while also encouraging international partnerships.

The grant aims to tackle challenges in the textile and apparel sector by promoting digitalization, sustainability, and local production, facilitating innovations that can help reduce reliance on offshoring practices that currently dominate textile manufacturing. The focus includes advanced manufacturing, circular economy practices, and the utilization of sustainable materials.

Proposals may include small-scale demonstrations and pilot projects targeting advanced manufacturing processes, creating seamless data flows, using local renewable materials, and establishing micro-factories. Innovative business models emphasizing consumer value and sustainability are also encouraged.

Each project may receive funding in the range of €200,000 to €1 million, with specific financial support for third-party beneficiaries capped at €60,000. The application process involves a single stage with an opening date of May 22, 2025, and a submission deadline of September 23, 2025.

Success rates for these types of grants typically range from 10% to 39%, and a co-funding requirement of 30% from beneficiaries is expected. The initiative aligns with broader EU strategies in sustainability and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions within the textile sector. Overall, the grant promotes collaboration between SMEs and technology providers to foster an innovative, resilient, and environmentally responsible textile industry in Europe.

This EU funding opportunity focuses on digitally enabled local-for-local textile and apparel production, operating under the Textiles for the Future Partnership. It falls under the Horizon Europe Programme, specifically the INDUSTRY (HORIZON-CL4-2025-01) call. The action type is HORIZON-IA (Innovation Actions) with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] Model Grant Agreement. The call is currently open for submission with a single-stage deadline model. The opening date was May 22, 2025, and the deadline is September 23, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The primary expected outcome is to demonstrate the economic viability of local on-demand production of fashion and complex textile products, targeting professional or public end markets. This involves integrating advanced digital technologies across the entire product lifecycle, from creation and production to distribution, use, and end-of-life. The initiative aims to accelerate the adoption of these technologies by European textile and fashion SMEs and increase the share of re- or near-shored production of time-critical textile products. These products should be made in socially and environmentally responsible ways, including the use of recycled materials, to contribute to the mitigation of GHG emissions.

The scope of the funding opportunity addresses the current state where up to 80% of textiles and apparel consumed in Europe are manufactured outside the continent, taking advantage of lower labor costs and lax environmental, health, and labor regulations. This offshoring has stifled textile manufacturing technology innovation in Europe, resulting in complex, long-lead time supply chains and unnecessary waste due to overproduction and unsold goods. Digitalization in product development, production, and on-demand supply chains offers a solution by reducing overproduction and enabling competitive business models for rapid, short-run, or single-piece production, along with repair and recycling services. These considerations align with the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, which identifies textiles as a priority for a sustainable policy framework emphasizing durability, recyclability, repairability, and recycled content.

Proposals should address at least one of the following activities:

1. Small-scale demonstration, experimentation, or piloting of approaches, processes, or technologies for:

Complex manufacturing operations: Including yarn or fabric production and final product assembly that surpass state-of-the-art processes like digital garment printing.
Seamless interoperable data flows and transparency: Aiming to minimize waste, shorten time to market, and build trust between supply chain partners and end-users.
Valorization of local renewable raw materials: Utilizing bio-based or recycled materials and regional production capacities for the shortest time to market and lowest environmental footprint.
Micro-factories: Flexibly combining small-scale local production, repair, and re- and de-manufacturing operations.

2. Uptake of innovative service-driven business models that maximize consumer value creation and lower total cost of ownership from high-quality, long-lasting products.

All proposals must include a business case and exploitation strategy, as outlined in the Destination introduction. Financial support to third parties (FSTP) is required to maximize SME involvement in small-scale innovation projects. Each project should include at least one advanced technology provider, one manufacturing SME, and one end-market facing company (e.g., retailer, service provider). Partners must be from at least two different countries. FSTP funding is limited to SME participants, with larger companies encouraged to participate actively. Start-up involvement is also encouraged. Each third-party beneficiary can receive up to EUR 60 000, with projects indicatively lasting 18 months.

International cooperation is encouraged, especially with countries advanced in the field. Projects should collaborate with existing initiatives and develop synergies with other relevant European, national, or regional funding programs. This initiative is part of the co-programmed European Partnership ‘Textiles for the Future’.

The general conditions include admissibility conditions regarding proposal page limits and layout, eligible countries, other eligibility conditions, and financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria. The evaluation and award process involves award criteria, scoring, thresholds, submission and evaluation processes, and an indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement. The legal and financial setup of the grants allows beneficiaries to provide financial support to third parties in the form of grants, with a maximum of EUR 60 000 per third party. Eligible costs will be reimbursed as a lump sum, as defined in the relevant European Commission decision.

Application forms, evaluation templates, and model grant agreements are available in the Submission System. Additional guidance and documents include the Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Model Grant Agreements (MGA), call-specific instructions, detailed budget table, information on financial support to third parties, information on clinical studies, and guidance on lump sums. Further resources include the HE Main Work Programme, EU Financial Regulation, rules for legal entity validation, and the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual.

The budget overview specifies various funding amounts for different HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01 topics, including HORIZON-RIA, HORIZON-CSA, and HORIZON-IA actions, with opening dates on May 22, 2025, and deadlines on September 23, 2025. The indicative number of grants and their respective contributions are also detailed. Partner search announcements are available for those seeking collaboration on this topic.

In summary, this funding opportunity aims to revitalize the European textile industry by promoting local, on-demand production through digitalization and sustainable practices. It encourages collaboration between SMEs, technology providers, and end-market companies to create innovative business models and reduce the environmental impact of textile manufacturing. The funding supports projects that demonstrate the economic viability of these new approaches and contribute to the broader goals of the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation and the Textiles for the Future Partnership.

This opportunity is about bringing textile production back to Europe in a sustainable and technologically advanced way. It's designed to help European companies, especially SMEs, become more competitive by using digital technologies to create fashion and textile products locally, on-demand, and with a lower environmental footprint. The EU wants to support projects that can show how these new production methods are not only good for the environment but also make good business sense. They are looking for projects that involve different types of companies working together, from those who create the technology to those who make the products and those who sell them to consumers. The goal is to create a more resilient, innovative, and environmentally friendly textile industry in Europe.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types include advanced technology providers, manufacturing SMEs, end-market facing companies such as retailers or professional or consumer service providers, larger companies, and start-ups. The focus is on SMEs, with encouragement for the participation of larger companies and start-ups.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Innovation Action (HORIZON-IA) and HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA) and HORIZON Programme Cofund Actions (HORIZON-COFUND). Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum. Financial support to third parties (FSTP) is also provided in the form of grants.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required. The innovation projects should include at least one advanced technology provider, one manufacturing SME, and one end-market facing company. The partners should be from at least two different countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The primary geographic eligibility appears to be focused on EU member states and associated countries, with mentions of non-EU/non-Associated Countries having specific provisions.

Target Sector: The program targets the textile and apparel industry, with a focus on digitalization, sustainable production, circular economy, advanced manufacturing technologies, and innovative business models. It also touches on sectors like digital technologies, advanced materials, and manufacturing.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the focus is on European countries and those associated with the Horizon Europe program. There is a mention of international cooperation with countries that are advanced in the field.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on demonstration, experimentation, and piloting of approaches, processes, or technologies, as well as the uptake of innovative service-driven business models. This suggests a focus on development, validation, and demonstration stages, moving towards commercialization and scale-up.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic and type of action.
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-DIGITAL-61: around €6,000,000 (5 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-DIGITAL-62: around €3,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-60: around €1,500,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-61: around €1,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-62: around €2,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-63: around €2,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-64: €500,000 to €1,000,000 (5 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-65: around €3,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-HUMAN-66: €1,000,000 to €1,500,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-31: around €5,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-44: around €2,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-45: around €28,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-52: €4,000,000 to €5,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-61: around €8,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-62: around €7,500,000 (4 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-63: around €8,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-64: around €90,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-01: €5,000,000 to €7,000,000 (6 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-02: €4,000,000 to €6,000,000 (7 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-05: €5,000,000 to €7,000,000 (6 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-31: €8,000,000 to €10,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-32: €8,000,000 to €10,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-33: €6,000,000 to €8,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-34: €5,000,000 to €9,000,000 (3 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-36: €6,000,000 to €8,000,000 (4 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-37: around €14,000,000 (2 grants)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-38: around €1,000,000 (1 grant)
HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-TWIN-TRANSITION-39: around €2,000,000 (1 grant)
Additionally, projects should provide financial support to third parties (FSTP), with each third-party beneficiary receiving up to €60,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: Success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for each topic provides some insight into the potential success rate.

Co-funding Requirement: Co-funding is not explicitly mentioned as a requirement, except in the case of HORIZON-CL4-INDUSTRY-2025-01-MATERIALS-64 - HORIZON-COFUND HORIZON Programme Cofund Actions, which by its nature implies co-funding.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, under the INDUSTRY (HORIZON-CL4-2025-01) framework, aims to transform the European textile and apparel industry by promoting digitalization, sustainability, and local production. The call encourages projects that demonstrate the economic viability of local, on-demand textile production through the integration of advanced digital technologies. It seeks to accelerate the adoption of these technologies by SMEs, increase the share of near-shored production using sustainable practices, and contribute to reducing GHG emissions. Projects should focus on piloting innovative technologies, processes, or business models, and should include financial support for SMEs. Consortia must involve partners from at least two different countries and include an advanced technology provider, a manufacturing SME, and an end-market facing company. International cooperation is encouraged. The funding is provided as a lump-sum grant, with a maximum of €60,000 available for each third-party beneficiary. The call implements the co-programmed European Partnership ‘Textiles for the Future’. The call is a single-stage submission process with an opening date of 22 May 2025 and a deadline of 23 September 2025.