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Selection Report: Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020

Overview

The Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities scheme provides funding for research infrastructure, equipment and facilities to Eligible Organisations. It enables researchers to participate in cooperative initiatives so that expensive research infrastructure, equipment and facilities can be shared between higher education organisations and also with Industry. The scheme also fosters collaboration through its support of the cooperative use of international or national research facilities.

The objectives of the Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities scheme are to:

  • encourage Eligible Organisations to develop collaborative arrangements with other Eligible Organisations and/or Partner Organisations to develop and support research infrastructure;
  • support large-scale national or international cooperative initiatives allowing expensive research infrastructure to be shared and/or accessed;
  • support areas of existing and/or emerging research strength; and
  • support and develop research infrastructure for the broader research community.

 

Selection Process

Applications for funding commencing in 2020 opened on 23 January 2019, and closed on 20 March 2019. Applications were submitted through the Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Management System (RMS). This report outlines the outcomes from the selection process for that round.

The ARC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) provided recommendations to the Minister based on advice from the ARC Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) which:

  • assessed applications and reviewed assessments made by independent assessors
  • reviewed applicants’ comments on assessors’ reports
  • ranked each application relative to the others on the basis of the application, the assessors’ reports and applicants’ responses to those assessments
  • assessed and recommended budgets; 

and, advice from the ARC’s National Competitive Grants Program (NCGP) Eligibility Committee which:

  • considered eligibility issues identified by ARC staff, the ARC SAC or independent assessors
  • where required, sought advice from the ARC’s Medical Research Advisory Group
  • made recommendations to the CEO in respect of ineligible applications.

This report reflects the outcomes approved by the Minister. Unless otherwise specified, data presented in this report exclude withdrawn applications.

 

Assessment Criteria

Assessment criteria and corresponding weightings for Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications are: 

Project Quality and Innovation(25%)
Feasibility(25%)
Investigator(s)(20%)
Benefit(30%)

The ARC assessment process for Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 used 16 SAC members and was managed in the RMS. A total of 524 independent assessors’ reports were submitted to the ARC.

 

Funding levels and duration

The minimum level of funding provided by the ARC under Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 is $150,000 per annum and the maximum level of funding cannot exceed 75 per cent of the total direct cost of the eligible budget item(s). Funding is provided for up to one year; or, up to five consecutive years for construction of research infrastructure, or subscription or coordinated access to international facilities and major national facilities.

 

Summary of Outcomes

The ARC received a total of 164 applications for Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities for funding commencing in 2020. This represents a 14 per cent increase from the 144 Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications received for funding commencing in 2019. Of the unsuccessful applications, three did not meet eligibility requirements. 

The overall success rate for Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities for funding commencing in 2020 is 28.7 per cent, with a similar percentage of allocation of requested funds compared to funding that commenced in 2019. A comparison of success rates and funding amounts is shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Comparison of application numbers, success rates, requested and allocated funds for approved Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications from 2019 to 2020

Funding yearApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($)Funds allocated over project life for approved applications*($)Return rate for approved applications (%)
20191443625.0$111,480,217$29,520,578$27,421,22392.9
20201644728.7$116,305,596$33,144,068$30,672,75292.5

*May include indicative funds

 

Outcomes by discipline 

A summary of outcomes by discipline panel is shown in Table 2.

Table 2.  Application numbers, success rates and requested and allocated funds for approved Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications by discipline

Discipline *Applications consideredApplications  approvedSuccess rate (%)Requested funds over project life for all applications considered ($)Requested funds over project life for approved applications ($)Funds over project life for approved applications ($)Return
Rate for approved applications (%)
BSB31825.8$21,837,505$6,798,747$6,173,00090.8
EIC531426.4$36,217,638$8,238,788$7,723,75093.7
HCA8112.5$5,800,943$1,228,182$1,100,00089.6
MPCE672334.3$48,771,989$16,258,934$15,096,00292.8
SBE5120.0$3,677,521$619,417$580,00093.6
Total1644728.7$116,305,596$33,144,068$30,672,75292.5

 ​​​​*BSB – Biological Sciences and Biotechnology; EIC – Engineering, Information and Computing Sciences; HCA – Humanities and Creative Arts; MPCE – Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences; SBE – Social, Behavioural and Economic Sciences

 

Outcomes by Science and Research Priorities

A summary of outcomes by Science and Research Priorities is shown in Table 3.

Table 3. Approved funding and success rate for Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications by Science and Research Priorities

Science and Research PrioritiesApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess
rate (%)
Approved funds over project life ($)
Advanced manufacturing632133.3$14,678,752
Cybersecurity200-
Energy13323.1$1,743,000
Environmental change18422.2$1,900,000
Food5360.0$2,945,000
Health9333.3$2,425,000
Resources12216.7$1,310,000
Soil and water7228.6$860,000
Transport6116.7$475,000
Unspecified29827.6$4,336,000
Total1644728.7$30,672,752
Total within Science and Research Priorities1353928.9$26,336,752
Percentage within Science and Research Priorities (%)82.383.0 85.9

 

Outcomes by Administering Organisation

A summary of outcomes by Administering Organisation is shown in Table 4. 

Table 4. Number of applications and success rates for approved Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications by Administering Organisation

Administering  OrganisationApplications consideredApplications approvedSuccess rate (%)Funds over project life for approved applications ($)
Australian Capital Territory10220.0$1,232,000
The Australian National University10220.0$1,232,000
New South Wales551730.9$10,067,697
Macquarie University500-
Southern Cross University5360.0$1,320,000
The University of New South Wales17635.3$4,422,947
The University of Newcastle5240.0$1,160,000
The University of Sydney13323.1$1,989,000
University of Technology Sydney3133.3$400,000
University of Wollongong5120.0$245,750
Western Sydney University2150.0$530,000
Queensland16318.8$2,309,000
Griffith University11100$744,000
Queensland University of Technology500-
The University of Queensland9222.2$1,565,000
University of Southern Queensland100-
South Australia8112.5$950,000
Flinders University100-
The University of Adelaide400-
University of South Australia3133.3$950,000
Tasmania6116.7$420,000
University of Tasmania6116.7$420,000
Victoria531630.2$10,820,055
Deakin University11100$475,000
Federation University Australia100-
La Trobe University22100$1,700,000
Monash University22627.3$3,943,000
RMIT University9111.1$535,000
Swinburne University of Technology4125.0$580,000
The University of Melbourne14535.7$3,587,055
Western Australia16743.8$4,874,000
Curtin University5360.0$1,480,000
The University of Western Australia11436.4$3,394,000
Total1644728.7$30,672,752

Gender

Of the 1675 Chief Investigators (CIs) in this round, 357 were female CIs and 1318 were male CIs. The success rate for female and male CIs in this round of Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities is 30.5 per cent and 28.1 per cent respectively. 

 

Collaboration with Other Eligible Organisations, Partner Organisations and Other Organisations 

Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications are expected to develop collaborative arrangements with Other Eligible Organisations and/or Partner Organisations and Other Organisations. 

The success rate for applications with one Eligible Organisation (the Administering Organisation) is 14.3 per cent. A summary of success rates by number of Eligible Organisations is shown in Table 5.

Table 5. Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 application success rates by number of Eligible Organisations

Number of Eligible OrganisationsNumber of applications consideredNumber of applications approvedSuccess rate within band (%)
1*7114.3
219842.1
339923.1
4311032.3
5331133.3
618211.1
73133.3
88225.0
922100
103133.3
11100
Total1644728.7

* An application with only one Eligible Organisation (the Administering Organisation) may or may not include Partner Organisations and/or Other Organisations.  

A summary of application success rates by number of collaborating organisations is shown in Table 6. Applications involving collaboration with five Eligible Organisations, Partner Organisations and/or Other Organisations have the highest success rate - 54.8 per cent.

Table 6. Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 application success rates by number of collaborating organisations

Number of collaborating organisations*Number of applications consideredNumber of applications approvedSuccess rate within band (%)
1300
213430.8
325520.0
426623.1
5311754.8
625416.0
712650.0
81100
96233.3
104125.0
115120.0
122150.0
14100
Total1644728.7

* Collaborating organisations include the Administering Organisation, Other Eligible Organisations, Partner Organisations and Other Organisations. There were no applications with 13 collaborating organisations. 

 

International Collaboration

Among 164 of the applications considered, applicants foreshadowed 288 instances of collaboration with researchers in 42 overseas locations. Of the applications approved for funding, 25 foreshadowed 80 instances of collaboration with researchers in 21 overseas locations (Figure 1).

Figure 1. International collaborations by location in approved Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications*

Figure 1. International collaborations by location in approved Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications

*The top 13 international collaboration locations are listed in Figure 1 and the remaining locations are grouped in the ‘Other’ category.

 

Leverage of ARC funding

On Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities 2020 applications approved for funding, for every dollar funded by the ARC the proposed dollar contribution of the collaborating organisations listed on these applications is $1.46. The leverage of ARC funds for approved applications is shown in Table 7.

Table 7. Leverage of ARC funds for approved applications

Number of applications approvedApproved ARC fundingNumber of unique collaborating organisations*Incidence of involvement of collaborating organisations*Collaborating organisation* Cash and In-kind contributionLeverage (Collaborating organisation* contribution/ARC approved funding)
47$30,672,75261249$44,775,762$1.46

 *Collaborating organisations include the Administering Organisation, Other Eligible Organisations, Partner Organisations and Other Organisations.

 

Summary of Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications approved for funding

A summary of the Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications approved for funding commencing in 2020, by Administering Organisation is outlined in Table 8. The application titles indicate the variety of equipment, infrastructure and facilities supported in this scheme round.

Table 8.  Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities applications approved for funding commencing in 2020

Applications approved for fundingAdministering OrganisationLead CI
A particle detector array for the Murchison Widefield ArrayCurtin UniversityDr Clancy James
Returning WA Rapid Acquisition Fluorescent Microscopy to the cutting edge.Prof John Mamo
WA CRC-MC-ICPMS for Earth, Planetary and Environmental scienceProf Noreen Evans
A high-payload, high-fidelity haptically-enabled motion simulation facilityDeakin UniversityProf Saeid Nahavandi
Multi-kilohertz laser for attosecond and ultrafast scienceGriffith UniversityA/Prof Igor Litvinyuk
A platform consortium for integrated 'systems-omics' researchLa Trobe UniversityProf Tony Bacic
X-Ray Nanolithography Facility: Towards the ultimate resolutionDr Grant Van Riessen
A facility for quantification and isotopic analysis of trace gasesMonash UniversityProf Perran Cook
A triple beam microscope: new frontiers in materials nanocharacterisationDr Amelia Liu
Fast Disk Storage to Enable Big Data Science in Weather, Oceans and ClimateProf Michael Reeder
Integrated Functional Printing Facility for Advanced Material TechnologiesProf Mainak Majumder
New generation direct electron detector for cryo-electron microscopyDr Georg Ramm
The 3D Nanofabrication FacilityProf Nicolas Voelcker
Photonic Chip Integration FacilityRMIT UniversityProf Arnan Mitchell
A 4D habitat-modelling facility to support marine ecological researchSouthern Cross UniversityProf Brendan Kelaher
An Equilibrium Inlet-Proton Transfer Reaction-Mass SpectrometerProf Bradley Eyre
New frontier in Geoscience: A tandem trace element and isotopes facilityDr Renaud Joannes-Boyau
Data Co-operative Platform for Social Impact and WellbeingSwinburne University of TechnologyProf Jane Farmer
Advanced Multifunctional Electro-Opto-Magneto-Mechanical Analysis PlatformThe Australian National UniversityA/Prof Yuerui Lu
Exploring the Dynamic Universe with DREAMSProf Anna Moore
Crossing the biology meso-nanoscale divide by scanning electron microscopyThe University of MelbourneProf Geoffrey McFadden
Live Cell Super Resolution Imaging FacilityProf Frank Caruso
National Facility for Quantum DiamondDr David Simpson
Single Particle Elemental Analysis – Imaging Mass Cytometer FacilityProf Amanda Ellis
Ultrafast Laser Spectroscopy FacilityA/Prof Trevor Smith
A 4-D X-Ray Microscopy LaboratoryThe University of New South WalesProf Klaus Regenauer-Lieb
Australian Rheo-Scattering FacilitiesA/Prof Patrick Spicer
Cryogenic Scanning Microwave Measurement Facility for Quantum MaterialsProf Alexander Hamilton
High Performance Solid State NMR Spectroscopy for Materials ResearchProf Martina Stenzel
In situ Environmental Electron Microscope FacilityProf Richard Tilley
Next generation facility to measure microfluidic flowsDr Charitha de Silva
Adaptive Electrical Capacitance Volume Tomography for Multiphase FlowsThe University of NewcastleProf Behdad Moghtaderi
Synthetic Biology: from Genomics to Valuable BioproductsProf Brett Neilan
Electrophysiology Platform for Ion-channel CharacterisationThe University of QueenslandProf Glenn King
An integrated, multi-nodal bio-layer interferometry facilityA/Prof Bryan Fry
High Resolution PET-CT for Small Animal Molecular and Anatomical ImagingThe University of SydneyProf Steven Meikle
Rapid Molecular (Bio)material Imaging by Infrared and Raman MicroscopiesProf Peter Lay
Whopping Volta GPU Cluster – Transforming Artificial Intelligence ResearchProf Dacheng Tao
A next-generation receiver for Radio AstronomyThe University of Western AustraliaProf Lister Staveley-Smith
Australian Seismic Imaging ArrayProf Li Ju
Quantitative Movies of Nanoscale Dynamics by Video Atomic Force MicroscopyProf Rob Atkin
The Digitisation Centre of Western Australia (Phase 1)Prof Benjamin Smith
Protein Quantitation Centre of South Australia renewal for Systems BiologyUniversity of South AustraliaProf Peter Hoffmann
Rapid Deployment Seismic Recorders for Interdisciplinary Antarctic ResearchUniversity of TasmaniaProf Anya Reading
3D Nanofabrication and Nanocharacterisation facilityUniversity of Technology SydneyProf Igor Aharonovich
An upgraded nanoindenter facility with in-situ Raman at high temperatureUniversity of WollongongProf Kiet Tieu
A major upgrade to the Australia Telescope Compact ArrayWestern Sydney UniversityProf Raymond Norris