Apply for Best Company Storytelling Video Contest

European lighting and furniture manufacturing SMEs are encouraged to create a compelling video highlighting success stories related to the green and digital transition. These Story-telling videos should showcase new or improved products, services, or processes achieved through the adoption of advanced technologies and/or circular solutions supported or inspired by activities offered within the SILEO Eurocluster project. The activities may include financial support to SMEs via cascade calls – Open Calls (Business Digital Transformation Projects, Advanced Technology Uptake Projects, Talent Placement Projects, Hack Day in Romania, Hack Day in Italy), participation in upskilling international and local training sessions and workshops, participation in the SILEO Hack Days events in Romania and Italy, and other initiatives.

The primary objective of the SILEO International Contest is to significantly boost the visibility and global appeal of lighting and furniture manufacturing SMEs, while promoting the concrete impacts and successful outcomes of the support measures provided by SILEO project.

Topics

• The video should focus on the following topic areas:
  • SME Innovation & Circular Solutions: Explore how SME is driving innovation in the green and digital transition thanks to the support/inspiration of the SILEO project activities. Showcase examples of how products and/or processes have embraced change and adapted to align with sustainability and digitalization goals. Illustrate the implementation of circular/green solutions, showcasing in particular how the SME is redesigning products, optimizing resource usage, and/or implementing closed-loop systems to minimize waste and maximize the lifespan of materials. These improvements must be inspired or supported by SILEO activities.
  • Advanced Technologies: Delve into the realm of advanced technologies being adopted by applicant SME through the SILEO cascade funding opportunities (business digital transformation projects and/or advanced technology uptake projects in collaboration with the technology provider(s); and/or through the talent placement project and/or participation on the Hack Day in Romania and/or Italy), and/ or thanks to the SILEO knowledge transfer and training programmes (international masterclasses, local train-the-trainers sessions, analysing the SILEO advanced technology scouting reports).

Funding Information

• The SILEO Jury will award the respective three SMEs with prize money:
  • 5.000€ for the “Gold story-telling” (1° prize)
  • 3.000€ for the “Silver story-telling” (2° prize)
  • 2.000€ for the “Bronze story-telling” (3° prize)

Geographical Focus

• Applicant SMEs must be established in the European Union Member States.
• Countries associated with the Single Market Programme.
• Countries which are in ongoing negotiations for an association agreement and where the agreement enters into force before grant signature.

Eligibility Criteria

• They are looking for videos submitted by a single manufacturing SME operating in the lighting and furniture industry and located in the EU Member States or countries associated with the Single Market Programme.
• In particular, applicants must be a single Small and Medium-size Enterprise (SME) [registered legal person] – including start-ups registered at least 6 months from the date of SILEO application submission.
• An SME will be considered eligible as such if it complies with the European Commission’s Recommendation 2003/361/EC1. The status of the SME must be declared by the SME applicant in the Declaration of Honour as a mandatory annex to the Application Form.
• The target applicants of the SILEO Call for Proposal are European manufacturing SMEs from the Lighting and Furniture industries:
  • The lighting industry covers a complex range of products and services for the manufacturing of luminaires, lamps and related components. It includes various industrial segments divided per lighting type (LEDs, CFLs, etc.), application (general lighting, automotive lighting, backlighting, emergency lighting, others), electronics and other components (lighting controls, etc.).
  • The furniture industry covers various products and services markets segmented by material (wood, metal, plastic, and other), and by application (home furniture, office furniture, hospitality furniture, upholstered furniture, and others).

Application Requirements

• All videos submitted to the SILEO International Video Contest must include the following three mandatory parts:
  • Brief presentation of the SME applicant (who you are, your main mission, key activities, and primary sector, as well as the country in which you operate).
  • Presentation of the improved product/process/service that has been enhanced / introduced / changed thanks to the SILEO activities, which is the focus of the video.
  • Company Logo and basic contact information, such as your website or/and QR code, or/and social media links, or/and the name of a contact person, etc.

For more information, visit European Commission.