Polymer Industry Cluster and EDA Tech Hubs Official Designee
Bounce Innovation HubSynthe6 Materials AcceleratorOhio Department of Development and Greater Akron Polymer Innovation Hub
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Polymer Industry Cluster 2026 intake

Apply for Synthe6 or PIC Translational R&D Funding.

Use one form to be considered for Synthe6 accelerator support, competitive PIC translational R&D awards up to $500K, or both, subject to eligibility and review.

What you'll need: a 3-page white paper for PIC translational R&D, a pitch-style narrative for Synthe6, basic project budget and maturity details, and willingness to provide Ohio presence or collaboration commitments if selected.

Closes June 30, 5pm ETEvaluation guide
Step 1

Shared Application

Applicant Details

If your organization is currently outside Ohio, you must be willing and able to establish a Northeast Ohio office, HQ, or qualifying operations if awarded Synthe6 or PIC translational R&D funding.

Before you start

  • Partners are optional. Apply alone or with collaborators — companies, startups, and universities are all eligible. Partnerships are scored, not required, and applying alone is not scored against you.
  • More than one is fine. A PI may submit more than one R&D white paper.
  • Projects can run 1–3 years. The white paper's 12-month roadmap is a planning window, not a project cap. Multi-year projects add milestones for each year.
  • Budget now is one total plus a summary. Enter one total for the whole project and summarize use of funds in your white paper. No line items now; finalists submit a per-year budget during review.
  • Match must be cash or an actual project cost. A secured match (required if your request exceeds $25,000) must be cash or a real, incurred project cost at a documented, auditable rate — for example, salary you actually pay for staff time, or the real cost of running a test. Not donated, waived, or volunteer value, university overhead, or indirect costs. It cannot come from ODOD funds; a federal or other state source counts only if the rules of that source allow it as match.
  • What awarded budgets can cover: five categories (People, Services, Equipment, Other, Indirect; indirect ≤ 20%); legal or IP costs are allowable under Other; no food, alcohol, lobbying, or pre-award/post-term costs.

Track Selection

Which opportunity are you applying for?
Which opportunity are you applying for?

Keep narrative responses non-confidential

Do not include trade secrets, proprietary formulas, unpublished patent-enabling details, or other confidential information in this application unless PIC/Bounce separately requests it through an approved process. Reviewers should be able to understand the opportunity without receiving NDA-level material.

Project Overview

Describe the technology, material, process, product, or service you want reviewers to understand first.
0/150 words
Explain how the project could improve sustainability, circularity, resilience, or growth in the polymer industry.
0/200 words

Readiness Levels

Select the current and target technology and manufacturing maturity for the proposed project.

at start of project

at project completion

at start of project

at project completion

TRL runs 1-9 for technical maturity. MRL runs 1-10 for manufacturing and scale-up maturity.

Funding & Budget Basics

Enter one total for the whole project (all years), not just year 1. At application we ask only for this total plus a high-level use-of-funds summary in your white paper — no line items. Finalists provide a detailed per-year budget during review. You may request up to $500,000 per project (total across all years, not per year); any required match is in addition to the request.
Your match must be cash or an actual, incurred project cost at a documented, auditable rate — for example, salary you actually pay for staff time on the project, or the real cost of running a test. It cannot be donated, waived, or volunteer value, university overhead, or other indirect costs, and it does not have to come from an industry partner. It cannot come from ODOD funds; a federal or other state source counts only if that award's own terms allow it to be used as match. Enter only match you have secured today; commitments still pending are not yet secured.

Ecosystem & Facility Synergy

Select regional assets only when they are relevant to the work. It is fine to leave this blank if your project does not rely on a specific facility yet.
Optional
Relevant regional facilities or expertise

University of Akron contract services facility for pilot-scale processing, testing, and materials characterization. Official link: NPIC

Akron innovation hub with startup programming, workspace, laboratory space, and light manufacturing space. Official link: Bounce Innovation Hub

Planned 2027 polymer pilot facility adjacent to the University of Akron campus, developed via PIC ecosystem investment. Official link: Polymer Pilot Facility announcement

Step 2

Technology & market tags

Classify the project. Pick at least one polymer industry tag, one end-use market, and one value-chain position.

Needs attention

Project tag groups

Polymer industry
Polymer industryRequired0 of 8

Material family or industry segment.

End-use market
End-use marketRequired0 of 8

Primary customer or application market.

Performance
Performance0 of 7

Main value proposition or performance improvement.

Value chain position
Value chain positionRequired0 of 7

Where the applicant or project sits in the polymer ecosystem.

Select a track above to see what else is required.

Step 4

Optional Uploads

Optional supporting materials could include a pitch deck, IP documents, peer-reviewed or technical papers, and letters of support from customers or collaborators.

Submission Checklist

These signals summarize the pieces applicants most often miss before final submit.

Application path

Not selected

State: Needs attention

Technology tags

0 selected

State: Needs attention

Value chain

0 selected

State: Needs attention

Files

No files selected

State: Ready

Acknowledgements

0 of 3

State: Needs attention

Step 5

Review Permissions and Submission

Complete all three required acknowledgements before submitting the finished application packet.

Needs attention

Three acknowledgements are required to submit.

PIC/Bounce staff and assigned reviewers may see your application materials for intake, eligibility review, conflict-of-interest screening, scoring, program coordination, and follow-up. Program records are retained according to PIC/Bounce administration and reporting requirements.

Download the agreement: PDF. Checking this box records your acknowledgement and agreement; do not modify or upload a separate signed copy.

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