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With many trends still emerging, what’s next to come is anyone’s guess. Based on what we’ve seen in our years of R&D industry experience so far, here are five predictions on what we think is likely to come about in future
The R&D industry has itself been growing and changing for decades, making the process of discovering new scientific and technological advances increasingly accessible. Nowadays innovative trends, predominantly focused around data and cutting-edge technology have helped to improve efficiencies throughout the industry.
With many trends still emerging, what’s next to come is anyone’s guess. But it’s all about helping organisations to bolster their informatics landscape and better assist scientists in moving towards innovation and success.
Based on what we’ve seen in our years of R&D industry experience so far, here are five predictions on what we think is likely to come about in future:
Big data has meant the harvesting of massive amounts of information, which in turn can be difficult to sort through when looking for a specific figure or result. Analytical data stores will in future require more advanced searchable features to help solve this problem. The ability to trace and locate a piece of data will provide support in assembling intelligent results and data analytics. This in turn can offer better quality processes overall and hopefully reduce risk.
There are all sorts of different types of techniques and software available to assist companies in analysing their data. From off-the-shelf commercial offerings to customised and bespoke software, plus everything in between, company decision makers will be able to make more tactical choices about their analytical data and how it’s used to make sure the business is a success going forward.
The days of lengthy analysis reports and rigid information management systems will move aside for more flexible decision support interfaces. To effectively support R&D projects of the future, companies will begin to transition decision making to live data results instead of from documents. This will in turn play an important role in the way reports are presented to stakeholders.
All this extra data and analytical capacity will also point to a requirement for more storage space, regardless of the technique or business industry. This increase in information will necessitate cloud storage and larger hard drives.
As technology moves on, the secure exchange of data when being transferred between organisations will become increasingly important. With companies collaborating globally, information transmitted across time zones and using different methods could mean there’s opportunity for the data to be compromised. Organisations will need to design strategies for stopping unwanted third parties from accessing data, through increased security.
Research and development (R&D) is about a company seeking to gain knowledge about the design, development and enhancement of its products, process, services or technologies. In addition to creating new products and upgrading old ones, investment in R&D will serve to connect various parts of an organisation’s strategy and business plan, such as cost reduction and marketing.
Many of the advantages of research and development are obvious, such as the chance to launch new product lines or boost productivity, but there are less obvious ones too. For example, some investors actively seek out firms that have aggressive and demonstrable R&D programmes. In certain cases, smaller businesses can be acquired by bigger companies in the industry simply because of their R&D work.
Remember, R&D isn’t just about making new products - it’s also about strengthening an existing product or service by adding extra features. Research will very likely take place when a new science or thinking is the result.
Research is typically classed either as basic research or applied research. Basic research involves delving into scientific principles from an academic perspective, whilst applied research is concerned with incorporating basic research in a real-life scenario.
The development part is in reference to the actual application of the new thinking or science, so that a new or improved product or service can start to take shape.
Companies stand the best chance of gaining a competitive advantage by doing something that rivals can’t replicate easily. If R&D work leads to an improvement in a particular business process, for example increasing marginal productivity or cutting costs, then outpacing competitors becomes much easier.
R&D often brings about a brand new type of product or service. This is commonly in sectors such as agriculture, IT, pharmaceuticals and industrial machinery.
The R&D Tax Credit scheme is a highly prized tax-based incentive designed to encourage innovative business investment by Irish companies. It offers up to 25% of your R&D expenditure (both capital and revenue) either as a credit for use against your Corporation Tax bill or in cash. The 25% credit is offered in addition to the 12.5% corporation tax deduction already given.
The relief is typically applicable for eligible R&D activities carried out in a wide variety of science and technology disciplines, however the scope for claiming is purposefully broad.
To qualify for R&D Tax Credits, an organisation must carry out research and development activities that meet the following criteria. The R&D project must:
If your Irish company has undergone R&D work recently then you may well be able to claim. Find out more on our R&D Tax Credits page.
With advisors based in Dublin, Myriad Associates is a team of experts specialising in all areas of R&D tax relief across Ireland and throughout the UK. Whether you’re a brand new company just finding your feet in the business world or you’re well established and looking to grow through innovation, why not get in touch with us today on +353 1 566 2001. Alternatively, please feel free to use our contact page.
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Please contact us to discuss how working with Myriad Associates can maximise and secure R&D funding opportunities for your business.
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