Manufacturing SMEs
MANTRA stands for Sustainable and Innovative Manufacturing — and we are selecting 50 forward-thinking SMEs to receive financial and technical support to pilot new solutions, adopt advanced technologies, and strengthen competitiveness in a fast-evolving industry landscape.
If you’re a traditional manufacturing SME based in Europe and ready to boost your sustainability, digitisation, and innovation strategy — this is your opportunity.
By joining MANTRA, you can access:
✅ Up to €50,000 in funding to test and implement cutting-edge technologies tailored to your needs;
✅ A curated matchmaking process with tech providers, experts, and partners to co-design your transformation roadmap;
✅ Training, mentorship, and peer learning from leaders across the European manufacturing ecosystem;
✅ Visibility and engagement through the MANTRA digital platform — a community built to accelerate impact.
Whether your challenges involve energy efficiency, circularity, automation, supply chain resilience, or data-driven decision-making, MANTRA is here to support your transformation — step by step.
Let’s shape the future of European manufacturing — together.
We’re ready to help you turn ambition into action.
✍️ Apply now to become one of the 50 selected SMEs and receive €50,000 in support for your green and digital transformation.
Fill out the application form below to get started.
The MANTRA project is seeking qualified external evaluators to assess proposals submitted by manufacturing SMEs aiming to adopt advanced technologies for green and digital transformation.
Evaluators will play a key role in reviewing applications, providing constructive feedback, participating in consensus meetings, and helping to finalize the selection of 50 SMEs that will receive financial and strategic support. Experts from across the EU and associated countries with backgrounds in manufacturing, digital innovation, sustainability, business development, or related fields are encouraged to apply.Evaluators will be compensated €80 per proposal reviewed, with an additional €30 for those serving as Evaluator Managers.
Information on how to apply will be available soon on this webpage.
For any questions or clarifications regarding the Expres
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or HADEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
SECPhO is a cluster based on Spain that brings together more than 180 organisations that promote technological innovation through deep tech in all sectors of our economy. They contribute to the assessment and advisory services for SME’s, including due diligence assessments, matchmaking non-tech SMEs with tech SMEs, co-creation labs, and tailored, value-added advisory services.
Rina-C is a global network specializing in energy transition, ESG, and digitalisation, based in Italy. They are responsible for providing assessment and advisory services to the selected SMEs undergoing digital and technological transformation. This includes due diligence assessments, matchmaking tech-savvy and traditional SMEs, share best practices in co-creation labs, and offering tailored solutions and recommendations for practical implementation as part of the advisory services.
Babele is a social enterprise based in Romania, that acts as a catalyst for systemic innovation, uniting a global network of universities, corporations, NGOs, and social entrepreneurs to co-create impactful solutions to address global issues such as climate change and poverty, while fostering resilience in the face of its effects. They are responsible for developing, building, and managing the digital platform for SME recruitment, overseeing the capacity-building and support program, and connecting innovation communities, EU networks, and SME support initiatives. The platform will function as a hub for knowledge exchange and a community of practice.
Greenovate! Europe is a not-for-profit network of organisations dedicated to sustainable innovation. It develops sustainability projects and provides innovation support to researchers, companies and policymakers. The project partner based in Belgium, is responsible for the communication and dissemination activities of the MANTRA project. Their goal is to maximize the project’s impact by raising awareness, building a stakeholder community, and sharing open project results in a way that ensures they are actionable and exploitable by stakeholders.
INES TEC is a research & development institute located on the campus of the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, located in Portugal. They oversee the role of identifying the needs and barriers of SMEs to create the most favorable capacity-building support services. They will connect European specialised business support structures, networks, and organizations to build-up an innovative value-added support ecosystem for SMEs.
EIT Manufacturing is a public-private partnership located in Italy, co-funded by the European Union and established in 2019 that connects manufacturing players by promoting talent and entrepreneurship to accelerate sustainable innovation in Europe. They provide coaching programs and capacity-building support to enhance the competitiveness and innovation of SMEs. Building on the SME Alliance projects and EITM initiatives, they oversee the SME ecosystem, facilitating the exchange of best practices, and enable that traditional SMEs gain from dedicated peer-learning activities, learning directly from leaders in their sector.
EIT Manufacturing is a public-private partnership located in Italy, co-funded by the European Union and established in 2019 that connects manufacturing players by promoting talent and entrepreneurship to accelerate sustainable innovation in Europe.
They provide coaching programs and capacity-building support to enhance the competitiveness and innovation of SMEs. Building on the SME Alliance projects and EITM initiatives, they oversee the SME ecosystem, facilitating the exchange of best practices, and enable that traditional SMEs gain from dedicated peer-learning activities, learning directly from leaders in their sector.
Cetim is a technological accelerator dedicated to industrial transformation. It brings the best of research to French industries and offers a comprehensive solution combining consulting and engineering services. They contribute to the assessment and advisory services for SME’s, including due diligence assessments, matchmaking non-tech SMEs with tech SMEs, co-creation labs, and tailored, value-added advisory services.
Zabala Innovation is an international consultancy firm specialising in consultancy services for both R&D and Innovation management, based in Spain. As project coordinators for MANTRA, Zabala ensures smooth project management and defines the criteria to select and prioritise the manufacturing SME projects that will be funded through the project to unlock their digital and technological potential and build sustainable business models.
