Comments Come During the Company’s Recent Unlocking Innovation with AMIC Event
“In order for Northern Ireland businesses to remain competitive and enhance their future growth and expansion, a sustainable innovation strategy is not only necessary, it’s essential.”
These are the words of Caroline Keenan, Head of Tax at Sumer NI, who was addressing a room of approximately 100 delegates at the company’s Unlocking Innovation with AMIC event, which took place on Friday (3 July).
The event was hosted in collaboration with Queen’s University and Invest NI in the new £100m Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMIC) in a bid to tackle Northern Ireland’s historically low uptake of R&D tax relief incentives.
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The UK Innovation Survey 2025, published in June this year, stated that 30% of Northern Ireland businesses in 2022-24 were classified as innovation active, ahead of Scotland and Wales. However, most recent figures from HMRC demonstrate that in the 2023/24 tax year, Northern Ireland companies submitted only 1,305 claims, a 22% reduction from 1,670 in 2022/23. This is despite Invest NI supporting 726 projects in 2024/25 representing an investment of £245m in R&D and more recently committing £122m to R&D and innovation in 2025/26.
The Unlocking Innovation with AMIC event heard from a number of expert speakers including, Colm Higgins, CTO at AMIC, Dr Vicky Kell, Director of Innovation and Research and Development and Richard Pelan, Innovation Advisor at Invest NI, Dr Phil Chambers, Associate Partner at Sumer NI and Geddis Redman, Head of Innovation at Kiverco. As well as gaining an understanding of the innovation grants available and the potential benefits, delegates also had an opportunity to tour the AMIC facility and learn more about how it can support various projects.
“Despite punching well above its weight in terms of innovation, manufacturing, technology and engineering, Northern Ireland still lags behind the rest of the UK when it comes to the uptake of R&D tax relief,” Dr Chambers explained.
“Through our work at Sumer NI, we’ve found that the main reason for this is a simple lack of awareness. A lot of companies don’t realise that the work they’re carrying out is potentially eligible for R&D tax reliefs and we are keen to ensure this changes.
“If we want Northern Ireland to remain competitive in the global marketplace and to secure future growth, a strong uptake of R&D tax relief is extremely important, especially for SMEs. There’s also a misconception that you need to be a large company or wear a lab coat to be eligible, but this is simply not true. If your work centres around developing new products, services or improving processes, you could be eligible for assistance.
“The value of claiming innovation tax relief cannot be understated. It helps to support product development, create highly-skilled employment opportunities and attract further investment. The lack of eligible companies claiming R&D tax relief could ultimately slow the pace of economic growth in the region, particularly in sectors where Northern Ireland already has a competitive advantage.”
Due to officially open in early October 2026, the AMIC facility will support companies of all sizes in adopting cutting-edge manufacturing solutions and will be a place for companies to discover the latest advancements and technologies.
“The idea behind AMIC is to facilitate industry led collaborative innovation through an open access manufacturing and innovation centre, providing access to state-of-the-art facilities and an expert engineering team underpinned by academic excellence, helping local companies to continue driving growth, investment and competitiveness,” said Colm Higgins, CTO at AMIC.
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“Ultimately, AMIC will serve as a secure space for businesses to explore and implement manufacturing technology innovations whilst accessing the latest in skills and expertise.
“Facilities like AMIC will have a key role to play in the future expansion of innovative companies, but so too does the uptake of R&D tax relief. We hope that by seeing what’s possible in AMIC, alongside a greater understanding of the incentives available, this will help inspire businesses to grow with confidence.”
The next event in the Sumer NI Innovation Series will take place this coming autumn. Further details will be announced in the coming weeks.
For more information, visit: www.sumerni.co.uk or email: info@sumernico.uk.
Read the Summer 2026 edition free online →
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