This directory has been designed to encourage innovative activity by providing your company with an easy reference to the various types of assistance available to SME's within the City of Lisburn . The objective is to guide the reader to the most appropriate sources of support for the type of help that they are seeking. The five main categories are detailed below:

The approach taken is not an exhaustive outline of support for innovation and technology in industry. There are a number of complementary mechanisms available, as part of the broader infrastructure for business development. In addition there is a separate section on general SME assistance provided by various organisations.

In response to the need to assist innovation in the optimum way government agencies and other bodies are increasingly working together in partnership to provide an inclusive support to suit an individual company's needs.

The types of support outlined incorporates a broad selection of programmes and schemes and are presented in a "user friendly" format that will assist your company through each stage of the innovation process from "idea generation" through to "commercialisation" in the marketplace. The information given offers a summary version of the support available and guides you to more detailed sources of information. For ease of reference there is a comprehensive index to every organisation included in the directory. It should be noted that there may be a fee for some of the services offered in this directory which can be confirmed when contacting the particular organisation.