Thank you for your comments and for your question.
IRAP was launched in November 2011. The main purpose of the program is to support small and medium-sized businesses in acquiring digital technologies in the wider sense. Why should they acquire digital technologies? It is to increase productivity and to become more competitive.
Digital technologies include, of course, software and hardware. They include automation, robotics, cloud computing, a very wide array of technologies. There is no clear and narrow definition. It's whatever can help a company increase productivity and competitiveness using software, hardware, electronics equipment, or digital equipment, IRAP and specifically DTAPP, can help with. The budget is $80 million over three years, so this pilot program will end in March 2014.
As I mentioned, there was a mid-term evaluation, which was very positive, and it will probably be used by the government regarding whether or not to renew this program, to make conclusions, and to develop new initiatives to help companies acquire technologies and increase productivity.
How do we do it? We've put together a team of specialists in digital technologies and in implementation of digital technologies. This team joined IRAP in the last year and a half. It has added to the already strong field staff of IRAP. We have 200 people on the floor working with the companies, as you very well know. We have added 10 specialists in digital technologies.
First they look into the company's needs. What are they? They can be very different. To increase productivity they may start with very simple things like a new layout of their manufacturing facility, new processes, or a reviewed process. Then we'll look into digital technologies. Do they apply to the company's needs, or can they improve the company's productivity, and if so, which digital technologies can do that? We'll help the company select them and integrate them into their production and train the personnel for maximum return on their investment.
There's a whole cycle from the very early stages of needs identification, to the selection of the solution, to the implementation, and the training of their staff.