SBA Publishes Final STTR Policy Directive (1/02/06) -
On December 16, 2005 the SBA published its long awaited Small Business Technology Transfer Program Policy Directive (RIN 3245�AE96). This STTR Policy Directive (PD) has been a long time in the making (originally proposed June 16, 2003) and required a complex process of approvals before becoming the final. Participation of industry associations such as SBTC as well as individual companies and SBIR/STTR proponents played an important role of providing feedback to the SBA concerning the language of this PD.
There are no major surprises but one significant change is the ability to subcontract with a Federal Funded Research & Development Center (FFRDC) without obtaining an SBA waiver.
A small business can now utilize (subcontract) a portion of their award to an FFRDC without needing to file for an exemption with the SBA.
However, SBA notes that STTR funds may not be used to pay for lab resources of non-FFRDCs, unless a waiver is granted. [List of FFRDCs]
Eligibility, funding levels and award amounts remain the same. There was a growing movement to increase the Dollar Value of Awards to $150,000 for phase I awards and $1,000,000 for phase II, but that was not included in this PD. However, an awarding agency may exceed those award values where appropriate for a particular project. After award of any funding agreement exceeding $100,000 for Phase I or $750,000 for Phase II, the agency's STTR representative must provide SBA with written justification of such action.
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U.S. Court Decision Threatens SBIR Data Rights and Phase III Opportunities (11/28/05) -
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims issued a decision in the Night Vision Corp (Plaintiff) v The United States of America (Defendant) case that is sending shock waves into parts of the SBIR community. The ramifications of this decision include loss of SBIR data rights, and use of the SBIR work product given to a competing entity to produce the product and sell back to the government, in essence circumventing what should have been an SBIR phase III opportunity.
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HSARPA Releases Rapid Technology Application Program Broad Agency Announcement (11/28/05) -
HSARPA has just released their long awaited RTAP BAA that initiates their Rapid Technology Application Program (RTAP) to meet the expressed rapid technology development needs of emergency responders and internal DHS customers.
In this solicitation HSARPA is soliciting white papers and proposals for the rapid prototyping of systems in the following seven specific technical fields: Explosive Countermeasures, Biological Countermeasures, Chemical Countermeasures, Information Technology � Geospatial, Information Technology � Information Sharing, Electronics and Hardware, and Cyber Security. There are a total of 22 topics presented under the technical fields mentioned. Proposals should not exceed $2 million for the base effort.
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NOAA Opens FY-2006 SBIR (11/21/05) - The Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (DOC/NOAA) has opened its FY-2006
SBIR with the topic areas of: Ecosystems; Climate; Weather and Water; Commerce and Transportation. The closing date is January 18, 2006 at 4:00 p.m. (EST).
NOAA only accepts proposals in hard copy form and assumes no responsibility for evaluating proposals received after the stated deadline or that do not adhere to the other requirements of their solicitation. The complete NOAA SBIR package is available on their web site at
www.ago.noaa.gov/ad/sbirs/ or on FedBizOpps at www.fbo.gov/spg/DOC/NOAA/AGAMD/NRMC0009%2D6%2D00001/listing.html
NIST Opens 2006 SBIR Solicitation (11/03/05) - The Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has released their FY-2006 SBIR solicitation which opens November 3, 2005 and closes January 26, 2006.
NIST only accepts proposals in hard copy and prefers delivery via FED-EX, UPS or similar-type service rather than standard mail. Any delays in transit that lead to late arrivals are the responsibility of the submitter and proposals received after the deadline will be accepted.
SBIR Gateway Hint: Every agency dealing in SBIR is subject to the President's Executive Order (EO) 13329 Encouraging Innovation in Manufacturing which requires SBIR agencies, to the extent permitted by law and in a manner consistent with the mission of
that department or agency, to give high priority within the SBIR programs to
manufacturing-related research and development (R&D). "Manufacturing-related" is defined as "relating to manufacturing processes, equipment and systems; or
manufacturing workforce skills and protection."
The field of manufacturing technologies is an important part of NIST, who hosts programs such as the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). NIST has posted on their web site:
It is NIST's intent to increase the proportion of its SBIR awards to manufacturing-related R&D projects..
NIST only allows questions pertaining to a specific technical topic or subtopic to be posed through their public discussion group located on the NIST web site at www.nist.gov/sbir
The discussion group questions will be routed to the appropriate person for a response. All questions and responses will be publicly, though
anonymously, posted on the discussion group web site.
The NIST solicitation is posted on FedBizOpps at www.fbo.gov/spg/DOC/NIST/AcAsD/NIST%2D06%2DSBIR/listing.html and additional information is available on the NIST SBIR web site at www.nist.gov/sbir
DoD Issues FY-2006.1 SBIR (11/01/05) -
The DoD has released their FY2006.1 SBIR solicitation with offerings from the Air Force, CBD, DTRA, Navy, NGA and SOCOM. The solicitation opens and proposals will be accepted starting December 13, 2005 with a closing date of January 13, 2006 at 6:00am EST.
Caution: In DoD terms this is actually a pre-release which means that topics may be added, modified or withdrawn prior to the official opening on December 13, 2005. The DoD topics will be included in Zyn's SBIR Gateway Search Engine by November 7, 2005. You will also be able to sign up with the SBIR Gateway to be alerted when changes are made to the DoD solicitation.
The DoD solicitation can be downloaded from their site at www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir/solicitations/sbir061/
Dept of Education Opens SBIR (11/01/05) - The Department of Education's (ED) Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has released their SBIR Solicitation with a formal opening of November 4, 2005 and a closing date of January 6, 2006.
This SBIR offering is very unusual for the Department of Education in that it is contracts based instead of grants. This does not work anything like ED's SBIR grant offering last March of 2005. Notable changes include: a)Submission process is via hard copy only [one original and six copies]; b)Fast Track to Phase II is available in all priorities; c)Q&A's on the topics and program are not permitted by direct communication but will be answered on their FedBizOpps solicitation page at www.fbo.gov/spg/ED/OCFO/CPO/errd080008/listing.html; d)all updates will be listed on FedBizOpps, not Grants.gov.
There are two broad priorities (topics) Both are available for Fast Track to Phase II
- PRIORITY 1 -- Services: This priority supports research to develop effective business consulting services that can better serve the education community at both the local and state levels. The Institute of Education Sciences SBIR Program invites proposals that seek to develop a plan or a business model for the provision of such services.
- PRIORITY 2 -- Products: This priority supports the development of empirically derived educational products in the areas of reading or mathematics or science or character/pro-social development at the pre-kindergarten through post-secondary levels, including products that support teachers and administrators as well as products that are used directly by students. Offerors are encouraged to consult the background section of the individual solicitations for other Institute grant competitions in the topic areas listed above to better understand the thinking behind this priority. All relevant solicitations can be accessed at: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ies/programs.html?src=mr
Complete information is available on the FedBizOpps site at www.fbo.gov/spg/ED/OCFO/CPO/errd080008/listing.html
NIH Policy & Procedure Changes (10/19/05) - The NIH's SBIR/STTR Program Office has been issuing significant warnings of major changes to their grants submission process. Although these changes will not be unique to the NIH SBIR/STTR programs, the SBIR/STTR is among the first
to be transitioned. All submissions for the current NIH SBIR/STTR Grants solicitation with a receipt date of December 1, 2005 or later require use of the new procedures. Some of the changes include:
Electronic Submissions via Grants.gov - Caution, each agency that uses Grants.gov for submissions, has different criteria and procedures pertaining to submissions. In the case of NIH's SBIR/STTR program you must register with Grants.gov (see www.grants.gov/GetStarted as well as the NIH's eRA Commons (see https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/). Please note: These steps can take can take several weeks to complete! NIH outlined their plans for this back in mid-August (see NOT-OD-05-067).
Migration to New Electronic SF424 (R&R) Application Forms - This step will be new to everyone. Each NIH Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will require a unique SF424 (R&R) form that is part of the grants application package. The announcement for the NIH's current SBIR/STTR grants offering PA-06-006 is available at http://fedgrants.gov/Applicants/HHS/NIH/NIH/PA-06-006/listing.html and the full announcement (October 17, 2005) is available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-06-006.html.
Review of NIH SBIR/STTR Fast-Track Grant Applications - In the past, small businesses submitting SBIR and STTR Fast-Track grant applications to NIH were required to complete two separate and complete applications � one for Phase I and another for Phase II. Beginning with the December 1, 2005, submission date, you need only prepare one grant application package consisting of both Phase I and Phase II activities (see NOT-OD-06-004).
The migration to Grants.gov is a mandate for most federal government grant programs. There will be some growing pains during this process so be prepared for some bumps along the way. Grants.gov requires the use of the PureEdge Viewer a free software program. The PureEdge Viewer will allow you to access, complete and submit applications electronically and securely on Grants.gov.
SBIR Gateway Note: If you are PC/Windows based you will have to download both the PureEdge Viewer and the PureEdge Viewer Upgrade. If you are on a Mac based platform, you will need Microsoft's Virtual PC emulator in order to use the PureEdge Viewer. If you are using a Unix/Linux operating system you will need a Windows emulator (contact Grants.gov support http://grants.gov/CustomerSupport
Visit the NIH SBIR web site at http://grants2.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir.htm).
NOAA Issues SBIR Presolicitation Announcement (10/17/05) - The Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (DOC/NOAA) has issued a presolicitation notice
for their upcoming FY-2006 SBIR offering. NOAA's SBIR solicitation will be issued on or about November 1, 2005 and historically closes in late January (dates to be announced).
NOAA's research and development topics for this solicitation include Ecosystems, Climate, Weather and Water, and Commerce and Transportation. These topics are accompanied by subtopics in each topic area.
The NOAA SBIR solicitation will be available on NOAA's Solicitations and Grant Opportunities site at www.ago.noaa.gov/ad/solindex.shtml and FedBizOpps at www.fbo.gov.
NIST Issues SBIR Presolicitation Announcement (10/13/05) - The Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), has issued a presolicitation announcement for their upcoming SBIR offering. The solicitation is scheduled to be released on or about November 3, 2005 and will close January 26, 2006.
Traditionally NIST features a Q&A facility on their web site where technical questions may be submitted by interested parties and answers provided by NIST experts. This will be available on the NIST SBIR site at www.nist.gov/sbir after the solicitation is released. It is anticipated that there will be 20 technical topic areas of interest.
The NIST presolicitation is located on FedBizOpps at www.fbo.gov/spg/DOC/NIST/AcAsD/NIST%2D06%2DSBIR/listing.html
Department of Education Presolicitation Announcement (10/08/05) -
The US Department of Education, via the Institute of Education Science's National Center for Education Research, intends to solicit offerors for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program.
The opening date is on or around November 4, 2005, the closing date is January 6, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. EST. Copies of the solicitation will be available for download on www.FEDBIZOPPS.GOV. Copies of the solicitation may also be available at www.ed.gov/programs/sbir/index.html.
The notice can be found on the FedBixOpps site at www.fbo.gov/spg/ED/OCFO/CPO/errd080008/SynopsisP.html
DOE Opens FY-2006 SBIR/STTR (09/21/05) -
The DOE has released its FY-2006 combined SBIR/STTR solicitation which opened September 21, 2005 and closes December 2, 2005.
The DOE's SBIR and STTR are grants programs and submissions must be made electronically on DOE's Industry Interactive Procurement System (IIPS) located at http://e-center.doe.gov. All topic and subtopic areas are open to both SBIR and STTR proposals. In fact,
grant applications that include a substantial amount of cooperative research collaboration (at least 30%) with a single research institution may be considered for funding in both programs, thereby increasing the chances of winning an award. Applicants may indicate their interest in being considered for both programs by checking the appropriate box on the grant application cover page, Appendix A. There are special principal investigator (PI) requirements in order to submit to both programs.
For complete information visit the DOE SBIR web site at www.science.doe.gov/sbir/.
All DOE topics and subtopics are included in the Zyn SBIR Gateway Search Engine.
HSARPA Re-Opens 05.2 SBIR (9/12/05) -
HSARPA is reopening their SBIR FY05.2 solicitation because of the impact caused by Hurricane Katrina. They cite that some small businesses may have been unable to provide a proposal as planned due to the need to evacuate or from the damage caused by the extremely severe weather. No other changes, other than the opening and closing dates, have been made to the solicitation.
The solicitation originally closed on August 29, 2005. All details are available directly from HSARPA's SBIR site at www.hsarpasbir.com .
NIH Grantees Affected by Hurricane Katrina (9/08/05) -
The NIH has created a special set of web site pages to address the needs of the health of the biomedical research enterprise in the areas affected by hurricane Katrina. They are committed to working with researchers and institutions to do all that they can to ensure that NIH-funded research continues.
These new web pages are intended to be a resource for all the biomedical research community. Look there for NIH Guide Notices and other information of particular relevance to investigators and their institutions; and look there also for related information, such as links to other Federal sites and links to professional societies that are facilitating interactions between affected investigators (including students, postdocs, etc.) and investigators offering assistance.
You can visit this section of the NIH web site at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/katrina/index.htm
DOE Announces SBIR/STTR Dates (8/23/05) - The Department of Energy (DOE) has announced that it will be releasing its FY-2006 SBIR and STTR solicitations on September 21, 2005 with a closing date of December 2, 2005.
They expect to offer 49 topic areas.
A detailed Funding Opportunity Announcement describing research areas in which applications are sought will be available beginning September 21, 2005 at http://e-center.doe.gov. The DOE SBIR web site is located at www.science.doe.gov/sbir/
NSF Releases FY-2006 SBIR Solicitation (8/17/05) - The National Science Foundation (NSF) has released its NSF 05-557 SBIR solicitation with an opening date of November 8, 2005 and closing December 8, 2005 at 5:00pm proposer's local time.
This offering has 3 main proposal topics, each with a group of subtopics. The main topic areas are:
Proposals should not be submitted prior to the opening date of November 8, 2005. The solicitation and instructions are available on the NSF SBIR web site at www.nsf.gov/eng/sbir/
PHS/NIH Releases 2006-1 SBIR Contracts Solicitation (8/03/05) - The NIH has released the Public Health Services' (PHS) 2006-1 SBIR Contracts Solicitation which opens August 3, 2006 and closes on November 4, 2005.
The "contracts" solicitation is a separate and independent offering from NIH and is not connected to their currently open 2005-2 Omnibus SBIR/STTR Grants solicitation.
There are important differences between the NIH Grants and NIH Contracts solicitations. The topics are different and are much more focused and specific in the Contracts solicitation. In the Grants solicitation the topics are broad based and the small business is invited to submit a proposal
in any area within the mission of the awarding components. However, in the NIH Contracts solicitation, proposals are only accepted if they respond specifically to a research topic.
The Grants solicitation includes offerings from all 23 Institutes/Centers (ICs) within NIH and stays open all year with 3 receipt dates. Not all centers participate in the Contracts solicitation and there is only 1 receipt date.
About 95% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Grant (assistance) mechanism, and about 5% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Contract (procurement) mechanism.
This new solicitation is not prominently displayed on the NIH web site but it can be found at the bottom of their "Funding Opportunities" listings. You can download the solicitation in Word format at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/SBIRContract/PHS2006-1.doc or in PDF format at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/SBIRContract/PHS2006-1.pdf.
The Topics for this contracts solicitation will be included in Zyn's SBIR Gateway Search Engine by August 5, 2005.
The NIH SBIR web site is located at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir.htm and the
NIH Solicitation notice is posted on FedBizOpps at www1.eps.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/NHLBI/PHS%2D2006%2D1/listing.html
DoD Releases 2005.3 SBIR Updated (8/07/05) -
The DoD has released their FY2005.3 SBIR solicitation with offerings from the Navy, MDA and OSD. The solicitation opens and proposals will be accepted starting September 15, 2005 September 14,2005 (DoD changed the starting date on Aug 5). The closing date is October 14, 2005 at 6:00am EST.
Caution: In DoD terms this is actually a pre-release which means that topics can be added, subtracted or modified prior to the official opening on September 15, 2005. The DoD topics will be included in Zyn's SBIR Gateway Search Engine on August 2, 2005. You will also be able to sign up with the SBIR Gateway to be alerted when changes are made to the DoD solicitation.
The DoD solicitation can be downloaded from their site at www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir/solicitations/sbir053/
NIH Issues 2006-1 SBIR Contracts Presolicitation Notice (7/22/05) - The NIH has issued a presolicitation notice for the Public Health Services' (PHS) 2006-1 SBIR Contracts solicitation scheduled to open "soon" (historically the first week of August) and close on November 4, 2005.
The "contracts" solicitation is a separate and independent offering from NIH and is not connected to their currently open 2005-2 Omnibus SBIR/STTR Grants solicitation.
There are important differences between the NIH Grants and NIH Contracts solicitations. The topics are different and are much more focused and specific in the Contracts solicitation. In the Grants solicitation the topics are broad based and the small business is invited to submit a proposal
in any area within the mission of the awarding components. However, in the NIH Contracts solicitation, proposals are only accepted if they respond specifically to a research topic.
The Grants solicitation includes offerings from all 23 Institutes/Centers (ICs) within NIH and stays open all year with 3 receipt dates. Not all centers participate in the Contracts solicitation and there is only 1 receipt date.
About 95% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Grant (assistance) mechanism, and about 5% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Contract (procurement) mechanism.
The NIH Presolicitation notice is posted on FedBizOpps at www1.eps.gov/spg/HHS/NIH/NHLBI/PHS%2D2006%2D1/listing.html
NASA Opens 05 SBIR & STTR Solicitations (7/07/05) -
NASA has released their 2005 SBIR & STTR solicitations that open July 9, 2005 and close September 9, 2005 at 5:00 p.m. EDT.
Although there are two solicitations, one for SBIR and STTR, they are both under one NASA umbrella. There are separate topics and procedures each. Both programs have the same due date of September 9, 2005.
The SBIR Program Solicitation topics are developed in coordination with the NASA management structure organized by four Mission Directorates (MD). Each MD is analogous to a strategic business unit employed by private-sector companies to focus on and respond to their customers' needs. Each MD has a unique set of goals, objectives, and strategies, which are the following:
Aeronautics Research
Exploration Systems
Science
Space Operations
Each STTR Program Solicitation Topic corresponds to a specific NASA Center. Two subtopics per Topic reflect the current highest priority technology thrusts of that Center.
All proposals for the NASA SBIR/STTR must be in electronic form and be submitted through the NASA Electronic Handbook. To begin the submission process, you must first register in the NASA Electronic Handbook at https://sbir.gsfc.nasa.gov/sbir/phase1/submissions/index.html. Note: The Handbook will be offline from Friday July 8th 7:00pm to Saturday July 9th 7:00am for scheduled maintenance.
The NASA solicitation is available at http://sbir.gsfc.nasa.gov/SBIR/sbirsttr2005/solicitation/index.html
HSARPA Issues SBIR FY-05.2 Pre-Release (6/30/05) - HSARPA has issued their FY-05.2 SBIR Pre-Release. The solicitation will officially open and start accepting proposals on July 29, 2005 and close on August 29, 2005 at 4:00pm EST. The term Pre-Release has different connotations depending on the agency, but in the case of HSARPA the pre-release is very much like that of the DoD.
A small business may directly contact the SBIR topic's technical point of contact during the pre-release stage only. On or after August 29, direct contact is no longer permitted but the small business can submit written questions to [email protected] . The questions will be answered and posted electronically for general viewing to the HSARPA website, www.hsarpasbir.com.
This HSARPA solicitation has 6 technical topics. They are:
- H-SB05.2-001 Handheld Biological Detection System
- H-SB05.2-002 Uncooperative Vehicle Stopping Using Nonlethal Methods
- H-SB05.2-003 Distributed Buoy Vessel Detection System
- H-SB05.2-004 Hardware-Assisted System Security Monitor
- H-SB05.2-005 Methods To Determine Structural Stability
- H-SB05.2-006 Portable/Transportable Directional Gamma Ray And/Or Directional Neutron Detectors
The FY05.2 SBIR solicitation can be downloaded from the HSARPA web site at www.hsarpasbir.com/SolicitationDownload.asp
HSARPA Announces FY05.2 SBIR Dates (6/10/05) - HSARPA has announced the dates for their upcoming FY05.2 SBIR solicitation.
As with their 05.1 offering, HSARPA will allow contact with a topic author during the pre-release period of the solicitation. The dates are:
| 29 June 2005 | Pre-Release Issued |
| 29 July 2005 | Solicitation Opens (Start Accepting Proposals) |
| 29 August 2005 | Solicitation Closes (4pm ET) |
Complete details are available on the HSARPA SBIR site at www.hsarpasbir.com
NIH SBIR/STTR E-learning for HAZMAT and Emergency Response (6/09/05) - The NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) have just released a Request For Applications (RFA) Number: RFA-ES-05-003 to be administered under the NIH SBIR/STTR omnibus solicitation guidelines.
This NIEHS initiative uses the SBIR/STTR and FAST-TRACK mechanism to further the development of Advanced Technology Training (ATT) Products for the health and safety training of hazardous materials (HAZMAT) workers, emergency responders, and skilled support personnel. These products would complement the goals and objectives of the Worker Education and Training Program (WETP).
The major objective of the NIEHS/WETP is to prevent work related harm by assisting in the training of workers in how best to protect themselves and their communities from exposure to hazardous materials. There is a need to ensure that learning and training technologies are further developed, field tested and applied to real world situations. It is the intent of this solicitation to support the development of products to support e-collaboration, e-teaching, e-certification, and e-learning in safety and health training for workers engaged in hazardous materials response.
The financial support for this initiative comes directly from NIEHS Worker Education and Training Branch SBIR/STTR funds.
Unlike many NIH SBIR related RFAs an PAs, this one does not require the Offeror to be a phase II award winner. All SBIR/STTR eligible entities are welcome.
Letters of Intent must be received by July 22, 2005 and the application receipt date is August 18, 2005.
The RFA is available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-ES-05-003.html.
Dept. of Education (ED) Reopens SBIR (6/03/05) - The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has reopened their FY-2005 SBIR solicitation that originally closed May 9, 2005. ED published the reopening in today's (June 3, 2005) Federal Register and Grants.gov. Their announcement states:
In order to afford as many eligible applicants as possible an opportunity to receive funding under this program, we are reopening the
SBIR Phase I program FY 2005 competition. The new application deadline
date for the competition is June 10, 2005.
The SBIR Gateway has learned that the Grants.gov submission site had problems near the closing date accepting submissions to ED's SBIR program. ED did not make a public announcement as to how they would handle applications from those who could not submit through the Grants.gov site. Note: ED does accept hard copy submissions as an alternative to Grants.gov.
Although today's notice of reopening appears to be mainly targeted at those who previously had trouble submitting, it is not restricted to only those companies.
According to Carol Cohen of the Dept. of Education's OSERS, those who have already submitted and received confirmation of receipt from ED, need not resubmit. For those who want to resubmit, you must inform ED which submittal to accept.
Carol Cohen can be reached via email at [email protected] The official announcement can be downloaded at http://fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-030905-001/Modification1.html
USDA Releases FY06 SBIR (6/02/05) - The USDA has released their FY06 SBIR Solicitation which opened June 2, 2005 and closes September 1, 2005. Although the USDA generally retains the same topics, this year they have added an 8.12 Small and Mid Sized Farms topic area.
Proposals are encouraged that focus on problems dealing with bioterrorism, homeland security of rural communities, and agriculturally-related manufacturing technology.
USDA SBIR's flexible research areas ensure innovative projects consistent with USDA's vision of a healthy and productive nation in harmony with the land, air, and water.
USDA expects to make approximately 90 Phase I awards ranging up to $80,000 and 35 Phase II awards ranging up to $300,000.
The solicitation can be downloaded from the USDA SBIR web site at http://www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/rfas/sbir_rfa.html
NASA Issues SBIR Presolicitation Notice (5/28/05) -
NASA has issued a presolicitation notice for their upcoming SBIR/STTR offering scheduled to be released on or about July 7, 2005 with a receipt date of September 7, 2005.
The NASA SBIR 2005 technical topics and subtopics support the NASA strategic enterprises Mission Directorates of Space Operations, Aerospace, Science, and Exploration Systems. It is anticipated that the NASA 2005 SBIR solicitation will identify specific product areas within each subtopic that NASA wishes to emphasize. To participate in the NASA SBIR program, firms must have Internet access and an e-mail address. Details can be found on the NASA SBIR/STTR Home Page at http://sbir.nasa.gov/ .
The presolicitation notice is available on FedBizOpps at www1.eps.gov/spg/NASA/GRC/OPDC20220/SBIR2005/listing.html .
SBA Proposes Amendments to SBIR Policy Directive UPDATED(5/19/05) -
The SBA has just published in the Federal Register their announcement for comments on proposed amendments to the SBIR Policy Directive. The current Policy Directive (PD), enacted in September of 2002, has been in need of updating for quite some time and the SBA is primarily addressing the President's February 2004 Executive Order 13329 Encouraging Innovation in Manufacturing (see EO13329.pdf).
These proposed amendments reflect the requirements that the Executive Order, Encouraging Innovation in Manufacturing, imposes on the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Federal agencies that participate in the SBIR program. (See Federal Register PDF Announcement).
Public comments on the proposed amendments to the SBIR Policy Directive may be sent to SBA identified by RIN 3245-AF21, by any of the following methods. (1) The Federal eRulemaking portal: www.regulations.gov; (2) e-mail at [email protected] (include RIN in the subject line of the message); (3) mail, addressed to Edsel M. Brown, Jr., Assistant Administrator for Technology, Office of Technology, Office of Policy, Planning, and Liaison; Office of Government Contracting and Business Development, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 3rd Street, SW., Washington, DC 20416.
Comments must be received on or before June 20, 2005. [More...]
DoD Releases FY2005.2 SBIR Updated (5/14/05) -
The DoD has released their FY2005.2 SBIR solicitation with offerings from the Army, Navy, DARPA, SOCOM and OSD. Caution: In DoD terms this is actually a pre-release which means that topics can be added, subtracted or modified prior to the official opening on June 15, 2005. The DoD topics will be included in Zyn's SBIR Gateway Search Engine during the week of May 9, 2005. You will also be able to sign up with the SBIR Gateway to be alerted when changes are made to the DoD solicitation.
The DoD FY2005.2 SBIR will open for proposals on June 15, 2005 and will close on July 15, 2005 at 6:00am EDT.
The DoD solicitation can be downloaded from their site at www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir/solicitations/sbir052/
Update: There have been 4 changes to the Army's SBIR offering. 1) A statement was added to Army topic A05-211; 2) Two sentences in the Army 05.2 Instructions have changed; 3) Title Change to Army Topic A05-237; 4) Army Topic A05-200 has been Withdrawn. Changes are posted on the DoD SBIR web site at www.dodsbir.net/solicitation/sbir052/modlist.htm
Do you want the Zyn SBIR Gateway to notify you when changes to the DoD FY05.2 SBIR are made?
If so, please enter your email address below and you will receive an email notification.
SBA to Hold Regional Hearings on VC & SB Size Standards UPDATED(5/10/05) -
The SBA is holding a series of public hearings throughout the country on small business size standards as outlined in their ANPRM. Although this includes 11 important areas of small business size standards, the SBA did specifically mention the VC participation issue. It is interesting to note that the SBA stated in their web site announcement, The hearings will also focus on related issues, such as the possible participation of businesses majority-owned by venture capital companies in the Small Business Innovation Research Program. This is slightly misleading in that a VC with majority ownership and control of a small business can participate in SBIR as long as the VC itself meets the SBA test of being a small business. However, the SBA's ANPRM keys on the important issue of whether the SBA should provide an exclusion from affiliation for venture capital companies (VCC) in size determinations for eligibility for the SBIR Program.
The SBA states: While the comments received to the ANPRM are greatly assisting SBA with its deliberations, the public hearings allow for a constructive dialogue with the public on these issues enabling SBA to more fully comprehend the views of the public. This notice provides information on the purpose, format, scheduling, and registration for the public hearings. Testimony presented at these hearings will become part of the administrative record when SBA considers how to simplify and restructure size standards, and make size standards easier to understand and use.
A panel of SBA officials will preside over 11 formal public hearings. The purpose of the hearings is to obtain the views of SBA's stakeholders on approaches to simplify and restructure size standards, to identify other policy changes which may make size standards easier to understand and use, and to obtain stakeholder views on the other issues being considered, such as the possible participation of businesses majority-owned by venture capital companies in the Small Business Innovation Research Program. Oral and written testimony will become part of the hearing record for SBA's consideration.
Hearings will take place starting June 2, 2005 and end June 29, 2005. The schedule is:
June 2, 2005 - Seattle, WA
June 2, 2005
- St. Louis, MO
June 7, 2005 -
Portland, ME
June 9, 2005 - Atlanta, GA
June 14,
2005 - Denver, CO
June 16, 2005 - New York, NY
June 17,
2005 - Washington, DC
June 20, 2005 - Chicago, IL
June
22, 2005 - Dallas, TX
June 28, 2005 - San Francisco,
CA
June 29, 2005 - Los Angeles, CA
Anyone interested in testifying must pre-register in advance with SBA. Registration requests must be received by SBA at least 5 business days prior to the scheduled hearing date. Please contact the Office of Size Standards in writing at [email protected]. Please include the following information relating to the person requesting to testify: Name, Title, Organization Affiliation, Address, Telephone Number, E-mail Address, Fax Number, and which hearing the presenter wants to attend to provide testimony. SBA will attempt to accommodate all interested parties that wish to present testimony. Testimony will be limited to five minutes.
Complete details can be obtained from the SBA web site at http://www.sba.gov/size/indexwhatsnew.html
SBIR Gateway to Open SBIR BLOG (4/30/05) - The Zyn SBIR Gateway has announced that it will be opening the SBIR BLOG in late May.
BLOG is merely an acronym for Weblog. A Weblog has many variations in definition (see www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&safe=off&oi=defmore&q=define:Blog ).
The SBIR BLOG will fit the definition of a journal that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. It will allow Questions & Answers on items of interest to the SBIR/STTR community. Users will be allowed to post questions and comments.
Many SBIR Gateway users are experts in the various areas of SBIR/STTR and several have graciously agreed to participate in answering questions. Q&As will be on a limited basis as time permits, and must be general in nature. This service is not meant to compete with personalized consulting services offered by vendors and/or state intermediaries.
The SBIR BLOG is an experiment to see if it can be of value to the SBIR/STTR community. It will not replace the SBIR Gateway Insider Newsletter, but it will afford the expansion of topic discussion without inundating your email.
EPA Opens 2005 SBIR (3/24/05) - The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released their 2005 SBIR solicitation PR-NC-05-10246 with an opening date of March 24 and a closing date of May 25, 2005 at 12:00pm noon local time. The EPA still requires hard copy proposals (original and nine (9) copies) which must be received by their Research Triangle Park Division by May 25, 2005, at 12:00 p.m. (Noon).
The proposed research must directly pertain to EPA�s environmental mission and must be responsive to EPA program interests included in the topic descriptions of this solicitation. The research should be the basis for technological innovation resulting in new commercial products, processes, or services which benefit the public and promote the growth of the small business. Their SBIR Solicitation is focused on four main topic areas:
- (A) Mid-Atlantic Environmental Problems (EPA Region 3)
- (B) Pacific Northwest Environmental Problems (EPA Region 10)
- (C) Minimization, Monitoring and Remediation of Hazardous Waste (EPA Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response [OSWER])
- (D) Critical EPA Research Topics.
Dept of Education (ED) Opens FY-05 SBIR (3/17/05) - The Department of Education has opened its FY-05 SBIR grants solicitation, consisting of one priority with five invitational priorities (topic areas) proposed by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services' (OSERS) National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) under CFDA Number 84.133S with awards up to $75,000. The solicitation closes on May 9, 2005
It is anticipated that ED will fund 17 awards under this program. Under this competition they are particularly interested in applications that address one of the five invitational priorities. The maximum amount in the 6-month budget period is $75,000, which includes both direct and indirect costs and fee.
The Invitational Priorities are:
- Development of technology to support access, promote integration, or foster independence of individuals with disabilities in the workplace, recreational activities or educational settings.
- Development of technology to enhance sensory or motor function of individuals with disabilities.
- Development of technology to support transition into post-secondary educational or employment settings for individuals with disabilities.
- Development of accessible information technology including web access technology, unique software, and other systems and devices that promotes access to information in educational, employment and community settings including access to voting technology.
- Development of technology to support independent access to health care services in the community.
SBIR projects are encouraged to look to the future by exploring uses of technology to ensure equal access to education and promote educational excellence throughout the nation.
The Department of Education's SBIR procedures are quite different from the other SBIR agencies and you must study their requirements carefully and follow strict rules in order to submit your proposal. The following links will take you to the information you need.
The Program information: www.ed.gov/programs/nidrr/applicant.html
The Federal Register Announcement: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20051800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2005/pdf/05-4740.pdf
FedGrants.gov Announcement: http://fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-030905-001/Grant.html
Air Force Restores SBIR Funding (3/09/05) -
The Air Force has released the entire $175m in funding that it arbitrarily withheld from its Congressionally mandated SBIR obligations. Many small businesses whose SBIR selections and awards were put on hold in early February, received notice today that the Air Force was fully restoring its SBIR funding commitments and would resume the contracting process immediately.
When questioned, the Air Force did not offer a legitimate reason as to why they withheld 50% of their >$300m SBIR funding. For almost a month, small business winners were kept in the dark as to when/if their awards would be funded. This created a tremendous hardship on those small businesses, many of which turned to other sources for answers.
The SBIR Gateway heard from dozens of affected small businesses as did the Small Business Technology Coalition (SBTC). The SBTC talked to the SBA and sent a strongly worded letter to Peter Teets, Acting Secretary of the Air Force, urging him to release the funds.
The SBIR Gateway contacted the Air Force who made no comment on their withholding of funds. The SBIR Gateway, a non-partisan entity, also contacted Senator John Kerry (D-MA), ranking member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee (SBE). Senator Kerry, a strong supporter of small businesses and SBIR, worked with his SBE staff to get the Air Force to reverse their action.
During the several weeks this was playing out, other SBIR agencies were watching closely. It was feared that if the Air Force could make their self imposed funding reduction stick, it would spread throughout the SBIR community.
It should be noted that the Air Force policies come from a source above the Air Force SBIR program manager and staff.
DOT Opens FY-05 SBIR Solicitation (2/08/05) - The DOT's Volpe National Transportation System Center, (Volpe Center) opened its FY-05 SBIR Solicitation on 02/28/05 with a closing date of 05/16/05.
The DOT SBIR is available through electronic means only on their SBIR site at www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir. No hard copies will be available.
The DOT accepts proposals via hard copy or electronic means. NOTE: If you intend to submit your proposal electronically you must register at the DOT website: www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir by April 15, 2005.
The DOT SBIR topics are:
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
| 05-FH1 |
Compact Laser Shearography System for Crack Detection |
| 05-FH2 |
Low Cost Workzone Collision Warning System |
| 05-FH3 |
Accurate Measurement of signature, speed, acceleration and jerk (SSAJ) with inductive loops for Intersection Collision Avoidance (ICA), Red Light Running Prevention (RLRP) systems and Origin Destination (O-D) |
Research & Innovative Technologies Administration (RITA)
| 05-RT1 |
Use of Remotely Piloted Vehicles (RPV) to conduct traffic analysis audits for transportation management systems |
| 05-RT2 |
Use of Remotely Piloted Vehicles (RPV) - Zeppelins to create "as built" plans for transportation infrastructures and roadway inventory |
| 05-RT3 |
Use of Remotely Piloted Vehicles (RPV) - to create "as built" plans for transportation infrastructures and roadway inventory for improved maintenance, and emergency preparedness and management |
Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS)
| 05-OPS1 |
Innovative Safety, Reliability and Inspection Technologies for Pipeline Safety Integrity Management |
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
| 05-FA1 |
Development of a low cost, voice activated cockpit for General Aviation (GA) aircraft and helicopters for use in Precision Visual Flight Rules (PVFR) operations. |
EPA Issues SBIR Presolicitation (2/23/05) - The Environmental Protection Agency contemplates awarding approximately 40 fixed price contracts under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, Phase I, during Fiscal Year 2006.
The SBIR Program is a phased process uniform through the Federal Government of soliciting proposals and awarding funding agreements for research (R) or research and development (R&D) to meet stated agency needs or missions. During Phase I (covered by this solicitation) contractors shall conduct feasibility-related experimental research or R&D efforts on the described agency topics listed below.
The Phase I awards are expected to be made by February 28, 2006. Upon successful completion of an EPA SBIR Phase I contract, with a Period of Performance of 6 months, the Phase I contractors will receive the Phase II solicitation, and may submit proposals for competitive evaluation.
Funding for Phase II shall be based upon the results of Phase I and the quality and soundness of the Phase II workplan and commercial potential of the Phase II technology. Proposals submitted in response to the solicitation must directly pertain to EPA's environmental mission and must be responsive to EPA program interests included in the topic descriptions identified in the solicitation.
The solicitation will be available on the Internet at the following Internet addresses: 1). www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir/ and 2). www.epa.gov/oam/rtp_cmd/. Firms are encouraged to download the solicitation from the Internet. The solicitation document is approximately 78 pages in length, and includes all the requirements, instructions, and forms needed for proper proposal submission. Firms may obtain a facsimile of the solicitation when it becomes available by calling 1-800-490-9194.
NSF Releases FY-06 SBIR/STTR (2/15/05) - The National Science Foundation (NSF) has released their FY-2006 SBIR/STTR solicitation (NSF 05-557) which opens May 8, 2005 and closes June 8, 2005 at 5pm (proposer's local time). Note: NSF will not accept proposals prior to May 8, 2005. The solicitation topics are in the NSF areas of Electronics (EL) and Security Technologies (ST).
The NSF expects to fund 150 awards of which approximately 25 will be STTR awards (pending availability of funds). The anticipated Funding Amount is $17,500,000 with approximately $15,000,000 for SBIR and approximately $2,500,000 for STTR (pending availability of funds).
Each agency has their own "flavor" of SBIR/STTR and NSF is no exception. For example, only 4 Phase I proposals per company and its affiliates will be accepted (per solicitation). There are other regulations unique to NSF so please read their requirements carefully.
Currently the NSF solicitation is available at www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf05557. The NSF SBIR/STTR web site is located at www.nsf.gov/eng/sbir/.
Air Force SBIR Funding Hold (2/09/05) - This week the SBIR Gateway has heard from several small businesses who have received notification that their Air Force SBIR awards have been put on "hold". It is reported that several companies were told that the Air Force put a hold on at least 50% of the agency's SBIR funds for this year. One company was told, "It's not gone, but we can't spend it either." Four companies were told that only about 1/2 of the Air Force's Phase I's and 40% of Phase II's selected for awards will be made. This is an Air Force issue only and does not pertain to any of the other DoD SBIR agency components.
Defense Acquisition Challenge Program BAA (2/06/05) - Note: The SBIR Gateway has had requests from our user community to include non-SBIR opportunities that may be of interest. Below is an opportunity with the DoD.
The Defense Acquisition Challenge (DAC) Program provides opportunities for both innovators and the Department of Defense (DOD). For innovators, it means faster entry to the defense acquisition system. For the DOD Program Manager (PM), it means increased technology insertions to improve systems.
Technological developments and operational needs are emerging faster than ever before. Yet the defense programming and budgeting process cannot always keep up. On the supply side, many of America�s companies generating technological innovations have found it difficult to break into the defense market, especially those classified as small and medium-sized U.S. businesses.
The DAC program provides opportunities for the increased introduction of innovative and cost-saving commercial technologies or products into existing DOD acquisition programs. Furthermore, the DACP is especially designed to give small and medium-sized companies the opportunity to introduce new technologies and inject innovation into current DOD Programs. To do so, the DACP provides any person or activity within or outside the DOD the opportunity to propose alternatives, known as Challenge Proposals, to existing DOD programs that could result in improvements in performance, affordability, manufacturability, or operational capability of the systems acquired by that program. As a result of selecting, testing, and inserting the best of these production-ready technologies, the DACP ultimately expands the opportunities for emerging defense suppliers, widens the U.S. defense industrial base, and leverages unique innovations for the benefit of the warfighter.
The DACP has issued a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) which is open to any of the technologies, products, or processes listed in the BAA that can demonstrate a near-term potential to improve existing DoD acquisition programs. Preference will be given to those technologies and products that have the potential to be evaluated in less than 24 months from project selection, with near-immediate transition to operations/production at the completion of evaluation.
You can download the official BAA from the FebBixOpps web site at www1.eps.gov/spg/USA/DSS-W/DASW01/W74V8H%2D05%2DR%2D0017/listing.html or download the SBIR Gateway's Easy to Read PDF version.
DoD Releases FY 2005 STTR Solicitation (2/01/05) - The DoD has released their FY 2005 STTR solicitation which will begin accepting proposals on March 15, 2005 and will close to proposals on April 15, 2005 at 6am EST. This year the STTR has offerings from Air Force, Army, DARPA, MDA, Navy and OSD.
As per DoD policy, up until the formal opening date (March 15, 2005) you may talk directly with the Topic Authors to ask technical questions about the topics. On or after March 15, direct communication between proposers and topic authors is not allowed. However, proposers may still submit written questions about solicitation topics through the SBIR/STTR Interactive Topic Information System (SITIS), at www.dodsbir.net/sitis/. The SITIS system has been revamped and is much improved, but keep in mind that all SITIS questions and answers are public.
The DoD STTR solicitation is available on the DoD SBIR web site at www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir/solicitations/sttr05. The DoD STTR topics will be included in the SBIR Gateway's Solicitation Search by February 4.
NOTE: The DoD may make changes to their STTR solicitation and/or the topics until the official opening date of March 15, 2005. It is not unusual for topics to be added or deleted during this time period. It is advisable to periodically check for any changes.
NSF Changes Web Site Address Update (2/06/05) - The National Science Foundation (NSF) has changed their web site address and have added an attractive new look. The new NSF SBIR address is www.nsf.gov/eng/sbir/.
They have also published their list of topics for their upcoming SBIR Solicitation. The topics are included on their web site as well as in the Zyn SBIR Gateway Search Database.
CDC Adds 12 Topics to FY-05.2 SBIR/STTR Update (2/06/05) - The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC)
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) has added 12 new topics based on Oral Health for the DHHS SBIR/STTR Omnibus solicitation. The topics are available at www.zynsys.com/sbir/sbres/sbir/hhs/nihgcdc05-132a.htm. The official announcement is available at the NIH web site at: grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-05-031.html
USDA Changes Web Site Address Update (2/06/05) - The USDA has changed their web site address to www.csrees.usda.gov/funding/sbir/sbir.html. Their solicitation is expected this summer.
HSARPA SBIR FY05.1 Modifications (01/21/05) - On January 21, 2005 HSARPA published its "Official FY-05.1 SBIR Solicitation" which includes some modifications from their pre-release version that was published December 21, 2004. It is not uncommon for agencies to make changes to their pre-release versions and HSARPA suggests that interested companies download the "Final FY05.1 SBIR Solicitation" located at www.hsarpasbir.com/SolicitationDownload.asp.
The HSARPA FY05.1 SBIR is now open and will accept proposals until February 22, 2005 at 4:00pm EST. The changes from the pre-release version are: Page 23, Section 5.9, Technical Data Rights, and Page 36, Topic H-SB05.1-006. The amendment 01 document that highlights the changes from the pre-release version can be downloaded from FedBizOpps at http://www1.eps.gov/spg/DHS-DR/OCPO/DHS-OCPO/HSHQPA%2D05%2DR%2D1221041/Attachments.html.
Note: Now that the HSARPA solicitation has opened, communication with the topic point of contact is no longer permitted but you can submit written questions to [email protected] . The questions will be answered and posted electronically for general viewing to the HSARPA website, www.hsarpasbir.com.
This HSARPA solicitation has 6 technical topics. They are:
- ADVANCED SAMPLE PROCESSING OF LIQUID, OR SOLID OR AEROSOL SAMPLES, OR A COMBINATION OF TWO OR THREE TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Biological Sensors, Biological Defense Countermeasures
- IMPROVED SPECTROSCOPIC GAMMA RAY DETECTORS TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Radiological
- IMPROVED HIGH PURITY GERMANIUM COOLING MECHANISMS TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Radiological
- LOW COST UNDERWATER THREAT DETECTION SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Critical Infrastructure Protection, Borders and Transportation Security, Maritime
- INNOVATIVE LESS-LETHAL DEVICES FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY AREAS: State and Local
- SECURE CARTON SYSTEM - (updated topic)
The topics are included in the Zyn SBIR Gateway Search Engine. Visit the HSARPA SBIR web site at www.hsarpasbir.com for complete information on the HSARPA FY-05.1 SBIR solicitation.
SBA Extends Comment Period for VC Participation and Small Business Size Standards (1/19/05) - The SBA announced that it is extending for 60 days, the comment period for their Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM), which requested comments on issues related to SBA's effort to restructure its small business size standards. This 60 day extension is because SBA agrees with the public's view that an extension is necessary to afford interested parties more time to thoroughly review the issues described in the ANPRM and prepare their comments. The previous deadline of February 1, 2005 is extended to April 3, 2005..
Although the ANPRM addresses a wide range of small business size standard concerns, the issue most germane to SBIR interests is the Participation of businesses majority-owned by Venture Capital Companies in the SBIR Program. In brief:
- The SBA is seeking public comments on whether it should provide an exclusion from affiliation for venture capital companies (VCC) in size determinations for eligibility for the SBIR Program. Under such a policy, VCCs that invest in SBIR participants would not be considered affiliates of the SBIR participant and their size would therefore not be included in determining the size of the participant.
For complete details visit the SBIR Gateway Easy ANPRM Reference at www.zynsys.com/sbir/sba/SBAANPRM04-1.htm.
You may submit your comments to SBA, identified by RIN 3245-AF22 by any of the following methods:
- Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
- E-mail: [email protected]. Include RIN 3245-ZA02 in the subject line of the message.
- Fax: (202) 205-6930.
- Mail: Gary M. Jackson, Assistant Administrator for Size Standards, 409 Third Street, SW, Washington, DC 20416.
- Hand Delivery / Courier: Gary M. Jackson, Assistant Administrator for Size Standards, 409 Third Street, SW, Washington, DC 20416.
Comments must be received on or before April 3, 2005.
At the conclusion of comment period (April 3, 2005) the SBA will announce a schedule for meetings and possible hearings on all of the proposed size standard issues. Once the SBA makes their determinations it must be approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Even if all goes smoothly, it is unlikely that changes would be enacted prior to 2006.
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DOT Releases FY-2005 SBIR Topics Updated (2/08/05) - The Volpe National Transportation System Center, (Volpe Center) has released the topic titles for their upcoming SBIR solicitation. NOTE: The solicitation dates have been changed. The release/opening date is 02/28/05 with a closing date of 05/16/05.
The DOT SBIR will be issued through electronic means only on their SBIR site at www.volpe.dot.gov/sbir. No hard copies will be available.
The presolicitation notice can be found on the FedBizOpps web site at http://www1.eps.gov/spg/DOT/RSPA/VNTSC/DTRS57%2D05%2DR%2DSBIR/listing.html.
HHS/NIH Omnibus SBIR/STTR Grants Solicitation Opens (1/14/05) - The Department of Health and Human Services has released their PHS 2005-2 SBIR/STTR Grants solicitation. This is their "all year" omnibus grants solicitation that includes NIH, CDC and FDA. The submission dates are April 1, August 1, and December 1, 2005 EXCEPT for AIDS related research which have submission dates of May 1, 2005, September 1, 2005 and January 2, 2006.
The NIH solicitation is one of the largest and most complex programs in the SBIR arena. It often differs significantly from other SBIR agencies due to the nature of the health field. NIH research topics are generally not meant to be "all inclusive" and each institute may have an interest in SBIR/STTR participation for items that serve the mission of the institute, even if there is no topic listed in the solicitation.
There are many changes listed in this year's HHS/NIH/CDC/FDA SBIR/STTR solicitation. All interested parties should carefully read Part I of the Program Information, Grant Application Instructions & Preparation Requirements document located on the NIH SBIR web site at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir.htm.
For the last six years the NIH has held a major NIH SBIR/STTR conference in June at their headquarters in Bethesda, MD. It is anticipated that they will hold their 7th Annual SBIR/STTR Conference this July. This conference is highly recommended for those who want to maximize their understanding of how to compete for the vast NIH SBIR/STTR opportunities.
Do you want the Zyn SBIR Gateway to notify you when the NIH releases details about their 7th Annual June Conference?
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NASA Final Rule Change (1/12/05) - NASA has published their final rule change to their 48 CFR Parts 1835 and 1852 Final Scientific and Technical Reports--SBIR and STTR Contracts in the January 12, 2005 Federal Register.
This rule adopts as final without change the proposed rule published in the August 12, 2004 Federal Register. This final rule amends the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) by adding an Alternate III to the ``Final Scientific and Technical Reports'' clause for use in contracts awarded under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
This change is required to recognize the ``Rights in Data--SBIR Programs'' clause rather than the FAR ``Rights in Data--General'' clause currently referenced in the NFS ``Final Scientific and Technical Reports'' clause.
DoD SBIR Program Manager Change (1/04/05) - Thomas (Jeff) Bond has left his position as DoD SBIR Program Manager (effective December 30, 2004) to pursue other interests in the private sector. The DoD has appointed Victor Ciardello, of the DoD Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (SADBU) as interim DoD SBIR program manager while DoD seeks to fill the vacancy.
Bond had formerly been the MDA/BMDO SBIR program manager and became the DoD SBIR program manager in January of 2003 replacing Ivory Fisher who retired.
Although Bond was well liked, he could also be controversial due to his "out of the box" methods and sometimes flashy SBIR presentations. He was an innovator in using early multi-media presentations to attract small businesses to the SBIR program. His signature "Money Tie" (a tie that gave the impression of being made of money) was always an attention getter at the various SBIR conferences he attended.
Bond has accepted the position of Director, Grants and Proposals for the Association For Manufacturing Technology (AMT) in McLean, VA. He can be reached at 703-827-5293.
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