OBTAINING ASSISTANCE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT BENEFITS TO U.S. TAXPAYERS AND THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT
HOW TO ACCESS THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY LABORATORIES AND TECHNOLOGY CENTERS
Expanding technological requirements and decreasing federal budgets demand the reduction of duplication and more efficient use of federal resources. As evidenced by past successes, the U.S. Department of Energy's network of laboratories and/or technology centers is uniquely qualified to provide immediate scientific support to other federal agencies as they seek to advance their knowledge.
The DOE laboratories and technology centers operate under a special arrangement known as a Management and Operating (M&O) Contract. Through an M&O, the government contracts for the operation, maintenance, or support of a government-owned-or-controlled research, development, special production, or testing establishment (FAR 17.6).
DOE laboratories and technology centers have a long history of excellence in a range of fields, including the basic sciences, applied energy research, and weapons-related technologies. In carrying out its mission, DOE has developed world-class core competencies in technologies that include energy, pollution control and remediation, advanced materials, advanced instrumentation, biotechnology, advanced prototype development, information and communication software, aerospace and transportation, high-performance computing, modeling and simulation, and advanced weapons technologies and sensors.
Congress, through the Economy Act of 1932, recognized the benefit to a federal agency of placing orders for goods and services with another federal agency. Similarly, the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 recognized the benefits of making the laboratories and technology centers available to other federal entities for training and for research and development (R&D) provided private facilities are inadequate for that purpose.
The DOE laboratories and technology centers can apply their resources and skills to the specific needs of other federal agencies through DOE's Work for Others (WFO) program. This brochure briefly outlines the DOE guidelines that govern the WFO program for federal agencies; however, it does not present all relevant laws, regulations, and procedures. There are also other mechanisms available for working with DOE laboratories. Details may vary with the type of work requested.
Further information on the WFO program or other mechanisms can be obtained from any of the DOE offices listed in this brochure.
Generally, U.S. intelligence work follows the same procedures described in this brochure. More specific requirements for support of U.S. intelligence activities are contained in the supplemental brochure, Intelligence-Related Work for Others. To obtain brochures, contact the DOE Office of Energy Intelligence (NN-30) Work for Others Coordinators at (202) 586-8297 or (202) 586-8718.
Information on the WFO program for non-federal agencies and private customers is included in the brochure, How Private Customers and Non-Federal Governments Obtain Technical Resources and Skills from the Department of Energy. To obtain brochures, contact the DOE Office of Organization and Management (HR-6) Work for Others Program Coordinator at (202) 586-6802 or (202) 586-3299.
The DOE laboratories and technology centers are available to conduct work for other federal agencies on a full cost-recovery basis. Such projects must support the missions of DOE and the laboratory or technology center and may not compete directly with capabilities that are available in the U.S. domestic private sector. Appropriate standards for humane treatment of human and animal subjects are maintained.
OBTAINING ASSISTANCE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
U.S. government agencies can build relationships with DOE laboratories and technology centers to strengthen U.S. technology expertise. DOE manages a major part of the nation's federally- funded civilian science, technology development, and engineering resources through nine major multi program laboratories, 11 single-program laboratories, and a wide range of special technology centers and smaller special-mission laboratories critical to U.S. industry's global competitiveness.
DOE is the leading federal agency in patent applications with more than 2,000 from 1990 to 1994. It is the leading agency in licenses granted, with more than 400 during the same period. In 1995, when the federal government won 42 R&D 100 Awards, 32 of these went to DOE. (R&D 100 Awards are bestowed annually in recognition of the nation's most important inventions.)
DOE has tremendous scientific and technological resources 30,000 scientists and engineers, including 58 Nobel Prize winners, at facilities with a capital value of $30 billion. These resources help U.S. industry compete in the global economy.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT BENEFITS TO U.S. TAXPAYERS AND THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT
Over the past half century, DOE's laboratories and technology centers have developed a vast amount of technology expertise that enhances the security and prosperity of the United States. Their capabilities may be fully accessed by federal customers. Government agencies may share technology and can avoid "reinventing the wheel," resulting in significant savings to taxpayers. Access to these technologies can add to the overall U.S. technology base and enhance the U.S. posture in the competitive global marketplace.
The DOE Work for Others program serves as a bridge connecting all of the country's research communities universities, industries, and federal, state, and local governmental agencies. By linking these organizations, the laboratories and technology centers contribute to the cross-fertilization of ideas and R&D approaches among the nation's researchers.
The program enables federal customers to:
The country benefits by enabling DOE to:
HOW TO ACCESS THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
DOE encourages its laboratories and technology centers to present scientific and technical information to federal customers. This collaborative policy maximizes the synergistic benefits of sharing technology and research findings throughout the U.S. government to solve national problems while conserving technical and financial resources.
DOE authorizes its laboratories to represent DOE when conducting discussions on research and technical assistance with federal customers. DOE also permits its laboratories to respond to Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs), but they may not respond to U.S. Government Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
Federal customers may receive information on DOE research and technical capabilities through some of the following methods:
After the initial dialogues, the federal customer may perceive benefits in a joint problem-solving venture. This informal conceptual agreement is created to serve as the foundation for developing a relationship to meet the federal customer's technological needs.
After reviewing and understanding the preliminary technology requirements of the federal customer, the DOE laboratory or technology center prepares a draft Statement of Work or Research Proposal with estimated costs.
DOE is required by policy to determine that the work for a federal partner is compatible with DOE missions, will not adversely impact current DOE programs, will not place a detrimental future burden on DOE resources, and is not in direct competition with the U.S. domestic private sector. The formal technical proposal sent to the federal customer will include the DOE administrative requirements.
Once the federal customer receives the DOE technical proposal, the federal customer may choose to fund the project, fund parts of the project, defer the activity to a later date (e.g., to obtain further funds or to receive a higher agency approval), or stop all activity.
When the federal customer determines there is a need for DOE laboratory or technology center assistance to meet agency mission requirements, the customer will forward a funding document to DOE. The funding document references the technical proposal, establishes the work performance period, and must be consistent with DOE administrative requirements.
Upon receipt of the federal customer's funding document, the proposed work is reviewed to ensure it is compatible with the technical proposal, consistent with the appropriate legal authority, and can be executed in the requested time frame. DOE accepts the customer's funding document by co-signing the document and thereby "obligating" the customer's funds.
DOE then assigns the technical task to the DOE laboratory or technology center, commits the funds, and authorizes the laboratory or technology center to start work.
Based on statutory requirements, DOE will recover all direct and indirect costs associated with project performance.
Generally, reimbursable agreements will provide for full funding of projects to be completed in the current fiscal year. For projects that cross fiscal years, full funding for the current fiscal year plus the first three months of the subsequent fiscal year is needed to ensure continuity.
DOE and/or its laboratory or technology center will provide timely reports including reports on funding receipts and expenditures.
Unless otherwise negotiated, patent rights and copyrights are determined by the individual laboratory or technology center's M&O contract.
For permanent construction at DOE facilities, title passes to DOE upon completion of construction and its acceptance by DOE. Equipment acquired for the project is accounted for and maintained during the term of the agreement in a manner similar to that used for DOE property. When the agreement terminates, equipment will be disposed of as previously agreed or as instructed by the customer. This equipment may be delivered to the customer's location, transferred to DOE, or declared excess in accordance with federal government property regulations.
Each project is conducted in compliance with applicable environment, safety, and health statues, regulations, and standards. DOE has the authority to stop work if applicable requirements are not met.
DOE laboratories or technology centers may subcontract selected portions of the work. In these cases, selection of the subcontractor and the work to be subcontracted is made by the laboratory or technology center. The subcontracted work must be in direct support of the laboratory or technology center, not the federal customer. The customer may not designate either the subcontractor to be used or the portions of the work to be subcontracted.
For work involving classified information, DOE and its laboratory or technology center classification staff will act with the customer to develop appropriate classification guidance. Classified work may not commence until the appropriate classification guidance is available and considered adequate for the project.
The following federal policies are applicable to all federal agencies. DOE will accept other statutory authority references as applicable.
Multi Program Laboratories |
Major Single-Program Laboratories |
|---|---|
| Argonne National Laboratory Brookhaven National Laboratory Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Los Alamos National Laboratory Oak Ridge National Laboratory Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Sandia National Laboratories |
Ames Laboratory Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory Morgan town Energy Technology Center National Renewable Energy Laboratory Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory Savannah River Technology Center Stanford Linear Accelerator Center Westinghouse Hanford Company |
Other Laboratories and Technology Centers |
|---|
| Bartlesville Project Office Bates Linear Accelerator Center Energy Technology Engineering Center Environmental Measurements Laboratory Inhalation Toxicology Research Institute Kansas City Plant Mound Facility National Institute for Petroleum and Energy Research New Brunswick Laboratory Notre Dame Radiation Laboratory Oak Ridge Center for Manufacturing Technology Pantex Plant Pinellas Plant Rocky Flats Plant Savannah River Ecology Laboratory Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory Y-12 National Security Complex |
| Todd Zdorkowski Ames Laboratory Iowa State University Room 326, TASF Ames, IA 50011 515/294-5640 515/294-3751 (fax) zdorkowski@ameslab.gov |
Mary Linton Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory P. O. Box 808, L-159 Livermore, CA 94550 510/424-6164 510/422-2383 (fax) linton1@llnl.gov |
Marlene Meeks Pacific Northwest National Laboratory P. O. Box 999, MS-K8-50 Richland, WA 99352 509/372-6258 509/372-4038 (fax) marlene.meeks@pnl.gov |
| Richard Combs Argonne National Laboratory 9700 South Cass Avenue Argonne, IL 60439 708/252-6797 708/252-3679 (fax) wfo@anl.gov |
Susan Sprake Los Alamos National Laboratory P. O. Box 1663, MS F655 Los Alamos, NM 87545 505/665-3613 505/665-6127 (fax) sprake@lanl.gov |
Lew Meixler Princeton University Plasma Physics Laboratory P. O. Box 451 Princeton, NJ 08543 609/243-3009 609/243-2800 (fax) lmeixler@pppl.gov |
| Mike Furey Brookhaven National Laboratory P. O. Box 5000, Building 460 Upton, NY 11973-5000 516/282-2103 516/282-3729 (fax) @bnl.gov |
Ken Algiene National Renewable Energy Laboratory Building 17/3 1617 Cole Boulevard Golden, CO 80401 303/275-3017 303/275-3040 (fax) ken_algiene@nrel.gov |
Bill Lovejoy Sandia National Laboratories P. O. Box 5800, MS 0163 Albuquerque, NM 87185 505/844-3911 505/844-0844 (fax) wclovej@sandia.gov |
| John Venard Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory P. O. Box 500, MS-200 Batavia, IL 60510 630/840-3333 630/840-8752 (fax) venard@fnal.gov |
Janice R. Grindstaff Oak Ridge Associated Universities/ Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education P. O. Box 117 (MS 26) Oak Ridge, TN 37830 865/241-4437 865/241-6718 (fax) grindstj@orau.gov |
Karen Azzarro DOE Savannah River Office of Community Outreach P. O. Box A Aiken, SC 29802 803/725-0444 803/725-5103 (fax) |
| Chuck Briggs Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory P. O. Box 1625 Idaho Falls, ID 83415-3805 208/526-0441 208/526-0876 (fax) cwb@inel.gov |
Alan Updike NNSA Kansas City Plant P. O. Box 419159 Kansas City, MO 64141-6150 (816) 997-2605 (phone) (816) 997-4094 (fax) alan.updike@nnsa.doe.gov aupdike@kcp.com |
Dick Fuendeling Stanford Linear Accelerator Center P. O. Box 4349 Stanford, CA 94309 415/926-2211 415/926-4999 (fax) karenk@slacvm.slac.stanford.edu |
| Rick Inada Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Technology Transfer Department One Cyclotron Road, MS-90-1070 Berkeley, CA 94720 510/486-5882 510/486-4386 (fax) rminada@lbl.gov |
Edward B. Harris Oak Ridge National Laboratory P. O. Box 2008 Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6396 865/574-9931 865/576-7192 (fax) harriseb@ornl.gov |
Y-12
National Security Complex P. O. Box 2009 Oak Ridge, TN 37831-8084 800/356-4USA 865/576-5925 (fax) 4USA@ornl.gov |
The information owner is listed below if you have questions, comments, or suggestions. An e-mail form is provided with the appropriate links for your convenience. Please include title, URL, or other document descriptor in your message.
Contact: David W. Bradford, mailto:fdb@ornl.gov
Date posted: June 2004 (sas)