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MST Work-for-Others
New eWFO Process: A How-To Guide
Tom Rosseel, MST Division WFO Program Manager (574-5380)
Aurelia Carter, MST Division WFO Coordinator (576-8179)
Shu Sears, MST Division WFO Coordinator Assistant (574-4475)
Teddie Reagan, MST Finance Officer (574-4475)
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As you already know, beginning 10/24/05, the new web-based application, eWFO, has replaced RAPS (Reimbursable Activity Processing System) for entering Proposal Notification Forms (PNF), Proposal Information Forms (PIF) and CRADAs (Cooperative Research and Development Agreements) Joint Work Statements (JWS) into the approval and process chain for implementing new Work-for-Others (WFO) projects for DOE field office solicitations, other federal agencies (NRC, DoD, etc,), foreign and domestic companies and institutions, and SBIR and STTR solicitations.
Like the RAPs system, eWFO will permit the individual PIs or PMs to submit the information directly into the application (Slower) or you may work with Aurelia Carter, the MST Work for Others Coordinator, to walk you through the information needed and enter the data for you (Faster). |
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HOW TO START:
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STEP 1: To assist you in this process, please use the attached "fillable" pdf forms. Choose either the form "Other Federal" or the "Non-Federal" as a guide for the information required. Please complete as much as you can and forward it to Aurelia along with your Statement of Work. Please use the attached SOW template for Other Federal agencies or for Non-Federal partners . If Aurelia is unavailable, Shu Sears or someone from the MST Finance Office will assist you.
If you prefer to enter the information into eWFO yourself, you must check YES to the box: “Should this project be previewed by the division approver?” under the "DOE Facilities" section and you must include Aurelia or someone from the MST Finance Office and me as "Other Technical Contact" so that we have editing privileges. (Since, the application does not yet have a PM role, you may also add your favorite PM or Group Leader as "Other Technical Contact" so that he or she may receive all appropriate e-mail notifications.) Including Aurelia will allow her to preview and evaluate whether all the required information, including solicitation information, has been correctly provided and allow her to make corrections on your behalf. |
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STEP 2: Following input from Aurelia, non-federal projects receive a preliminary review by a Technology Transfer Commercialization Manager. This step is intended to assess the intellectual property issues and to ascertain if the project should be a WFO project or a CRADA. The PI is notified of the decision and must forward that information to Aurelia so that she may move to the next step in the process.
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STEP 3: After Aurelia's review and assistance, the package will be forwarded to the ORNL WFO office for review and submission to me for Division Approval, on Steve's behalf, prior to submission to DOE-ORO.
Please note that working with the MST Division WFO staff is faster because the quality, as judged by the ORNL WFO office, the DOE-ORO, and most importantly, our sponsors, is higher, resulting in fewer do-overs or rejections. If you don't believe me, you may wish to read Out of Crisis by W. Edwards Deming for a detailed discussion of quality and performance.
Please also note that as the Division Approver, I will have the following options:
- Reviewed/Continue: The proposal has been previewed and approved by the Division and will continue to the next step in the review/approval process. (Faster)
- Request Changes: The proposal will be sent back to the principal investigator for changes noted by the division approver. The principal investigator will make the changes and resubmit for preview (by Aurelia) and approval by the division approver. (Slower)
- Reject: The proposal is marked as rejected and cannot be revised or continued through the approval process. PI must start the process over again. (Really Slow)
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STEPS 4-6: Following MST Division Review and Approval, the ORNL WFO Office reviews the proposal package before forwarding it to DOE-ORO for their approval. The DOE-ORO review and approval process includes administrative, programmatic, and financial/contractual reviews. They look at the documents to ensure that the proposed project does not violate the US Economy Act. Since we can’t compete with private US industry, we must demonstrate that we have unique capabilities, e.g., expertise, equipment, inventions or a combination of capabilities that make us uniquely qualified to perform the work. They also verify that the proposed work is within the mission of ORNL and the US DOE and that resources required for the project do not interfere with ongoing DOE projects. You will be notified by the ORNL WFO office when DOE-ORO has approved the proposal package.
**NOTE: Work with non-US companies or institutions require approval by DOE-HQ. Since this procedure typically takes up to 10 working days, you are strongly encouraged to provide the name of a DOE-HQ Program Manager who is familiar with your work and with whom you have discussed your project. Without this interaction and a discussion about the importance of the project, approval may be a low priority for the person assigned to review the documents resulting in lengthy delays in obtaining approval.
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STEP 7: Once the project is approved by DOE, the SOW and a contract describing the legal rights, intellectual property and other issues associated with sending work to a Federal R&D facility are sent to the sponsor by the Sponsored Research Group of the Technology Transfer of Economic Development Organization for review, negotiation, and agreement.
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STEP 8: The sponsor returns a signed contract and sends funds (electronic or check) to support the work. Please note that the Prime Contract, states no work may begin before funding has been received and accepted by DOE, and depending upon the sponsor, a minimum of 90 days of support is typically required for commercial sponsors.
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STEPS 9-10: Upon accepting the check and verifying that a contract is in place, DOE will authorize the addition of the funds into the ORNL Financial Plan. This step is followed by the issuance of a register sheet that authorizes the MST finance office to open an account on your behalf.
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Example Notice from the MST Division Finance Office that work may begin:
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The following account is being opened:**
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Account # and Company Name
IAN/B&R No.:
SAP Project No.:
DOE/WFO Project No.:
Begin work date: 01/19/2006
Expiration date: 09/30/2006
Budget: $
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DO NOT OVERRUN BUDGET OR WORK PRIOR TO BEGIN DATE OR BEYOND EXPIRATION DATE
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It may take a day for the account to show as good in the various data bases, but you can use if for work beginning xx/yy/200Z.
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**NOTE: All WFO overruns in excess of $500 must be reported (standard form) to the Leadership Team and all WFO overruns must be corrected or resolved, if necessary, with corporate funds. (An overrun is when cost + commitments > budget)
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WFO work should stop when any of the following occurs:
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- the period of performance has expired
- all authorized funding has been costed and/or committed, or
- authorized scope of work has been completed.
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Only costs of materials/services that are directly related to the scope of the project should be charged to the project. If you have any questions, please contact Aurelia Carter (576-8179), Shu Sears (574-4475), Teddie Reagan (574-4475), or Tom Rosseel (574-5380).
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We would also appreciate your feedback concerning the new eWFO system and the performance of the MST WFO staff.
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