National SBIR Conference – May 14-16, 2013

http://nationalinnovationsummit.com/program/National_SBIR_Conference.html

(Posted 12/28/12)

U.S. Department of Transportation releases Advanced Solutions to Capture Mobility Data – Broad Agency Announcement (BAA)

The USDOT Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Program is a research program that aims to foster transportation advancements that lead to safety, mobility and environmental impacts by promoting the development of advanced communications technologies and the use of existing technologies.

http://www.its.dot.gov/press/2012/baa_announcement.htm

(Posted 11/06/12)

National Innovation Summit – May 13-16, 2013

In support of the White House and Congressional call for innovation commercialization initiatives, the National Innovation Summit and Showcase, held jointly with the 2013 TechConnect World Conference, May 13-16 in Washington DC, delivers the world's largest showcase of the Nation's top innovations supported through our federal funding programs.

All showcasing innovations will be vetted by the TechConnect Accelerator Committee and will participate in the TechConnect Accelerator program, matched with leading investment and corporate partners. Support American Innovation by submitting your innovation or by becoming a Corporate or Technology Accelerator Partner today.

http://nationalinnovationsummit.com/

(Posted 11/06/12)

Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) Now Accepting Funding Proposals

TRB's Innovations Deserving Exploratory Analysis (IDEA) has released its annual program announcement that solicits funding proposals for the upcoming review cycles. The announcement explains the IDEA programs, describes the types of eligible projects and their funding structures, suggests general areas for which IDEA proposals can be submitted, and provides guidelines and forms for submitting proposals.

http://www.trb.org/Main/Blurbs/166553.aspx?utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=Transportation%20Research%20Board&utm_campaign=TRB+E-Newsletter+-+09-11-2012&utm_content=Customer&utm_term=

(Posted 09/11/12)

Central Contractor Registration (CCR) is Going Away -- What to Expect

On May 29, 2012, the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) system is going away. CCR, along with Federal Agency Registration (FedReg), the Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA), and the Excluded Parties List System (EPLS), will be migrated into the new System for Award Management, or SAM.

For those of you familiar with this effort, you know it will reduce the number of passwords you need to remember, reduce the number of systems you need to enter and interact with, and reduce data redundancy by sharing the data across the award lifecycle. To help you better understand how this will work, SAM training will be available online in May. Please visit SAM.gov for more information.

For more information and a list of FAQ's, click on the following link, https://www.bpn.gov/ccr/NewsDetail.aspx?id=2012&type=N

(Posted 05/22/12)

USTPO and NIST Unveil New IP Awareness Assessment Tool

The new Intellectual Property Awareness Assessment Tool developed by NIST MEP in collaboration with the US Patent and Trademark Office is now available for use. The tool is designed to guide business owners and inventor to consider critical intellectual property issues by providing customized menu of topics specific to their needs. The tool will also allow access to educational material developed by the USPTO. The IP Tool addresses Trademark, Copyright, Patent, Trade Secret, Licensing, International Rights, Strategies and IP asset Tracking. Once the simple assessment is completed the user gains access to a customized menu of educational materials on intellectual property developed by the USPTO and information on additional resources that offer helpful assistance. The intent is to help smaller manufacturers establish and employ an informed strategy to create value and protect their valuable IP assets. The tool is available on USPTO's website.

Carroll Thomas Martin
carroll.thomasmartin@nist.gov
301-975-5031

(Posted 04/13/12)

USA National Innovation Marketplace

USA National Innovation Marketplace is a digital hub with over 1,300 members. The intent of the site is to help companies, communities, colleges & citizen inventors increase innovation speed & decrease risk by accelerating innovation supply chain connections. To access the site, click on the following link:

http://innovationsupplychain.com/usa/

(Posted 02/10/12)

Government Contracting Classroom and New Contracting Courses

The Office of Government Contracting & Business Development is pleased to introduce the Government Contracting Classroom (www.sba.gov/gcclassroom) and a new 3-part series of contracting courses.

The GC Classroom is an online training destination, within SBA's Website, where small businesses can acquire the confidence and know-how to participate in the federal contracting space. The GC Classroom Classroom features free, online training modules, covering multiple topics that are all self-paced and designed to help small firms benefit from the more than $500 billion in federal contracts awarded annually. Included in the initial classroom offerings is the new 3-part contracting series. Additional contracting-focused training modules are planned, as well as accompanying support materials, such as downloadable workbooks to reinforce course instruction. The GC Classroom is a work-in-progress and will evolve over time to become a comprehensive contracting resource for small businesses.

The new online contracting series is called Government Contracting 101, Parts 1-3. Each part is uniquely represented in a separate module and is distinctly designed to expand a firm's knowledge base about federal contracting.

Part 1 is foundational and provides an overview of federal contract markets as well as a description and discussion about all major small business contracting programs.

Part 2 is designed to help small firms understand how the government buys goods and services. It details the contracting methods and standardized procedures used by agency contracting officers.

Part 3 is about how to sell to the government. This part, which is both comprehensive and realistic, is all about marketing. It walks small businesses through the basics and describes and discusses marketing directly to agencies, using procurement vehicles, and importantly, how to track and find contract and subcontract opportunities.

You can learn more about the GC Classroom by visiting the GC Classroom at www.sba.gov/gcclassroom

(Posted 02/07/12)

U.S. DOT Small business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program Success Stories

Four new DOT SBIR Program success stories have been posted on the U.S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) website:
http://www.sbir.gov/success-stories-by-agency/128

The success stories feature SBIR projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Since its inception, the DOT SBIR Program has provided incentive funding to small businesses to translate their innovative ideas into commercial products that address key transportation problems. These innovations are the primary source of new technologies that can provide improve the safety and efficiency of the nation's transportation network. The SBIR Program has helped spawn successful commercial ventures that not only improve the transportation network, but also create jobs, increase productivity and economic growth and enhance our nation's global competitiveness. The DOT SBIR Program is administered by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center).

(Posted 01/20/12)

Small Business Administration (SBA) launches new web portal for SBIR/STTR Programs.

The new SBIR.gov is here! With a comprehensive database, robust search engine, user-friendly designer, and useful new content, the new SBIR.gov will help small businesses that are part of or may become part of the SBIR or STTR programs,

http://www.sbir.gov

(Posted 09/27/11)