The NIH in conjunction with the CDC has released their annual contract solicitation. Unlike most NIH SBIR/STTR announcements, the contract solicitation requests applications on specific topics and will not accept investigator initiated research projects. Participants in this solicitation include seven Institutes/Centers from the NIH and five Centers from the CDC. Topics are specific but include research areas such as Imaging of Cancer Stem Cells to Computer Assisted Sperm Analysis. (Did I get your attention? And no, I’m not kidding.)
Budgets vary by topic and range from $100,000 to $250,000 for a Phase I and $750,000 to $2M for a Phase II. Do not ask for one penny over the budget cap! FastTrack applications will be accepted.
Applications, unfortunately, are paper based and due on the desk of the NIH at 5:00PM, November 9, 2009.
For more information go here or contact us to discuss your application.
The Department of Energy (DOE) has added $37 million to the pot for SBIR/STTR Awards ($8.5 million for Phase I awards). This is in addition to the $9 million already allocated to the SBIR/STTR Phase I awards. Thanks the Recovery Act, these additional funds will be awarded to technologies that improve energy efficiency. Topics include:
· Advanced building air conditioning and refrigeration, thermal load shifting, and cool roofs
· Water usage in electric power generation and industrial processes
· Power plant cooling
· Advanced gas turbines and materials
· Sensors, controls, and wireless networks
· Advanced water power technology development
· Smart controllers for smart grid applications
· Advanced solar technologies
· Advanced industrial technologies development
· Advanced manufacturing processes
The deadline is still September 4th, so it will be VERY tight if you were not already planning on submitting (writing a quality proposal and registering for submission CAN take several weeks for first-time submitters). If you are submitting, these funds will allow an increased chance of funding.
Phase I awards are up to $150,000 for a period of six months to demonstrate the feasibility of the ideas that appear to have commercial potential. Read the DOE’s SBIR/STTR solicitation for proposal and submission instructions.
The NSF has released its 2010 STTR solicitation. Proposals may not exceed a $150,000 budget or a 12-month timeframe to conduct a Phase I feasibility study. Proposals are due November 17th at 5:00 PM.
This solicitation has one topic: "Multi-Functional Materials (MM)" with 4 subtopics:
A. Bio-inspired Materials and Systems (BMS)
B. Materials for Energy Generation and Storage (ME)
C. Materials for Sustainability (MS)
D. Nanostructured Materials (NM)
E. Smart Materials and Structures (SMS)
Proposals must address one of these subtopics. Instructions and proposal details can be found in the solicitation. Note: For STTRs, a company must subcontract with a non-profit research institute for 30-60% of the research.
The Department of Energy released its SBIR/STTR combined solicitation. Proposals will be due at 8:00 pm, Friday, September 4th.The emphasis will be on investing clean energy technologies and U.S. jobs. Approximately 60 awards of $150,000 will be made for Phase I feasibility studies.
Topics include:1) advanced building air conditioning and refrigeration, thermal load shifting, and cool roofs; 2) water usage in electric power production and industrial processes ; 3) power plant cooling; 4) advanced gas turbines and materials; 5) sensors, controls, and wireless networks; 6) advanced water power technology development; 7) smart controllers for smart grid applications; 
advanced solar technologies; 9) advanced industrial technologies development; and 10) advanced manufacturing processes
Unlike previous DOE SBIR/STTR, this funding falls under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act which might have additional requirements–read solicitation CAREFULLY. See the DOE SBIR site for application instructions, topic descriptions, and more details.
The Department of Defense released two solicitations for its
sub-agencies: one is an SBIR solicitation and one is an STTR solicitation. SBIR proposals will be ONLY accepted from the
2009.3 solicitation topics and STTR proposals will ONLY be accepted from the
2009.B solicitation topics. For more
information and proposal preparation details, please carefully read the
appropriate solicitation.
The DOD will begin accepting proposals on August 24th
and will close at 6:00 AM on September 23rd. Prior to August 24th
you may (and are HIGHLY ENCOURAGED) to contact the matching Topic Manager for
the topic that fits your technical expertise to ask additional technical
questions not outlined in the topic itself. To search specifically for DOD topics, visit
the DOD search engine.
NASA just released their 2009 SBIR and STTR Solicitation.
Topics range from sensor or detector development to aviation safety. Awards in the amount of $100,000 may be requested for a Phase I SBIR or STTR and up to $600,000 for a Phase II SBIR or STTR. If you are applying for an STTR the Principle Investigator may employed by either the collaborating Research Institute or the applicant Small Business Concern.
Proposals are due on September 3rd, 2009 at 5:00 PM EDT. All applications must be submitted electronically.
If you would like assistance with your proposal contact SBIR GA!
In a
press release issued last Tuesday the NIH reported a record number of grants submitted on April 27th in response to the Challenge Grant RFA. Each of the 20,000 applications will be reviewed by 3 scientific reviewers and a summary statement compiled. This process will require more than 18,000 scientists to complete. To put it into perspective the NIH reviews approximately 16,000 applications in each of 3 rounds annually. Each round requires 8,000 reviewers.
The NIH estimates it will review approximately 40,000 applications in direct response to either the Challenge Grant or other ARRA associated funding. This process is going to require more than 28,000 reviewers.
The outcome? Approximately 200 Challenge Grants will be selected and $200 Million awarded.
If you are patiently waiting for your summary statement they are estimated to be available in August. Check your eRA Commons account.
The United States Department of Agriculture has released its 2009 SBIR Solicitation. Proposals will be due September 3rd. Phase I Awards are up to $80,000. Technologies related to agriculture manufacturing as well as alternative/renewable energy technologies are encouraged. All topic areas:
- Forests and Related Resources
- Plant Production and Protection – Biology
- Animal Production and Protection
- Air, Water and Soils
- Food Science and Nutrition
- Rural Development
- Aquaculture
- Biofuels and Biobased Products
- Marketing and Trade
- Animal Manure Management
- Small and Mid-Size Farms
- Plant Production and Protection – Engineering
See the solicitation for full details on these topics as well as the topic managers for each–companies are encouraged to contact the topic managers early to discuss the suitability of their proposed technology to see if it fits within the scope of the USDA.
Proposals will be submitted electronically through Grants.gov (NOTE: If you have never submitted proposals, the registration process can take a few weeks, so start early!)
Two new solicitations from the NIH were released yesterday that will be of interest to the bioscience small business community. While only one uses the SBIR R43 funding mechanism the other is open to for-profit entities and those with fewer than 500 employees will be given preference. A few pertinent details on each are described below. I encourage all applicable small businesses to apply.
You will never know if you don't try
Both have a submission date of:
September 1, 2009, 5PM local time
Letters of Intent are not required but encouraged and due on:
August 3, 2008
Discuss your application with an NIH Program Manager prior to composing your proposal.
The purpose of this funding opportunity is to bridge the "valley of death" that occurs between research and development and market launch. This is similar to the NCI's SBIR Bridge Award. Preliminary pre-clinical work is encouraged. If you need to complete activities for regulatory filings such as an IND application these funds are for you.
A Budget of up to $1M in total costs for up to 3 years may be proposed. $35M has been committed to this funding opportunity and the NIH anticipates awarding 10 grants in FY2010.
This funding opportunity uses the SBIR R43 mechanism which means it is only open to small businesses. HIgh-risk, high-return opportunities are encouraged to apply. If you are curious whether your project meets those specifications contact one of the program managers listed in the solicitation (linked above).
A Budget of up to $200K in total costs for up to 1 year may be requested. $5M has been committed to this funding opportunity and 20 to 25 awards are anticipated.
If you are a Georgia company and would like assistance with your proposal please contact us.
The DOD officially opened its 2009.2 SBIR solicitation yesterday. Proposals will continue to be accepted until 6:00 AM on June 17 (check out the solicitation for more details on this submission).
Meanwhile, the Air Force has already pre-released a draft of its 2009.3 SBIR topics. There are 224 Draft topicslisted in this pre-release. This gives you extra time to start fostering partnerships with contractors/primes, talk with the topic managers to find out more specifics, and write a clear proposal. It's NEVER too early to start!