The Dept. of Defense issued its 2013.2 SBIR pre-solicitation on April 24, opening a 30-window during which you can talk directly to its Technical Points of Contact (TPOCs), before proposals may be submitted beginning on May 24. Why bother talking to a TPOC?  

Here’s why:

1. The TPOC is often the author of the topic and so is most knowledgeable about its intent.
2. During the 30-day pre-solicitation period, your conversation with the TPOC is private. Once that period is over, you can post questions – anonymously – to the SBIR/STTR Interactive Topic Information System (SITIS) for technical clarification only, but your questions and responses will be public. (Conversely, you can gain information by monitoring the questions/answers of others, but the answers will likely be nowhere near what you can glean from a one-on-one conversation.).
3. This is your opportunity to learn the parameters of the topic, ask technical questions, get clarification, and gauge whether and how well your technology meets the objective.

Even if you don’t talk to the TPOC, be sure you note who it is, because once the actual solicitation begins, TPOC names and contact information are withdrawn from view. A couple more BBCetc pointers:

• Topics are sometimes altered based on the questions received during the pre-solicitation, or even withdrawn, so be sure to double check the topics when the actual solicitation period begins.
• Always, always, always read the solicitation carefully. There’s no replacement for this invaluable step, which answers many questions and provides key pointers. 

Here are those dates again:
April 24 – DOD Pre-Solicitation released; Talk to your TPOC now!
May 24 – Solicitation opens and TPOC communication ends
June 26 – Proposal deadline 6 PM (ET)

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Becky Aistrup is a BBCetc Principal Consultant specializing in the DOD, NASA and DHS SBIR/STTR programs. 

It’s a fact the money’s out there. But why should more established companies investigate SBIR/STTR as an opportunity and what do they need to be successful?

The SBIR/STTR programs are all about innovation and commercialization. Established small businesses know how to commercialize a product or they wouldn’t be “established.” They exist today because they excel at serving the needs of their customers. That experience gives them a decided advantage over companies that are still developing their first product or service.

The more important question is how do more established companies rate on the innovation scale? To answer that question each company should evaluate its capabilities and track record. Does it actively engage in research and/or new product development? Have these activities resulted in marketable products? Does the company have experience in-licensing technology? Has it ever collaborated with a university or other research organization?

Expertise in new product development is essential for companies to be competitive in SBIR/STTR. Assuming that capability exists, a company can use these programs to supplement their internal R&D budget or to partially fund diversification into new business areas. Possible scenarios for diversification include:

• High-risk/high-reward projects that do not meet the criteria for internal funding
• Development of a new technology that is in-licensed
• A new product idea that is being jointly developed with another company

Innovation implies technical risk. If there’s no risk involved, the project is primarily an engineering exercise and outside of the scope of SBIR/STTR. Remember, whether the project succeeds or fails, the SBIR/STTR award need not be paid back … and if any new intellectual property is created it belongs to the company.
This federal funding might be “free” money but it’s not “easy.” Companies should plan to spend significant time and energy in learning the rules of the game, identifying the appropriate projects and collaborators, and writing a competitive proposal. Fortunately, help is available.  For example, the state of Michigan funds an SBIR/STTR assistance program through BBC that can provide support at every step of the process. Click here to learn more about the Michigan program.   BBC also works in many other states.  Check out our capabilities here, or contact us at 734-930-9741 or info@bbcetc.com.

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Michael Kurek, PhD, is Partner at BBCetc

The title and Abstract affect how NIH will assign your application and report your research dollars to Congress, and NIH referral officers depend on these to assign your application to the most appropriate Study Section and Institute.

Your title should be unique. Make sure it differs from any other applications or awards and has suitable keywords so NIH referral staff assign your application to the correct institute and study section.

An SBIR/STTR Phase II application should have the same title as the previously awarded Phase I grant.

Please Note: You have only 81 characters to describe your project (including spaces and punctuation). Thanks to a quirk of the application forms it will allow you to type in more than 81 characters into the title field, but this will be truncated on the application, which makes for some mysterious titles, so please watch out for this.

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Andrea Johanson is a BBCetc Principal Consultant and expert in the NIH SBIR/STTR Program.

1. Submission deadline, project duration, and maximum budgets
differ between the two solicitations.

2. Both the SBIR and STTR solicitations will consider proposals in four broad topic areas of:
Biological and Chemical Technologies
Education Applications
Electronics, Information and Communication Technologies
Nanotechnology, Advanced Materials, and Manufacturing

3. Restrictions applicable to both programs include:
Maximum of 2 proposals per organization (e.g., 2 SBIRs, 2 STTRs, or 1 of each)
Maximum of 1 proposal per Principal Investigator (either SBIR or STTR)
4. Of specific note pertaining to the STTR Phase I solicitation – it encourages the commercialization of research with an “NSF funding lineage”.

“This STTR Phase I solicitation aims at encouraging the commercialization of previously NSF-funded fundamental research (NSF funding lineage). It is highly desirable that the core innovation described in the submitted proposals can in some manner be linked to fundamental research funded by the NSF.”

5. Registration at both sbir.gov and SAM is required.

6. Eligibility requirements for the applicant Small Business Concern (SBC) conform to the new reauthorization rules.

7. Communication with the appropriate Program Director is strongly encouraged. You will find the relevant contact information in the topic descriptions (see item #2 above). You will also find specific instructions as to how to contact them and what information to provide.

Now is the time to start if you are considering an application to NSF. Don’t hesitate to contact the team at BBC if you have questions or for additional guidance.

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Michael Kurek,PhD, is Managing Partner of BBCetc

A Riddle:

Answer: Registrations to submit SBIR/STTR proposals!

It never fails. No matter how much we beg, plead and cajole, we still have companies that start the process too late and/or don’t pay enough attention to the details (and there are many!). The ramifications? Failure to submit!

Therefore we ask that you add just one more resolution to your 2013 list.  Do it right! Start early. Worry about details.

Remember: every agency has its own requirements, typically involving multiple individual registrations. And if that isn’t bad enough, 2013 is likely to see more registration requirements as changes from reauthorization are implemented.

To help you start the year off right we’ve added a new page to our website.  The Registration Requirements page includes a convenient table that highlights the various registration requirements of all the agencies. The agency names and registration types are hyperlinked to help you find the relevant information. Still confused??  If so don’t hesitate to contact us (WITH PLENTY OF TIME BEFORE THE DEADLINE) and we’ll be happy to help.

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Lisa Kurek is Managing Partner of BBCetc.

Through the SBIR/STTR programs, 11 federal agencies award over $2.3 billion in non-dilutive grants and contracts annually through a competitive awards-based process. The programs encourage technology-based businesses to explore ideas and profit from their commercialization. They are a great way for technology-based companies to raise money without giving up equity.

Historically, women- and minority-owned businesses have been underrepresented in the SBIR/STTR programs, although there is renewed emphasis on improving outreach to these groups.

FASTconnect, a Michigan-based program to assist the state’s SBIR awardees in their product commercialization efforts, is also working to increase SBIR/STTR participation among women and minorities. In collaboration with TechTown, Wayne State University, Inforum Michigan, and the Michigan Minority Supplier Development Council (MMSDC), a FASTconnect pilot program seeks to educate women and minorities in Southeast Michigan about these funding opportunities and help them through the application process. Further support for participants is provided by the Michigan SBIR/STTR Assistance Program, which makes one-on-one SBIR/ STTR proposal preparation assistance available to qualified companies with costs covered in whole or in part by the state.

FASTconnect has been made possible by grants from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). Both FASTconnect and the Michigan SBIR/STTR Assistance Program are managed by BBC Entrepreneurial Training and Consulting. BBCetc specializes in helping emerging companies win SBIR/STTR funding and using it strategically to propel growth. For more information about both programs and BBCetc, visit www.bbcetc.com or contact Kristin Burgard, Principal Consultant, at kristin@bbcetc.com or 734-930-9741.

What qualifies as research and development (R&D) is much broader than commonly realized. Activities and costs associated with developing or improving a product and/or process can potentially generate R&D tax credits. For example:

• Manufacturers of all kinds including those that design and develop their own products, as well as those (i.e. “job shops/contract manufacturers”) that make parts for their OEM customers, are often unknowingly engaged in research and development. Metal stampers and fabricators, precision machinists, mold builders and plastic injection molders, and tool and die-makers are examples of industries that are regularly eligible for the tax credit, but often don’t pursue the credit because they don’t understand that many of their day-to-day activities DO qualify as R&D.
• Significant R&D also routinely takes place in software development and other technology companies, and these organizations may also benefit from the tax incentive.

The legislation also included minor modifications around the rules for acquisitions and Control Groups.

In addition to the federal R&D Tax Credit, many states also have state R&D Tax Credits that can provide even more tax benefit.  Click here for more about the R&D Tax Credit and your company’s potential opportunity.

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Guest blogger, Scott Schmidt, is Principal at the Black Line Group, an independent firm that focuses exclusively on providing R&D tax credit expertise to small and mid-size business owners. Contact Scott at 763-550-0111 or scott@blacklinegrp.com, or visit the Black Line website at www.blacklinegrp.com.

Timing of the RPPR implementation will be different for each agency (naturally!). The Dept. of Energy has already implemented RPPR. NIH expects to require its use for non-competing reporting starting in spring 2013, with full implementation in July 2013. NSF anticipates a January 2013 release, and DoD does not expect to release until 2014. All agency implementation plans are listed here.

For NIH recipients, the RPPR will eventually replace the current eSNAP procedure for filing annual or other interim performance reports. The reports will be integrated into the eCommons. More information on NIH implementation is at: grants.nih.gov/grants/rppr/#implementation.

Blissfully, each agency will be collecting the same information using their respective websites, which, at a minimum, will be:

1. Basic institutional and project identifying data
2. Accomplishments from past activity period and goals for the upcoming activity period
3. Outcomes or “products” from the activity such as technologies and publications
4. Participants, including all persons that have contributed significantly to the activity, the role, their activity and their funding support. This section also asks about collaborators, including foreign collaborators.
5. Impact of the project and major contributions: e.g. to the discipline, human resources (e.g. teaching, training), public knowledge, social conditions
6. Changes to the project: delay in plans, changes in approach, compliance (animal use, human subject involvement, biohazards), project expenditures

Other agency-specific information may also be requested. Taking some time to check it out now will help you understand what you will be required to report and save you from wasting effort later.

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Kris Bergman consults with BBC clients on matters of grants and contracts management.

If the low incidence of waste, fraud and abuse is interesting, data presented at a recent SBIR conference that 60 to 80% of cases investigated by agency inspectors general are initiated by disgruntled former employees is, while perhaps not astounding, eye opening.

What constitutes waste, fraud and abuse? The Dept. of Energy website has a concise description of the typical types of fraud in the SBIR/STTR program, both during the application process and following award. Here is what they outline:

Fraud during the application process:

• Submitting a plagiarized proposal
• Providing false information regarding the company, the Principal Investigator or the work to be performed
• Seeking funding for work that has already been completed

Fraud during the award:

• Using award funds for any use other than the proposed activities
• Submitting plagiarized reports or reports falsely claiming work has been completed
• Claiming results for an award that were funded by a different source

Here are some ways to avoid potential issues related to fraud:

• Disclose duplicate/overlapping proposals.
• If submitting multiple proposals, clearly state what is different. 
• Makes sure you understand, meet and remain compliant with the SBIR eligibility requirements for small businesses 
• Follow the project budget as awarded. Notify the agency, and request approval where appropriate, if changes are needed.

Per the SBA policy directive: failure to comply with federal cost principles governing an award is considered Waste, Fraud and Abuse.

• “But for the certifications you would not have gotten the award” (translation: be sure you understand and comply with all of the rules!)

Best advice: do as your mother told you, read and follow instructions and always tell the truth.

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Lisa Kurek is Managing Partner of BBCetc

Changes resulting from reauthorization are being phased in, with some already in effect and others that will be implemented throughout 2013. Probably the most challenging aspect of reauthorization is that the 11 agencies have a lot of latitude in how, and in some cases if, they adopt many of the various provisions included in the legislation. What does that mean for SBIR/STTR applicants? It means that you MUST refer to upcoming agency-specific solicitations to see what changes will be applied and how! And it means communication with relevant agency personnel can be key to your success in understanding and responding to the various changes as they are released.

Interested in learning more about the details of reauthorization as they were presented at the conference? Would you like to get a heads up on some of the agency-specific changes in the works? Are you aware of the heightened attention to “Fraud, Waste and Abuse” in the SBIR program and why it is so important for every applicant? Do you understand just how important communication with agencies and the SBA can be to the future of SBIR/STTR and your successful participation? These specific questions were addressed in BBC’s recent webinar where Lisa and Becky provided a “Recap of the 2012 National SBIR Conference”. Good news for those of you who missed it – Jayne has a recording of the webinar that we are happy to provide to any of you that are interested. To request a copy please email Jayne at jayne@bbcetc.com.

Take home message?? To be effective with your SBIR/STTR proposals and to help make sure that the SBIR/STTR programs are effectively helping you meet your commercialization goals you need to communicate! Visit BBC’s SBIR/STTR page regularly for updates on solicitation dates. Participate in our webinars and training events. And don’t hesitate to contact us with questions, for advice, and for help with your SBIR/STTR projects and proposals.

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Lisa Kurek, Managing Partner, BBCetc