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| About WSSI | About SBIR/STTR | Getting Started | Wyoming Award Winners | News & Events |
| 1.0 DOE SOLICITATION AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER 21 The Department of Energy will soon begin accepting Phase I grant applications from qualified small businesses for the upcoming FY 2006 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program. A detailed Funding Opportunity Announcement, Opportunity Number DE-FG01-05ER05-28, describing research areas in which applications are sought will be available beginning September 21, 2005, at e-center.doe.gov. Small businesses with strong research capabilities in science or engineering in any of the research areas sought are encouraged to apply. The deadline for submission of grant applications is December 2, 2005, at 8:00 p.m. EST. Applications will only be accepted electronically. Successful applicants (approximately 260 for SBIR and 30 for STTR) may receive up to $100,000 for a Phase I grant for a period of about nine months to develop the feasibility of the idea. Phase I awardees may apply for Phase II funding up to $750,000 for those ideas with the highest potential to meet program objectives. For more information pertaining to the programs including a list of the research areas, go to www.science.doe.gov/sbir or call 301-903-1414. DOE IS NOT ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS UNTIL SEPTEMBER 21. APPLICATIONS RECEIVED PRIOR TO THE OPENING DATE WILL NOT BE REVIEWED. Please note:
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| 2.0 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION RELEASES SBIR/STTR SOLICITATION The National Science Foundation has released their FY06 SBIR/STTR Solicitation (NSF 05-557). The main topics for this solicitation are: Proposals will be accepted beginning November 8, 2005 and the closing date is December 8, 2005. Subtopics offered under the main topics can be found by linking to the main topic. More information and a complete copy of the solicitation can be found at www.nsf.gov/eng/sbir/. return to CONTENTS |
| 3.0 OTHER NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION OPPORTUNITY Manufacturing Enterprise Systems (MES) SYNOPSIS Among the categories of research supported are the following:
DUE DATES Details on this program can be found at: www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=13342&org=DMII&from=fund return to CONTENTS |
4.0 GRANT WRITING OPPORTUNITIES
This two-day workshop is designed for small business concerns as well as county and non-profit personnel who are interested in writing grant proposals, have written grant proposals, or have assisted another person in grant proposal submission. This will be a hands-on intensive seminar. The following topics will be discussed: Come to the workshop with a RFP/solicitation/project in hand - either one you have begun or an idea for a proposal that you would like to complete. Each participant will receive a workbook that provides guidance through the proposal process and will begin to prepare their grant proposal. Workshop Facilitator: Sheela Schermetzler This workshop will be held in Gillette: Enrollment limited to 25
The Western Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors (WAAESD), Washington State University (WSU), and the University of Idaho (U of I) are pleased to host a two day Grantsmanship Workshop on Sept 28 and Sept 29, 2005. The workshop will be held at the University Inn, Moscow, Idaho. This is a two-day workshop, beginning at 7 a.m. and concluding at approximately 4:30 p.m. The workshop is designed for an audience of researchers, extension specialists, educators, and administrators. The registration fee is for $175.00 for both days. The fee does not include the Hotel, but does include materials, breakfast and lunch both days, and a reception on Wednesday night. The first day will feature USDA Funding Opportunities, with an emphasis on the National Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program (NRICGP); Higher Education and Multicultural Alliances Programs; Integrated Research, Education and Extension Programs; Children Youth and Families at Risk Program; and Pest Management Alternatives Program (PMAP). CSREES staff responsible for the administration of the various programs will make presentations. The morning session will provide a general overview of competitive funding opportunities available through CSREES. This will include discussion of new developments and special issues that affect CSREES Competitive Program funding and grants administration. The session will also include information on writing more competitive proposals and grant applications. A working lunch will include presentations on tips for writing successful proposals by former Panel Managers of CSREES. Breakout sessions will be offered in the afternoon to provide an opportunity for participants to interact with CSREES program staff and address issues associated with specific projects. Each registrant will have the opportunity to participate in three of the breakout sessions. The second day will feature "Writing Winning Grants" with Tom Fretz and Michael Harrington. Grant writing has changed dramatically over the past decade. While single investigator proposals are still the mainstay for many programs and investigators, increasingly agencies are requesting multi-discipline, multi-functional and multi-institutional proposals with stakeholder input and expectations of the eventual transfer of useful outcomes. The workshop will assist faculty with both research and extension appointments with the development of proposals in agriculture, natural resources, food safety, and nutrition, etc. The day-long workshop is designed for early career and experienced faculty, graduate students and administrators involved in each step of the proposal development and submission process. The workshop will lead participants through the process of developing a successful grant submission, with many hints gained for years of experience on all sides of the process. We will discuss what constitutes a successful proposal, how to participate in the review process, proposal organization, and the development of integrated team proposals and much more. Equally important, to the successful proposal, the workshop will also highlight those common errors - or what should be avoided. Practical hints will be presented, many which will not be found in a traditional agency lead grantsmanship workshop. For example, which proposal tends to be the most successful in the review process - the first proposal into the agency or the last? The recently developed and revised text, Principles of Grantsmanship - Version 2, as well as other handouts will be used. For additional information contact the University of Idaho; Phone: 208-885-7173; Email: Agres@uidaho.edu |
| 5.0 6th ANNUAL WYOMING WOMEN'S CONFERENCE TO BE HELD IN DUBOIS On Saturday, September 10, the Wyoming Women's Business Center will host the 6th Annual Wyoming Women's Conference, Create Your Sustainable Future: From Solid Personal Financial Foundations to Lasting Business Success. The Conference will be held at Headwaters Arts & Conference Center, 20 Stalnaker Street, Dubois. The annual Wyoming Women's Conferences create opportunities for women and men from across the state to meet, network, and participate in a variety of workshops and discussions. This year's conference is made possible by a grant from the American Express Foundation, Headwaters Arts & Conference Center, Bank of Jackson Hole, Dubois Branch, Wells Fargo Bank in Dubois, and the U.S. Small Business Administration. The conference will be divided into two tracks: Personal Financial Management and Business. The Personal Financial Management Track will feature: Five Steps to Financial Security, Creating a Spending Plan and Health Care for Children, Increasing Assets/Decreasing Debt and Understanding Credit, and Long-Term Financial Security. The Business Track workshops include Increasing Profits by Adding Value, Secrets of eCommerce, Funding Sources, Government Contracting, and International Trade, and Sustainable Marketing. Margo Covington of Santa Fe, NM, will present the luncheon keynote address, Building Partnerships for Sustainable Business Practices. The fee for the conference is $40 and includes continental breakfast, snacks, lunch, and a networking reception. A limited number of tables will be available for vendors to display and sell their products and services for an additional fee. For a list of Dubois lodging options, visit www.wyomingwomen.org. Conference lodging must be reserved by August 22. You must register for the conference by Thursday, September 1. For registration and information call the Wyoming Women's Business Center in Laramie at 766-3084, toll-free in Wyoming at 888-524-1947, or go to www.wyomingwomen.org for a mail-in registration form. The Wyoming Women's Business Center provides equal opportunities for all people in the state without regard to race, sex, color, creed, age, national origin, sexual identity, disability, economic, social or marital status, or political or religious beliefs. The Wyoming Women's Business Center is partially funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration. SBA funding is not an endorsement of any products, opinions, or services. All SBA funded programs are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable arrangements for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Please direct questions or comments to the WWBC at 307-766-3084 or 888-524-1947. return to CONTENTS |
| 6.0 GRO-BIZ SPONSORS VETERAN OWNED BUSINESS CONFERENCE OCTOBER 19, 2005 IN ROCK SPRINGS The Wyoming GRO-Biz (Government Resources and Opportunities for Business) office will be holding a Veteran Owned Business Conference October 19, 2005 in Rock Springs. The Conference will be held at the Holiday Inn and will be a one day event starting at 8:00 a.m. and concluding at 5:00 p.m. Participating agencies include: General Services Administration (GSA), Veterans Administration, Army Corps of Engineers, Hill AFB, and the National Park Service. There will be opportunities to attend training sessions or to meet one on one with officials from the various agencies. All presentations and training will be targeted to veteran owned businesses and the opportunities they have in the government contracting arena. The luncheon will include a presentation by a representative from The Center for Veterans Enterprise.
GRO-Biz is a partnership program funded by the Defense Logistics Agency, Wyoming Business Council, University of Wyoming and included with the Small Business Development Center. GRO-biz helps Wyoming's businesses sell their services and products to federal, state, and local governments.. GRO-Biz's marketing specialists help identify opportunities and understand the process from start to finish, so you can compete for a share of this business. Resources available are trained counselors, computer bid information and databases of procurement history that may help you with pricing and a knowledge and understanding of government contracting procedures. Armed with these valuable tools and skills, GRO-Biz is ready to help your business or service grow through government contracting. All Services are Free and Confidential. return to CONTENTS |
7.0 UPCOMING CONFERENCES/TRAININGS/SEMINARS/WORKSHOPS
Investing In A Brighter Future, Building Tech-based Economies Overview: For a few days this fall, more than 300 of the nation's greatest thinkers and practitioners for building tech-based economies will convene in Atlanta. All of them will find answers in Atlanta - at the premier professional development event of the year for the tech-based economic development community. The only question remaining is will you be among them? Complete information is available on the SSTI's website at: www.ssti.org/conference05.htm.
What to expect at SSTI’s 9th Annual Conference
CAN YOU NEGOTIATE THE BEST DEAL? - There's more to licensing your innovation than you might think. Plan to attend: MonTEC, 1121 E. Broadway, Missoula, MT Workshop presenter Marti Elder is a seasoned licensing agent and commercialization consultant who, as principle of her Bozeman-based company, has worked with clients in Montana, throughout the nation and internationally.
Elder will guide workshop participants through the licensing process by sharing her expertise on a range of topics, including: Complete workshop information is available at: sbir.state.mt.us/Licensing or contact Linda Brander @ (406) 841-2749 or lbrander@mt.gov.
Whether you are new to the Program, have received your first Phase I, or are a multiple award winner, the sessions offered in Albany this Fall will help you enhance your participation in the SBIR/STTR Program. Sessions will focus on information you need in order to take Your Concept all the way through the Program to Commercialization. Tips on how to Leverage Resources to make the most of Your Potential will be provided during the three tracks of programming. Complete conference information is available at: 2005 National Fall Conference The Advance Full Registration Fee, received by October 25, is $350. Registrations received after October 25 and On-Site will be $425. In addition to Full Conference Registration, one or multiple-day Registrations are available, as are discounts for multiple attendees (3 or more) from a single small business (less than 500 employees). Please note that pre-Conference registration will close on Tuesday, November 1. After this date, registration will only be available On-site in Albany. |
| 8.0 COMPETITION TIP: BUILD EFFECTIVE TEAMS!!! SBIR competition has many analogies to team sports competition - in fact, many consider SBIR competition to be a sport! In both, the skills and wits of one team are pitted against those of others. And in both, the objective is to win. Winning sports teams have strength and balance at all positions. Similarly, a small business must strive to build an SBIR competition team with a complete set of required capabilities in order to win. Required skills may include (for example) science, technology, analysis, experimental methods and facilities, marketing, commercialization, business management (including legal and accounting), technical writing, proposal review and others. Deficiencies in even one of these areas can expose an Achilles heel that compromises a competition process, and prevents a win. Masters of SBIR competition draw on all resources available to assemble winning competition teams. University faculty and facilities are key partners in SBIR competition, especially in rural states. For example, all but two of the 37 Phase 1 awards to Wyoming small businesses have had a university connection. Other teaming resources include large and small businesses, consultants, outreach personnel, and others. So, take advantage of available resources, and assemble a complete set of required resources. With each team member focusing on what he/she can CONTRIBUTE, and not being inordinately concerned with what they will RECEIVE from the activity, a coherent, effective and winning team will be developed. The value of effective project management sometimes is discounted by members of a project team as extraneous to their efforts, and perhaps not all that important anyway. They may choose to focus instead the details of their technical work. But like an excellent quality assurance program, the project management is most effective when performing team members "buy in" and "take ownership" of the process. Give effective project management high priority. The success of the project and the small business enabled by it!!! This competition tip first appeared in the September 24, 1999 issue of the Wyoming SBIR Newsletter. Follow this link to a complete set of Competition Tips. return to CONTENTS |
| 9.0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND PUBLICATION INFORMATION TO BE ADDED TO OR REMOVED FROM THE DISTRIBUTION LIST FOR THIS NEWSLETTER, SEND NAME, ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER, AND EMAIL ADDRESS TO jillkline@vcn.com. Prepared by: Jill Kline, WSSI Outreach Coordinator, 307.682.2660 or toll free in Wyoming, 866.703.3280, jillkline@vcn.com, and Gene Watson, WSSI Program Manager, 307.742.7162, ewatson@wyoming.com. This newsletter is published every other week as part of the Wyoming SBIR/STTR Initiative (WSSI). The mission of the Initiative is to increase the number of federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program awards to Wyoming. The Wyoming Business Council (WBC) funds the initiative which is administered by the University of Wyoming Research Office. Please contact Jill Kline (see contact information above) with your comments. return to CONTENTS |
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