Wyoming SBIR/STTR Initiative (WSSI) Newsletter
No. 22-05
(Past Newsletter Issues)

1.0 DeltaNu LLC, LARAMIE, WINS DARPA PHASE II

Congratulations to DeltaNu in Laramie on their recent DARPA Phase II award!

Project Title: Miniature Long-Range Stand-off Imaging
Raman System for Detection of Biological Materials Principle
Principle Investigator: Keith Carron
Email: keith@deltanu.com
Award: $750,000
Non-Technical Summary:

An urgent national defense need is the ability to detect WMD chemical and biological agents and improvised explosive devices (IED) at a distance with high sensitivity and specificity. The goal of this DARPA Phase II STTR project is the development of a prototype hand-held telescopic Raman spectroscopy system capable of sensitive, high-specificity, stand-off identification of chemical (including IED explosives)and biological materials at distances of up to one kilometer, dependent upon "seeing" conditions. Among the issues addressed by this development are signal interferences from sunlight, fluorescence and other out-of-phase sources of noise. Eye safety issues are also addressed. This development will lead to a number of commercialization opportunities, especially in multiplexed bio-assay and hazmat chemical identification at long distances.

Additional information about DeltaNu can be found on their web site: www.deltanu.com

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3.0 DoED OPENS TODAY

The Department of Education issued a request for proposals (RFP Number: errd080008) for their SBIR Contract offering. Specifically, there are two priorities for this solicitation:

PRIORITY 1 -- Services, Awards up to $100,000

This priority supports research to develop effective business consulting services that can better serve the education community at both the local and state levels. The Institute of Education Sciences SBIR Program invites proposals that seek to develop a plan or a business model for the provision of such services. Examples of relevant services include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Education Data Management - There is a need to provide schools, districts and States with more effective data management tools that support their efforts to meet the standards set forth in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). An example would be a proposal or service designed to provide a particular school, a group of schools, or a local district with test results that have been condensed into readable and easily interpretable language for teacher and principal use. This service might also include the development of classroom profiles depicting students’ performance and providing recommendations on courses of action to be taken in order to enhance student achievement.
• Evidence-Driven Consulting Services - Superintendents, principals and teachers could benefit from technical assistance in applying empirically based studies about a particular content area (e.g., reading, mathematics, science) to the local context. In addition, schools that are having trouble meeting the requirements of NCLB could benefit from consulting services designed to provide them with a menu of options and strategies they could implement in order to enhance student learning and achievement.
• Financial Data Services at the School, District or State Level - These services might include the further development of existing financial software and/or the evaluation of existing commercial software to determine which product best meets the need of the school, district or state systems. Offerors are encouraged to consult the background section of the Education Finance, Leadership, and Management program solicitation for a more detailed description of the limitations the Institute sees in existing financial software. This program solicitation can be accessed at: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ies/programs.html?src=mr
• Technology Consulting Services - These services might focus on assisting schools with the selection and implementation of relevant educational technologies and most importantly, on training teachers and other relevant school personnel on how to make most effective use of these new technologies.

PRIORITY 2 -- Products, Awards up to $100,000

This priority supports the development of empirically derived educational products in the areas of reading or mathematics or science or character/pro-social development at the pre- kindergarten through post-secondary levels, including products that support teachers and administrators as well as products that are used directly by students. Offerors are encouraged to consult the background section of the individual solicitations for other Institute grant competitions in the topic areas listed above to better understand the thinking behind this priority. All relevant solicitations can be accessed at: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ies/programs.html?src=mr. Products may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Software design and/or prototypes
• Supplemental Educational Materials (i.e., workbooks, readers and professional development materials)

ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENTS
The official opening date is today, November 4, 2005 and the closing date is January 6, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. EST. Copies of the solicitation are available for download at www.fbo.gov/spg/ED/OCFO/CPO/errd080008/listing.html.

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5.0 SAVE THE DATE! WSSI STATE CONFERENCE PLANNED FOR APRIL 19, 2006 IN CHEYENNE (Inventor's Conf. 20th & 21st)

The next WSSI State Conference is currently slated for April 19 in Cheyenne in conjunction with Senator Enzi's Inventor's Conference which will follow on the 20 and 21. Mark your calendar now and watch the WSSI newsletter for updates!

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7.0 COMPETITION TIP: UNDERSTAND COST CATEGORIES!!!

There generally are two cost categories that must be presented in a SBIR proposal: direct costs and indirect costs. What is a direct cost? The Federal Acquisition Regulations (FARs) states that "A direct cost is any cost that can be identified specifically with a particular final cost objective (or project)..."

Conversely , the FARs define indirect costs to be "...any cost not directly identified with a single, final cost objective (or project), but identified with two or more final cost objectives... It is not subject to treatment as a direct cost."

Examples of direct costs for a specific project include those "identified specifically with a particular final cost objective (or project)" as noted in the second paragraph in this section above: labor, materials, travel, consultants, subcontracts, etc. Examples of indirect costs may include office and laboratory facilities, utilities, accounting, insurance, fringe benefits, and travel and labor not related to a specific grant or contract.

The FARs cover direct and indirect costs in Subchapter E (General Contracting Requirements), Part 31 (Contract Cost Principles and Procedures), Section 31.202 (Direct Costs) and Section 31.203 (Indirect Costs). The FARs in their entirety are available online at the website below - we encourage serious SBIR competitors to develop some familiarity with them.

http://www.arnet.gov/far/

Small businesses need to develop means to abide by the FARs, including their guidelines for direct and indirect costs. A frequent practice in new startups is to have one of the principals (or a designated employee) be responsible for compliance with the FARs. However, this requires investment of significant and precious hours by key persons to learn "the ropes" of cost accounting for government grants/contracts, and to satisfy FAR requirements.

Small businesses need to develop means to abide by the FARs, including their guidelines for direct and indirect costs. A frequent practice in new startups is to have one of the principals (or a designated employee) be responsible for compliance with the FARs. However, this requires investment of significant and precious hours by key persons to learn "the ropes" of cost accounting for government grants/contracts, and to satisfy FAR requirements.

Too often, inexperienced small businesspersons prepare SBIR cost proposals with virtually no basis for costs submitted, including direct and indirect costs. If awarded, the small business has no realistic chance to "live within" the proposed costs, and financial management problems are likely early in the business. Experienced SBIR Program Managers and proposal reviewers will recognize poorly prepared cost proposals, and evaluate the proposal accordingly.

So understand clearly the different cost elements for the proposed SBIR project, and develop and employ necessary resources to prepare a rational cost proposal that is an integral part of the overall plan. Make the cost proposal a strength of the proposal, not an afterthought.

This competition tip first appeared in the November 5, 1999 issue of the Wyoming SBIR Newsletter. Follow this link to a complete set of Competition Tips.

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