July 31, 2006
Wyoming SBIR/STTR
Initiative (WSSI) Newsletter
No. 8-06
(Past Newsletter Issues)
The July 31, 2006 Wyoming SBIR/STTR Initiative (WSSI) Newsletter is available in its entirety at http://www.uwyo.edu/sbir/newsletter/nwsltr_060731.htm.
This monthly newsletter is published by the Wyoming SBIR/STTR Initiative (WSSI). Please visit our website at www.uwyo.edu/sbir for complete program information (including links to participating federal agencies, support agencies, conferences, archives of this newsletter, etc.) Contact WSSI@uwyo.edu to be added to or removed from the Distribution List for this newsletter.
SOLICITATION COUNTDOWN
WSSI Phase 0:
due
5:00 p.m., 8/1/06; one day – submit to
WSSI@uwyo.edu
HHS/NIH SBIR/STTR: due 8/1; one day
HHS ACF: due 8/3/06;
three days
USDA SBIR:
due 9/1/06; 32 days
NASA: due 9/7/06; 38
days
2006 SBIR/STTR
SOLICITATION RELEASE SCHEDULE – All Agencies
CONTENT
1.0 Important WSSI Event - August 10
2.0 Federal SBIR Program Managers Come to Wyoming - September 13
3.0 Congratulations to our July Phase 0 Award Winners
4.0 PHS/NIH/CDC to Release 2007 Contracts Solicitation
5.0 Square One System Design Awarded $1.5MM
6.0 WSSI Program Manager Testifies at Senate Hearing
7.0 SBIR Gateway Insider Newsletter
8.0 The 2007 Farm Bill and Rural Entrepreneurship
9.0 Next National SBIR Conference in Milwaukee November 6-9
10.0 Acknowledgements and Publication Information
1.0 Important WSSI event - August 10
Manufacturing-Works is holding their annual awards event in Sheridan on August 8-10. The WSSI will make presentations featuring SBIR emphasis on manufacturing innovation. Full details can be found at http://www.manufacturing-works.com/awardsCeremony.htm .
A special WSSI SBIR workshop will be held on Thursday, August 10 conducted by Mark Henry of TechBizSolutions, Inc. of Boulder. The workshop begins at 9 AM and runs until noon. Mark will be available for one-on-one counseling following the workshop. Please submit your name to WSSI@uwyo.edu for one-on-one scheduling. As many of you know Mark is one of the most knowledgeable and successful SBIR coaches in the country so don't miss this opportunity. There is no charge.
2.0 FEDERAL SBIR MANAGERS COME TO WYOMING SEPTEMBER 13
Each year, the federal SBIR agencies sponsor a SWIFT bus tour of rural states. This year’s tour includes a stop in Wyoming. The event will be held at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel in Casper on September 13. This is a rare opportunity to visit one-on-one with representatives from all the federal SBIR agencies. The program starts with a continental breakfast from 7-8 AM followed by agency presentations. There will be a buffet luncheon followed by an afternoon program featuring panel discussions by successful Wyoming SBIR participants. Don’t miss this important FREE event. Go to: http://uwadmnweb.uwyo.edu/SBIR/SWIFTconfinfo.html
3.0 CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR JULY WSSI PHASE 0 AWARDEES
Z4 Energy Systems,
Guernsey
Principal Investigator: Kevin M. Luke
Email: z4energy@earthlink.net
Phase 0 Title: Self-Governing Aeroelastic Rotor for Small-Scale Wind
Turbine
Phase I Target: USDA/Rural and Community Development
Elk Mountain Herbs, Inc.,
Laramie
Principal Investigator: Karin M. Guernsey
Email:
emh1@ElkMountainHerbs.com
Phase 0 Title: Cultivating a Sustainable Supply of an
Alternative/Specialty Crop: Wyoming's Medicinal Herb Elephant Head
Phase I Target: USDA/Small Business Innovation Research: Small and Mid
Sized Farms
JD Manufacturing, LLC,
Pine Bluffs
Principal Investigator: Jerome Michaud
Email:
jdmanufacturing@yahoo.com
Phase 0 Title: Development of a Continuous Flow Vacuum Fryer
Phase I Target: USDA SBIR Solicitation for Food Science and Nutrition
Wyoming Silicon, LLC,
Sheridan
Principal Investigator: Zachary Gray
Email: zg@wyomingsilicon.com
Phase 0 Title: Low Gravity Liquid/Gas Interface Sensor
Phase I Target: NASA/X3.03 Cryo and Thermal Management
4.0 PHS/NIH/CDC to Release 2007-1 sbir contracts solicitation - www.zyn.com
The NIH has issued a prerelease announcement on the Public Health Services' (PHS) 2007-1 SBIR Contracts Solicitation which should open on or about August 7, 2006 and close on November 6, 2006. The PHS/NIH/CDC "contracts" solicitation is a separate and independent offering from NIH and is not connected to their currently open 2006-2 Omnibus SBIR/STTR Grants solicitation.
There are important differences between the NIH Grants and NIH Contracts solicitations. The topics are much more focused and specific in the Contracts solicitation, and is for SBIR only. The NIH Grants solicitation is for both SBIR and STTR, the topics are broad based and small businesses are invited to submit a proposal in any area within the mission of the awarding components. However, in the NIH Contracts solicitation, proposals are only accepted if they respond specifically to a research topic.
The Grants solicitation includes offerings from all 23 Institutes/Centers (ICs) within NIH and stays open all year with 3 receipt dates. Not all centers participate in the Contracts solicitation and there is only 1 receipt date. About 95% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Grant mechanism, and about 5% of NIH SBIR awards are made through the Contracts. The NIH SBIR web site is located at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir.htm
5.0 SQUARE ONE SYSTEMS DESIGN AWARDED $1.5MM
Square One Systems Design of Jackson recently garnered two DOE Phase II awards totaling $1.5 million. Square One received an STTR award for the development of an automated sample handling workcell for the SNS Liquids Reflectometer, partnering with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The second award, an SBIR project, is for the development of a compact crystal positioning system for neutron diffraction studies.
Congratulations to Square One founder Bob Viola and his team of Peter Carmen, Jace Walsh, Echo Miller and Cuper Richardson, for this remarkable achievement. And congratulations are also in order for enlisting the support of the Wyoming Business Council, Imagine Jackson and the town of Jackson in obtaining a badly needed facility to house their rapidly expanding technology-based enterprise. To view the entire DOE award list, go to http://www.science.doe.gov/sbir/awards_abstracts/sbirsttr/cycle23/phase2/p2_award.htm
6.0 WSSI PROGRAM MANAGER TESTIFIES AT SENATE HEARING
WSSI Program Manager Eugene Watson gave testimony on July 12 before the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship at a hearing on "Strengthening Participation of Small Businesses in Federal Contracting and Innovation Research Programs." Senators Bond, Burns and Enzi submitted follow-up questions to Watson's testimony. His responses can be seen at Response to Bond, Response to Burns. and Response to Enzi. Important issues addressed related to the hearing are the subject of the following item 7.0.
7.0 SBIR GATEWAY INSIDER NEWSLETTER - www.zyn.com
The following link is to an important discussion of the outcome of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship (SCSBE) mark up session on the SBA Reauthorization Bill of 2006. The discussion includes a number of issues affecting the future of the SBIR program, particularly as it impacts the 40 states that receive little or no venture capital investment, including Wyoming (Senator Enzi is a member of the SCSBE). The bill includes the Bond amendment which gives previously ineligible VC-owned companies access to the SBIR program. The BIO lobbying group issued a news release describing their 'victory'.
Newsletter can be viewed at http://www.zyn.com/sbir/insider/sb-insider07-28-06.htm
8.0 THE 2007 FARM BILL AND RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP
2007 is likely to be a busy year for those with an interest in supporting
rural development and rural entrepreneurship. That’s because, in 2007, Congress
will be considering reauthorization of the Farm Bill. While most people think of
the Farm Bill only as it relates to agriculture subsidies and programs, the bill
covers much more than that. In effect, it is the primary opportunity to
influence the Federal government’s approach to rural America. In an effort to
obtain community input, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Mike
Johanns has sponsored a series of Farm Bill Forums across the US. These Forums
provide rural residents with an opportunity to provide their own ideas on what
should be in the 2007 Farm Bill. A summary of these forums has been published,
and USDA staff have published a series of papers on key topics such as rural
development, crop supports, and the like. E-News readers may have special
interest in the staff’s paper on rural development, which reviews prospects for
a more extensive program of support for rural entrepreneurs. Overall, the Farm
Forums and other discussion have highlighted strong interest in entrepreneurship
among rural Americans.
To learn more about the Farm Bill Forums and to access papers on various issues
related to agriculture and rural development, visit the US Department of
Agriculture’s Farm Bill Forums webpage at
http://www.usda.gov/farmbill.
9.0 NATIONAL SBIR CONFERENCE - NOVEMBER 6-9
The National Science Foundation, in association with the Small Business Administration and all 11 SBIR/STTR agencies, is sponsoring the 2006 Fall National SBIR/STTR Conference in Milwaukee, November 6-9. This conference will give you the tools you need to obtain part of the $2+ billion available to small business innovators. This conference also provides each participant with multiple opportunities to meet and network with SBIR and STTR Program Managers, and fellow attendees, including SBIR/STTR award winners, speakers, and experts from businesses and the government willing to work with you to move your business ahead. For further information, contact Sharon DelaBarre Phone: 360-683-5742 Email: sbir@dbamlg.com
10.0 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 WSSI@uwyo.edu
This newsletter is published monthly 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 Gene Watson ewatson@wyoming.com with your comments.
END