In the July 16, 1999 Issue:

Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2002. Information in this issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest was prepared under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. Redistribution to all others interested in tech-based economic development is strongly encouraged — please cite the State Science & Technology Institute whenever portions are reproduced or redirected. Any opinions expressed in the Digest do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

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Biotech, Health Dominate Federal Tech Transfer
Ninety-five percent, or $102 million, of all royalties received by six technology related federal agencies during fiscal years 1996-1998 were for licenses issued by the National Institutes of Health, according to a recent General Accounting Office (GAO) study. Technology Transfer: Number and Characteristics of Inventions Licensed by Six Federal Agencies is a compilation of statistics collected from a survey of the National Institutes of Health, the departments of the Army, Navy and the Air Force, the Department of Energy, and NASA.

The report provides information on:

The six agencies reported that they granted a total of 866 licenses and received $107.5 million in royalties during FY1996 through 1998. Nearly three-fourths of these licenses were nonexclusive; 60 percent went to small businesses or individuals; and, 89 percent went to domestic entities.

The accompanying table presents the characteristics of the licenses by agency. As can be seen, the National Institutes of Health dominate the federal licensing of inventions. Department of Energy officials pointed out to GAO during the study, however, that inventions developed in government-owned research facilities and laboratories operated by contractors are the property of those contractors and would not be included in the license statistics. Much of the DOE royalties received are for contractor-owned inventions, though.

Copies of Technology Transfer: Number and Characteristics of Inventions Licensed by Six Federal Agencies (GAO/RCED-99-173) can be downloaded or ordered through the GAO website http://www.gao.gov

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Commerce Funds Rural/Inner-City Tech Needs Assessment
The Economic Development Administration (EDA) and the National Institutes of Standards (NIST) and Technology have awarded a $350,000 grant to the Industrial Technology Institute (ITI) for a technology-based economic development project to boost the growth of Michigan businesses. The pilot project is expected to serve as a model for possible state and nationwide efforts on behalf of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

ITI will assess the technology needs of the state's rural and inner-city SMEs. ITI also will study ways in which technical assistance can best be provided to these businesses.

Deficiencies in resources related to manufacturing technology have contributed to the slow growth of many SMEs. Factors include a depleted number of skilled, reliable and available workers; little access to technology both regionally and among disadvantaged population segments; the lack of an R&D base linking technology development with the local business community; and, a lack of a cost-efficient and effective means of providing small manufacturers with technical assistance in rural portions of the state.

The grant to ITI was provided through EDA's Local Technical Assistance Program. More information on the program can be found on the web at http://www.doc.gov/eda/html/locltech.htm

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Positions Available
Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership is seeking an Executive Director, who will oversee a staff of approximately 20 and a budget of more than $3 million. The successful candidate will be able to create a vision for the growing organization, the leadership skills to achieve that vision, and a strong interest in the growth and success of manufacturing. Applications are due August 9.

The Maine Technology Institute (MTI) is seeking a Director to lead MTI and manage its programs, services, budget, and staff. MTI is a new state chartered non-profit corporation that works to encourage, promote, stimulate and support R&D activity leading to the commercialization of new products and services in Maine's seven technology-intensive industrial sectors; to enhance the competitive position of those sectors; to increase the likelihood that one or more of the sectors will support clusters of industrial activity; and, to create new jobs for Maine people. Applications are due August 15.

Full descriptions of these openings can be found on the SSTI website at www.ssti.org

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Correction for DOD SBIR Table
In last week's issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest, several of the state rankings for the number of awards received under the DOD SBIR 99.1 selections were incorrect. Following is a list of the states and their correct ranks: Florida was tied for 7th with New Jersey; New Hampshire was tied for 17th with Washington; Hawaii, North Carolina, District of Columbia and Utah were all tied for 23rd.

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