[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 60 (Tuesday, March 31, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14524-14531]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-7192]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Institute of Standards and Technology
[Docket No.: 090318324-9325-01]
RIN 0693-ZA89
Technology Innovation Program (TIP) Notice of Availability of
Funds and Announcement of Public Meeting (Proposers' Conference)
AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST)
Technology Innovation Program (TIP) announces that it will hold a
single fiscal year 2009 competition and is soliciting high-risk, high-
reward research and development (R&D) proposals for financial
assistance. TIP also announces that it will hold a public meeting
(Proposers' Conference) for all interested parties. TIP is soliciting
proposals under this fiscal year 2009 competition in two areas of
critical national need entitled ``Civil Infrastructure'' and
``Manufacturing'' as described in the Program Description section
below.
DATES: The due date for submission of proposals is 3 p.m. Eastern Time,
Tuesday, June 23, 2009. This deadline applies to any mode of proposal
submission, including paper and electronic. Do not wait until the last
minute to submit a proposal. TIP will not make any allowances for late
submissions, including incomplete Grants.gov registration or delays by
guaranteed overnight couriers. To avoid any potential processing
backlogs due to last minute registrations, proposers are strongly
encouraged to start their Grants.gov registration process at least four
weeks prior to the proposal submission due date. Review, selection, and
award processing is expected to be completed by the end of November
2009.
ADDRESSES: Proposals must be submitted to TIP as follows:
Paper Submission: Send to National Institute of Standards and
Technology, Technology Innovation Program, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 4701,
Gaithersburg, MD 20899-4701.
Electronic Submission: http://www.grants.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Cuthill at 301-975-3273 or by
e-mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Additional Information. The full Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO)
announcement for this request for proposals contains detailed
information and requirements for the program. Proposers are strongly
encouraged to read the FFO in developing proposals. The full FFO
announcement text is available at http://www.grants.gov and on the TIP
Web site at http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html. In addition,
proposers are directed to review the March 2009 Technology Innovation
Program Proposal Preparation Kit available at http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html. The TIP Proposal Preparation Kit must be used to prepare
a TIP proposal. The TIP implementing regulations are published at 15
CFR part 296, and included in the TIP Proposal Preparation Kit as
Appendix B.
Public Meeting (Proposers' Conference). TIP is holding a public
meeting (Proposers' Conference) at NIST to provide general information
regarding TIP, to offer guidance on preparing proposals, and to answer
questions. Proprietary technical discussions about specific project
ideas with NIST staff are not permitted at this conference or at any
time before submitting the proposal to TIP. Therefore, proposers should
not expect to have proprietary issues addressed at the proposers'
conference. Also, NIST/TIP staff will not critique or provide feedback
on project ideas while they are being developed by a proposer. However,
NIST/TIP staff will answer questions about the TIP eligibility and
cost-sharing requirements, evaluation and award criteria, selection
process, and the general characteristics of a competitive TIP proposal
at the Proposers' Conference and by phone and e-mail. Attendance at the
TIP proposers' conference is not required.
The TIP Proposers' Conference is being held on the following date,
time, and location:
April 8, 2009, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Eastern Time: NIST Red Auditorium, 100
Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD. Pre-registration is required by 5 p.m.
Eastern Time on April 6, 2009 for the Proposers' Conference being held
at NIST Gaithersburg, MD. Due to increased security at NIST, no on-site
registrations will be accepted and all attendees must be pre-
registered. Photo identification must be presented at the NIST main
gate to be admitted to the April 8, 2009 conference. Attendees must
wear their conference badge at all times while on the NIST campus.
Electronic Registration at: https://rproxy.nist.gov/CRS/.
No registration fee will be charged at the Proposers' Conference.
Presentation materials from the Proposers' Conference will be made
available on the TIP Web site.
TIP may schedule additional Proposers' Conferences at other
locations throughout the country. If this occurs, notices will be
posted on the TIP Web site at http://www.nist.gov/tip and grants.gov
Web site and in the Federal Register.
Statutory Authority. Section 3012 of the America Creating
Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology,
Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act, Public Law 110-69 (August 9,
2007), 15 U.S.C.A. 278n (2008).
CFDA. 11.616, Technology Innovation Program.
Program Description. TIP is soliciting proposals under this fiscal
year 2009 competition in two areas of critical national need entitled
``Civil Infrastructure'' and ``Manufacturing'' as described below.
Area of Critical National Need 1: Civil Infrastructure
The objective of this competition is to provide civil
infrastructure managers with tools to better manage the structural
integrity of elements of the civil infrastructure. Two elements of the
societal challenge of managing the Structural Integrity of the United
States' Infrastructure will be addressed as outlined in the white paper
``Advanced Sensing Technologies and Advanced Repair Materials for the
Infrastructure: Water Systems, Dams, Levees, Bridges, Roads, and
Highways'' (http://www.nist.gov/tip/comp09_home.html).
Solutions to this societal challenge require advancement beyond the
current practice and state-of-the-art of sensing technologies and
repair/retrofit technologies. Sensing advancements are needed to assess
the structural integrity and/or deterioration processes of water mains,
wastewater collection systems, dams, levees, navigation lock
structures, bridges, roads, and highways. Sensing technologies must be
more accurate in their determinations of structural integrity, easier
to use, and more economically feasible. The increased information
obtained from new sensing technologies will lead to better
prioritization of repair schedules; however, prioritization is only the
first
[[Page 14525]]
step in a management strategy. Efficient infrastructure management
requires that once a structural defect is detected, an economical
repair be made. Advancing the technologies of repairing infrastructure
elements in contact with water, in contact with salts (road salt or
marine environments), and subjected to thermal changes requires
transformative research to significantly extend the lifetimes of
repairs, lower the costs of repairs, and provide repair technologies
that are suitable for a wide range of conditions. For the scope of this
competition, ``retrofit'' refers to the fitting into or onto a
structure already in existence and that is in service or can be
returned to service by repair. A retrofit material or application can
be one that returns the infrastructure element to original
specifications or that improves the performance of the infrastructure
element beyond the specifications of the original construction. Novel
materials and the novel methods to deploy the new materials,
constituting repair/retrofit systems, can serve to help meet the
societal challenge of better managing the structural integrity of civil
infrastructure.
The need for advanced sensing technologies and advanced repair/
retrofit materials is of national importance because nearly all
municipalities and States in the nation face infrastructure management
challenges. TIP's investment is justified because portions of
infrastructure are reaching the end of their life spans and there are
few cost effective technical means to monitor infrastructure integrity
and to prioritize and implement long lived repair/retrofit of the wide
variety of constructions of infrastructure elements. Transformational
research beyond incremental advancements is required to achieve the
objectives for this area of critical national need. Incremental
improvements of current technologies will not meet the challenges of
providing cost-effective, widely deployable solutions to the problems
faced by infrastructure managers.
Element 1--Inspection and/or Monitoring Technologies
Proposals are being sought to create and validate new, advanced,
robust, network capable, nondestructive evaluation and test sensing
systems, or system components, to cost effectively and quantitatively
inspect and evaluate the structural integrity of civil infrastructure
elements of water and wastewater mains, dams, levees, navigation lock
structures, bridges, roads and highways. The targeted system should be
capable of, but not limited to, detection of corrosion, cracking,
delamination and other relevant modes of failure of critical
infrastructure elements and the materials of which they are made.
Solutions are needed for improved inspection systems for water and
wastewater mains, dams, levees, navigation lock structures, bridges,
roads, and highways, where these systems provide real-time
understanding of the integrity and service life through the use of
portable, mobile or remote sensing capabilities. Innovations are being
sought in all aspects of a system to provide an advanced, cost
effective, networked system, either fixed or mobile, that is easily
deployable, self powered, and self monitoring. A complete system could
include all system components, hardware, and software. In addition, the
systems may, or may not, need to be underwater in order to assess
underwater integrity issues.
Proposals should include validation of the effectiveness of the new
technology in actual environmental use conditions with potential end
user(s) of the technology.
Eligible projects that are also within the scope of this element
are:
Systems that provide new and advanced methodologies for
the detection of fluid leaks from water piping systems.
Single novel components of a system solution that include
a validation of the component in a system setting.
Inspection systems for structural components located below
a water surface in part, or in whole, and susceptible to failure caused
by scour, impact, degradation and/or some other subsurface mode of
failure.
Ineligible projects under this element include:
Advancements in a system component without a prototype for
validating that the component is functional within a system solution,
as part of the proposed technical plan.
Straightforward improvements to existing components or
materials without the potential for a transformational increase in
performance to the technical requirements.
Integration projects using only existing state-of-the-art
components or materials.
Software development that is predominantly
straightforward, routine data gathering using applications of standard
software development practices.
Element 2--Repair/Retrofit Material and Application Technologies
Proposals are also being sought to create novel technologies for
repair or retrofit of existing civil infrastructure elements already
identified above. These new technologies could be considered as
consisting of two parts: A novel material and the application or
deployment system for installing or placing the novel material. These
novel materials and application/deployment technologies are to provide
much longer-lived repairs than current repair materials and/or greater
performance characteristics than current repair/retrofit methods and/or
the original construction.
A proposal for development of a new material, or a novel
combination of materials that results in a transformational solution
for cost-effective repair/retrofit that includes a novel technology for
achieving the repair or retrofit will be considered as having strong
potential.
Proposals should include validation of the effectiveness of the new
technology in actual environmental conditions with potential end
user(s) of the technology.
Eligible projects that are within the scope of this element are:
The combination of a novel material, or a novel
combination of materials, combined with a novel application or
installation technology.
A novel application technology that incorporates an
existing material, or combination of materials, from material domains
outside those normally used within civil infrastructure, or that
incorporates a material or combination of materials, from a domain of
materials normally used within civil infrastructure. To be considered
competitive, there must be a transformational expansion of
applicability of the materials. An example of a project within scope
would be a robotic system capable of lining water mains with a material
to restore the strength of a deteriorated main to the originally
specified burst strength.
A novel material, or a combination of novel materials,
that can be applied with existing application technologies, or that
requires minor adjustments to existing application technologies. An
example of a project within scope would be a novel reinforcing material
combined with a novel compressive matrix material that could be applied
using current construction practices.
Ineligible projects under this element are:
Novel materials, or combinations of materials, that apply
only to new
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construction or primarily to new construction.
A novel material, or novel combination of materials, for
which there is not a deployment technology and no deployment technology
approach is included in the proposed research.
Training or training systems for repair/retrofit
installation of novel materials or of current materials.
Novel systems to deploy repair/retrofit materials, where
the materials are both not novel and without a history of being long-
lived repair solutions.
Novel repair parts or assemblies that do not incorporate a
novel material, for example: a new type of retrofit stirrup or bracing
made from current, conventional materials or combinations of materials.
Area of Critical National Need 2: Manufacturing
The goal of the research outcome/impacts from this competition is
to provide manufacturers and end users improved access to adequate
quantities of advanced materials at competitive costs that allow
evaluation and utilization of these materials in innovative ways. TIP's
funding strategy for this competition will emphasize two important
elements: (1) Process scale-up, integration, and design for advanced
materials; and (2) Predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing. These two elements of the societal challenge of
accelerating the use of advanced materials will be addressed as
outlined in the white paper ``Accelerating the Incorporation of
Materials Advances into Manufacturing Processes'' (http://www.nist.gov/tip/comp09_home.html).
Materials performance is often a critical consideration and
controlling factor in the innovation process.
For example, high strength alloys, aluminum, and magnesium are used
to build stronger, lighter and safer vehicles; superalloys are used to
make higher efficiency gas turbines; composites make larger, more
efficient wind turbine blades and provide improved performance in
aerospace applications; and nanomaterials are finding their way into
better performing batteries, energy storage devices, high voltage
transmission lines and healthcare applications (e.g. imaging).
Sustainable materials development and materials substitutions are
additional examples where greater capabilities are critical to ongoing
or increased competitiveness of U.S innovations.
Without the ability to produce these new materials and to rapidly
integrate them into products while maintaining the material's unique
properties, the U.S. will lose these value-added manufacturing
innovations to overseas competition, a trend which has already occurred
in so many industries. Outlined in this announcement are two key areas
related to the manufacturability of advanced materials and descriptions
of the supporting technical challenges that need to be addressed.
If successful, the manufacturing solutions envisioned would have
the potential to create significant performance improvements in new
products by accelerating the utilization of an advanced material's new
functionality.
For purposes of this area of critical national need, the term
``advanced materials'' refers to materials that have unique
functionalities but require improved controls and measurements to
achieve desired functionalities in a revolutionary and cost-effective
way. The unique functionality that these materials could bring to new
products will require new levels of understanding in the sciences of
materials processing and process control. For example, in
nanomaterials, manipulation and measurement at the atomic level will be
needed. In alloys, the control and measurement would be at the
microscale (and eventually at the nanoscale) with an emphasis on
anisotropic features of the micro (nano) structure. In composites,
control and measurement would be at the mesoscale and would take
advantage of the anisotropic layering of the process. Control of one
material or phase within another will also be an important
consideration.
There are additional classes of materials (e.g., polymers,
ceramics, etc.) that could be included in this discussion. However, the
three classes of materials described above are considered to be most
critical to emerging or other potential growth areas for manufacturing
and will be the focus of this area of critical national need.
Therefore, this competition is limited to nanomaterials; superalloys,
alloys and smart materials; and composites.
Manufacturing, like so many other areas of critical national need,
has a variety of challenges that need to be addressed. TIP's funding
strategy for this competition will emphasize two important elements:
(1) Process scale-up, integration, and design for advanced materials;
and (2) Predictive modeling for advanced materials and materials
processing.
Element 1--Process Scale-Up Integration and Design for Advanced
Materials
New materials typically are developed in a laboratory setting in
progressively larger quantities, and then samples are given to end-
users for alpha and beta testing. It can take considerable time and
experimentation to understand how the materials can be incorporated
into a new product in a way that maintains and utilizes its unique
functionality. Time is also needed to effectively integrate the
processes that scale-up from laboratory quantities to commercial
amounts for more efficient production. This scale-up is often non-
linear and does not follow straightforward scaling laws due to the
unique functionality that has been designed into the advanced
materials.
Element 2--Predictive Modeling Tools for Advanced Materials and
Materials Processing
Predictive modeling capabilities are key to developing new
processes, scaling-up these processes and understanding how to utilize
an advanced material's unique functionality. Modeling capabilities are
needed to:
Analyze and understand why a newly discovered material
does what it does and then extrapolate its behavior to new conditions,
and
Incorporate this knowledge into process design tools so
new products can quickly be made while maintaining the unique
functionality of the materials.
To successfully address the proposed challenges for ``Accelerating
the Integration of Materials Advances into Manufacturing Processes,''
research in new technologies will be needed. The table below
illustrates the relationship between key challenges. The three columns
of material types (nanomaterials, superalloys and composites) are
arranged in order of increasing microstructural size. TIP expects
proposed solutions to the challenges to map into one or more of the
blank cells in the table, for the proposal to be within scope for
funding under this area of critical national need.
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Superalloys,
Technological needs Nanomaterials alloys & smart Composites
materials
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Materials Processing............... Scale-up from Laboratory .............. .............. ..............
Quantities/Controls
Incorporate into New Uses/ .............. .............. ..............
Maintain Functionality
Predictive Modeling Tools.......... Rules/Understand Why It .............. .............. ..............
Does What It Does
Process Modeling/Design & .............. .............. ..............
Product Design Tools
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For Element 1--Process scale-up, integration and design for
advanced materials, new processes will need to be developed. These
processes will increase to commercial scale the quantity and quality of
available advanced materials; or help incorporate these advanced
materials into new, revolutionary products based on a new material's
properties. These scaled-up processes may be a next generation or an
entirely new process. For example, forging ever larger parts cannot be
solved by building ever larger forges (which become prohibitively
expensive), but instead by new partial forging techniques.
In support of these new processes, new instrumentation and
measurement capabilities will also be needed. These instruments will
need to measure real time process parameters such as the properties
that provide the unique capabilities of the advanced materials (e.g.,
composition). In addition, instruments for real time inspection are
needed to ensure and/or verify materials are being correctly
incorporated into manufactured products that require the revolutionary
functions of these new materials.
Proposals addressing process scale-up, integration and design for
advanced materials will be considered eligible if they consist of:
A single process to achieve the goals of the scale-up, or
ones that consist of one or more processes integrated together into a
coherent solution;
Scale-up of materials processes to manufacture and apply
coatings that are within the three eligible material types
(nanomaterials; superalloys, alloys and smart materials; and
composites); or
Scale-up of materials processes for healthcare
applications (e.g., imaging).
Eligible proposals addressing process scale-up, integration and
design for advanced materials must address all of the following issues:
Address one or more of the materials areas:
--Nanomaterials;
--Superalloys, alloys, and smart materials; and/or
--Composites;
Quantify the baseline processing capabilities;
Describe how the results of the process scale-up could
lead to new products and manufacturing process capabilities; and
Quantification and qualification of the estimated output
of the final project results.
In addition, proposals for process scale-up must address both of
the following issues:
Scale-up of the quantities produced during the project
must be targeted to increase by a factor of 1,000 fold or more (unit
quantity per unit time) as compared to the baseline; and
A detailed scientific rationale and description of the
challenges to accomplish scale-up of the process(es).
Proposals addressing process scale-up, integration and design of
advanced materials will be considered more competitive if they:
Include validation methodologies by or with processors or
end users; and/or
Address sustainability issues.
Proposals addressing process scale-up, integration and design for
advanced materials will be considered ineligible if they:
Have the primary focus of the proposal on the following
materials:
--Materials derived from a biological source;
--A pure ceramic, glass (including metallic glass), or polymer; or
--Primarily an electronic or photonic material.
Focus primarily on the application of material coatings.
For Element 2--Predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing, new tools are needed to enable researchers to use
constitutive relations and rules (with validation) concerning the
underlying behavior of materials (understanding structure vs. function)
and the changes to behavior due to manufacturing processes. For
example, new tools will need to account for the scale-dependent
behavior of advanced materials. This capability will enable a better
and quicker understanding of why materials do what they do. These
efforts will also enable extrapolation of that knowledge beyond the
laboratory conditions for which they were developed, and therefore will
need new validation and verification capabilities.
In addition, critical knowledge is also needed about why certain
decisions or assumptions were made in order to incorporate new modeling
capabilities for laboratory results into process design and modeling.
Again, new validation and verification methodologies will be essential.
With successful development of these tools, processes, and
technologies, the manufacturing communities will have significantly
improved capabilities to quickly incorporate advanced materials
breakthroughs into revolutionary products based on new materials
functionality, and thus establish new competitive advantages in a
global economy.
Eligible proposals addressing predictive modeling for advanced
materials and materials processing must address all of the following
issues:
Address one or more of the eligible materials areas:
--Nanomaterials;
--Superalloys, alloys, and smart materials; and/or
--Composites;
Quantify the baseline modeling capability; and
Describe how the results of the proposed modeling
capabilities could lead to new products and manufacturing process
capabilities.
Proposals for predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing must address one or both of the following:
Develop constitutive relationships and rules that describe
the behavior and the process of the materials at a level that is useful
for describing laboratory results, as well as for developing a greater
understanding of the materials for end users; and/or
Develop or use the constitutive relationships and rules to
develop process design tools for the manufacturing processes for these
advanced materials.
Proposals addressing predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing will be considered more competitive if they
address:
Collaboration by or with those who manufacture the
advanced materials, in order to validate the models; and/or
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How users will specifically benefit from the acceleration
and implementation of the proposed models in support of materials
reliability (i.e. final properties or mechanical performance) and
materials behavior before and after processing.
Proposals addressing predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing that do not include validation of models will be
considered less competitive.
Proposals addressing predictive modeling for advanced materials and
materials processing will be considered ineligible that:
Have the primary focus of the modeling effort on the
following materials:
--Materials derived from a biological source;
--A pure ceramic, glass (including metallic glass), or polymer; or
--Primarily an electronic or photonic material;
Focus primarily on the application of material coatings.
An additional key characteristic that all manufacturing proposals
must address is how the outcomes of the research will enable
manufacturers to produce advanced materials faster, better and cheaper,
as well as enable the new uses for the advanced materials.
Additional Requirements for All Manufacturing Proposals
Ineligible projects under this area of critical national need
include:
Projects whose principal focus is on discovery of new
materials:
Efforts related to the physical extraction of raw
materials;
Straightforward improvements to existing processes or
materials without the potential for a transformational increase in
performance to the technical requirements;
Integration projects using only existing state-of-the-art
processes, models or materials; or
Software development that is predominantly
straightforward, routine data gathering using applications of standard
software development practices.
Additional Requirements for All Manufacturing and Civil Infrastructure
Proposals
In addition to the competition-specific ineligible projects, the
following are ineligible projects:
Straightforward improvements of existing products or
product development.
Projects that are Phase II, III, or IV clinical trials.
TIP will rarely fund Phase I clinical trials and reserves the right not
to fund a Phase I clinical trial. The portion of a Phase I trial that
may be funded must be critical to meeting evaluation criterion (a)(1)
addressing the scientific and technical merit of the proposal. The
trial results must be essential for completion of a critical R&D task
of the project. The definitions of all phases of clinical trials are
provided in the TIP Guidelines and Documentation Requirements for
Research Involving Human & Animal Subjects located at http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html.
Pre-commercial-scale demonstration projects where the
emphasis is on demonstrating that some technology works on a large
scale or is economically sound rather than on R&D that advances the
state of the art and is high-risk, high-reward.
Projects that TIP determines would likely be completed
without TIP funds in the same time frame or nearly the same time frame,
or with the same scale or scope.
Predominantly straightforward, routine data gathering
(e.g., creation of voluntary consensus standards, data gathering/
handbook/specification sheet preparation, testing of materials, or
unbounded research aimed at basic discovery science) or application of
standard engineering practices.
Projects in which the predominant risk is market
oriented--that is, the risk that the end product may not be embraced by
the marketplace.
Projects with software work, that are predominantly about
final product details and product development, and that have
significant testing involving users outside the research team to
determine if the software meets the original research objectives, are
likely to be either uncompetitive or possibly ineligible for funding.
However, R&D projects with limited software testing, involving users
outside of the research team, or vertebrate animals, may be eligible
for funding and contain eligible costs within a TIP award when the
testing is critical to meeting evaluation criteria and/or award
criteria and the testing results are essential for completion of a
critical task in the proposed research. This type of testing in
projects may also be considered to involve human subjects or vertebrate
animals in research and require compliance with applicable Federal
regulations and NIST policies for the protection of human subjects or
live vertebrate animals.
Unallowable/Ineligible Costs. The following items, regardless of
whether they are allowable under the Federal cost principles, are
ineligible/unallowable under TIP:
a. Bid and proposal costs unless they are incorporated into a
Federally-approved indirect cost rate (e.g., payments to any
organization or person retained to help prepare a proposal).
b. Construction costs for new buildings or extensive renovations of
existing buildings. However, costs for the construction of experimental
research and development facilities to be located within a new or
existing building are allowable provided the equipment or facilities
are essential for carrying out the proposed project and are approved in
advanced by the NIST Grants Officer. These types of facility costs may
need to be prorated if they will not be used exclusively for the
research activities proposed.
c. Contractor office supplies and contractor expenses for
conferences/workshops.
d. Contracts to another part of the same company or to another
company with identical or nearly identical ownership. Work proposed by
another part of the same company or by another company with identical
or nearly identical ownership should be shown as funded through inter-
organizational transfers that do not contain profit. Inter-
organizational transfers should be broken down in the appropriate
budget categories.
e. For research involving human and/or animal subjects, any costs
used to secure Institutional Review Board or Institutional Animal Care
and Use Committee approvals before or during the award.
f. General purpose office equipment and supplies that are not used
exclusively for the research: e.g., office computers, printers,
copiers, paper, pens, and toner cartridges.
g. Indirect costs, which must be absorbed by the recipient.
However, indirect costs are allowable for contractors under a single
company or joint venture. (Note that indirect costs absorbed by the
recipient may be used to meet the cost-sharing requirement.)
h. Marketing, sales, or commercialization costs, including
marketing surveys, commercialization studies, and general business
planning, unless they are included in a Federally approved indirect
cost rate.
i. Office furniture costs, unless they are included in a Federally
approved indirect cost rate.
j. Patent costs and legal fees, unless they are included in a
Federally approved indirect cost rate.
k. Preaward costs: i.e., any costs incurred prior to the award
start date.
[[Page 14529]]
l. Profit, management fees, interest on borrowed funds, or
facilities capital cost of money. However, profit is allowable for
contractors under a single company or joint venture.
m. Project development planning (e.g. patent and literature
searches) and creation of milestones. For example, proposals that plan
on developing milestones only if an award is received and after
literature searches are performed under the award are generally not
competitive. Costs for literature searches in general are ineligible.
n. Relocation costs, unless they are included in a Federally
approved indirect cost rate.
o. Salaries: NIST limits the salaries of project personnel to not
exceed Level I of the Executive Schedule ($196,700 as of January 1,
2009, http://www.opm.gov/oca/09tables/html/ex.asp).
p. Tuition costs. An institution of higher education participating
in a TIP project as a contractor or as a joint venture member or lead
may charge TIP for tuition remission or other forms of compensation in
lieu of wages paid to students working on TIP projects, but only as
provided in OMB Circular A-21, Section J.41. In such cases, tuition
remission would be considered a cash contribution rather than an in-
kind contribution.
Funding Availability. Fiscal year 2009 appropriations include funds
in the amount of approximately $25 million for new TIP awards.
Approximately $10 million is available for the Civil Infrastructure
area of critical national need and approximately $15 million is
available in the Manufacturing area of critical national need.
Approximately 25 total awards are anticipated. The anticipated start
date is January 1, 2010. The period of performance depends on the R&D
activity proposed. A single company can receive up to a total of $3
million with a project period of performance of up to 3 years. A joint
venture can receive up to total of $9 million with a project period of
performance of up to 5 years. Continuation funding after the initial
award is based on satisfactory performance, availability of funds,
continued relevance to program objectives, and is at the sole
discretion of NIST.
Eligibility Criteria. Single companies and joint ventures may apply
for TIP funding as provided in 15 CFR 296.2, 296.4, and 296.5.
Large-sized Company Participation. A large-sized company is not
eligible to apply for TIP funding. A large-sized company is defined as
any business, including any parent company plus related subsidiaries,
having annual revenues in excess of $1.63 billion. This number is based
on the May 2008 issue of Fortune magazine's Fortune 1000 list. (Note
that the revenue amount will be updated annually and will be noted in
future annual announcements of availability of funds.)
Cost-Sharing Requirements. Proposers must provide a cost share of
at least 50 percent of the yearly total project costs (direct plus all
of the indirect costs).
Evaluation and Award Criteria. Proposals are selected for funding
based on the evaluation criteria listed in 15 CFR 296.21 and the award
criteria listed in 15 CFR 296.22 as identified below. Additionally, no
proposal will be funded unless TIP determines that it has scientific
and technical merit and that the proposed research has strong potential
for addressing a societal challenge within the TIP-identified area of
critical national need as described in this notice. Detailed guidance
on how to address the evaluation and award criteria is provided in
Chapter 2 of the TIP Proposal Preparation Kit, which is available at
http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html.
Evaluation Criteria. The two components of the evaluation criteria
and respective weights as listed in 15 CFR. 296.21 are as follows:
(a)(1) The proposer(s) adequately addresses the scientific and
technical merit and how the research may result in intellectual
property vesting in a United States entity including evidence that:
(i) The proposed research is novel;
(ii) The proposed research is high-risk, high-reward;
(iii) The proposer(s) demonstrates a high level of relevant
scientific/technical expertise for key personnel, including contractors
and/or informal collaborators, and has access to the necessary
resources, for example research facilities, equipment, materials, and
data, to conduct the research as proposed;
(iv) The research result(s) has the potential to address the
technical needs associated with a major societal challenge not
currently being addressed; and
(v) The proposed research plan is scientifically sound with tasks,
milestones, timeline, decision points and alternate strategies.
(2) Total weight of (a)(1)(i) through (v) is 50%.
(b)(1) The proposer(s) adequately establishes that the proposed
research has strong potential for advancing the state-of-the-art and
contributing significantly to the United States science and technology
knowledge base and to address areas of critical national need through
transforming the Nation's capacity to deal with a major societal
challenge(s) that is not currently being addressed, and generate
substantial benefits to the Nation that extend significantly beyond the
direct return to the proposer including an explanation in the proposal:
(i) Of the potential magnitude of transformational results upon the
Nation's capabilities in an area;
(ii) Of how and when the ensuing transformational results will be
useful to the Nation; and
(iii) Of the capacity and commitment of each award participant to
enable or advance the transformation to the proposed research results
(technology).
(2) Total weight of (b)(1)(i) through (iii) is 50%.
Award Criteria. The six components of the award criteria as listed
in 15 CFR 296.22 are as follows:
(a) The proposal explains why TIP support is necessary, including
evidence that the research will not be conducted within a reasonable
time period in the absence of financial assistance from TIP;
(b) The proposal demonstrates that reasonable and thorough efforts
have been made to secure funding from alternative funding sources and
no other alternative funding sources are reasonably available to
support the proposal;
(c) The proposal explains the novelty of the research (technology)
and demonstrates that other entities have not already developed,
commercialized, marketed, distributed, or sold similar research results
(technologies);
(d) The proposal has scientific and technical merit and may result
in intellectual property vesting in a United States entity that can
commercialize the technology in a timely manner; and
(e) The proposal establishes that the research has strong potential
for advancing the state-of-the-art and contributing significantly to
the United States science and technology knowledge base; and
(f) The proposal establishes that the proposed transformational
research (technology) has strong potential to address areas of critical
national need through transforming the Nation's capacity to deal with
major societal challenges that are not currently being addressed, and
generate substantial benefits to the Nation that extend significantly
beyond the direct return to the proposer.
NIST must determine that a proposal successfully meets all six
award criteria for the proposal to receive funding under the Program.
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Selection Factors. In making final selections, the Selecting
Official will select funding recipients based upon the Evaluation
Panel's rank order of the proposals and the following selection
factors:
a. Assuring an appropriate distribution of funds among technologies
and their applications,
b. Availability of funds, and/or
c. Program priorities.
Program Priorities. TIP is soliciting proposals under this fiscal
year 2009 competition in two areas of critical nation need entitled
``Civil Infrastructure'' and ``Manufacturing'' as described in the
Program Description section above.
Selection Procedures. Proposals are selected based on a multi-
disciplinary peer-review process, as described in 15 CFR 296.20. A
preliminary review is conducted to determine if the proposal is in
accordance with 15 CFR 296.3; complies with the eligibility
requirements described in 15 CFR 296.5; addresses award criteria (a)
through (c) of 15 CFR 296.22; was submitted to a previous TIP
competition, and if so, has been substantially revised; and is
complete. Proposals that are incomplete or do not meet any one of the
preliminary review requirements will normally be eliminated. All
remaining proposals are then carefully reviewed based on the TIP
evaluation criteria listed in 15 CFR 296.21 and award criteria listed
in 15 CFR 296.22. An Evaluation Panel consisting of Federal employees
will present funding recommendations to a Selecting Official in rank
order for further consideration. The Selecting Official makes the final
selections for funding. The selection of proposals by the Selecting
Official is final and cannot be appealed. The final approval of
selected proposals and award of assistance will be made by the NIST
Grants Officer. The award decision of the NIST Grants Officer is final
and cannot be appealed. NIST reserves the right to negotiate the cost
and scope of the proposed work with the proposers that have been
selected to receive awards. This may include requesting that the
proposer delete from the scope of work a particular task that is deemed
by NIST to be inappropriate for support. NIST also reserves the right
to reject a proposal where information exists that raises a reasonable
doubt as to the responsibility of the proposer.
Intellectual Property Requirements. For single company award
recipients, pursuant to the Bayh-Dole Act (35 U.S.C. 202 (a) and (b))
and ``Memorandum to the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies:
Government Patent Policy'' (February 18, 1983), the entity that invents
owns the invention. However, pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 202(a)(i), when a
single company or its contractor under a TIP award is not located in
the United States or does not have a place of business located in the
United States or is subject to the control of a foreign government,
NIST will require that title to inventions made by such parties be
transferred to a United States entity that will ensure the
commercialization of the technology in a timely fashion.
For joint ventures, ownership of inventions arising from a TIP-
funded project may vest in any participant in a joint venture, as
agreed by the members of the joint venture (notwithstanding 35 U.S.C.
202 (a) and (b)). (Participant includes any entity that is identified
as a recipient, subrecipient, or contractor on an award to a joint
venture.)
Title to any such invention shall not be transferred or passed,
except to a participant in the joint venture, until the expiration of
the first patent obtained in connection with such invention.
Should the last existing participant in a joint venture cease to
exist prior to the expiration of the first patent obtained in
connection with any invention developed from assistance provided under
TIP, title to such patent must be transferred or passed to a U.S.
entity that can commercialize the technology in a timely fashion.
The United States reserves a nonexclusive, nontransferable,
irrevocable paid-up license, to practice or have practiced for or on
behalf of the United States any intellectual property developed from a
TIP award. The Federal government shall not in the exercise of such
license publicly disclose proprietary information related to the
license. This does not prohibit the licensing to any company of
intellectual property rights arising from a TIP-funded project. (15 CFR
296.11(b)(3)). The Federal government also has march-in rights in
accordance with 37 CFR 401.6. Intellectual property means an invention
patentable under title 35, United States Code, or any patent on such an
invention, or any work for which copyright protection is available
under title 17, United States Code. (15 CFR 296.2.)
Projects Involving Human Subjects. Research involving human
subjects must be in compliance with applicable Federal regulations and
NIST policies for the protection of human subjects. Human subjects
research activities involve interactions with live human subjects or
the use of data, images, tissue, and/or cells/cell lines (including
those used for control purposes) from human subjects. Research
involving human subjects may include activities such as the use of
image and/or audio recording of people, taking surveys or using survey
data, using databases containing personal information, testing software
with volunteers, and many tasks beyond those within traditional
biomedical research. A Human Subjects Determination Checklist is
included in the March 2009 TIP Proposal Preparation Kit in Chapter 4
(http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html) to assist you in determining
whether your proposed research plan has human subjects involvement,
which would require additional information in your proposal submission,
and possibly more documentation during the Evaluation Panel's
consideration of your proposal. See the TIP Guidelines and
Documentation Requirements for Research Involving Human & Animal
Subjects for more specific information on documentation requirements
and due dates for documentation located at http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html or by calling 1-888-847-6478. President Obama has issued
Exec. Order No. 13,505, 74 FR 10667 (March 9, 2009), revoking previous
executive orders and Presidential statements regarding the use of human
embryonic stem cells in research. NIST will follow any guidance issued
by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) pursuant to the executive
order and will develop its own procedures based on the NIH guidance
before funding research using human embryonic stem cells. NIST will
follow any additional polices or guidance issued by the current
Administration on this topic.
Projects Involving Live Vertebrate Animals. Research involving live
vertebrate animals must be in compliance with applicable Federal
regulations and NIST policies for the protection of live vertebrate
animals. Vertebrate animal research involves live animals that are
being cared for, euthanized, or used by the project participants to
accomplish research goals or for teaching or testing. The regulations
do not apply to animal tissues purchased from commercial processors or
tissue banks or to uses of preexisting images of animals (e.g., a
wildlife documentary or pictures of animals in newscasts). The
regulations do apply to any animals that are transported, cared for,
euthanized or used by a project participant for testing, research, or
training such as testing of new procedures or projects, collection of
biological samples or observation data on health and behavior. Detailed
information regarding the use of live vertebrate animals in research
plans and
[[Page 14531]]
required documentation is available in the TIP Guidelines and
Documentation Requirements for Research Involving Human & Animal
Subjects located at http://www.nist.gov/tip/helpful.html or by calling
1-888-847-6478.
Executive Order 12372 (Intergovernmental Review of Federal
Programs). Proposals under this program are not subject to Executive
Order 12372.
Administrative Procedure Act and Regulatory Flexibility Act. Prior
notice and comment are not required under 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other
law, for rules relating to public property, loans, grants, benefits or
contracts (5 U.S.C. 553(a)). Because prior notice and an opportunity
for public comment are not required pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 or any
other law, the analytical requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (5 U.S.C. et seq.) are inapplicable. Therefore, a regulatory
flexibility analysis is not required and has not been prepared.
E.O. 13132 (Federalism). This notice does not contain policies with
Federalism implications as defined in Executive Order 13132.
E.O. 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review). This notice is
determined to be not significant under Executive Order 12866..
Paperwork Reduction Act. Notwithstanding any other provision of the
law, no person is required to, nor shall any person be subject to
penalty for failure to, comply with a collection of information,
subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA),
unless that collection of information displays a currently valid Office
of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number. This notice contains
collection-of-information requirements subject to the PRA. The use of
Form NIST-1022, Standard Form-424 (R&R), SF-424B, SF-LLL, Research and
Related Other Project Information Form, and CD-346 has been approved by
OMB under the respective control numbers 0693-0050, 4040-0001, 4040-
0007, 0348-0046, 4040-0001, and 0605-0001.
Administrative and National Policy Requirements. Department of
Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative
Agreements, 73 FR 7696-05 (Feb. 11, 2008), apply to this solicitation.
On the form SF-424 (R&R) item 3. Organization DUNS and item 6. Employer
Identification (EIN) or (TIN), the applicant's 9-digit Dun and
Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) and the applicants 9-
digit Employer Identification Number (EIN) or Taxpayer Identification
Number (TIN) must be consistent with the information on the Central
Contractor Registration (CCR) (http://www.ccr.gov) and Automated
Standard Application for Payment System (ASAP). For complex
organizations with multiple DUNS and EIN or TIN numbers, the DUNS and
EIN or TIN numbers MUST be the numbers for the applying entity.
Entities that provide incorrect/inconsistent DUNS and EIN or TIN
numbers may experience significant delays in submitting their proposals
through Grants.gov and receiving funds if the proposal is selected for
funding.
Dated: March 25, 2009.
Patrick Gallagher,
Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. E9-7192 Filed 3-30-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P