[United States Government Manual]
[May 31, 1996]
[Pages 164-168]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]
Technology Administration
The Technology Administration was established by Congress in 1988 (15
U.S.C. 3704) and consists of the Office of Technology Policy (OTP), the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the National
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Technical Information Service (NTIS). The Technology Administration is
headed by the Under Secretary for Technology who serves as a principal
adviser to the Secretary of Commerce and as the Department's
spokesperson for science and technology issues.
The Administration serves as the premier technology agency working
with U.S. industry in addressing competitiveness and in exercising
leadership both within the Department of Commerce and governmentwide. It
discharges this role through OTP by advocating coherent policies for
maximizing the impact of technology on economic growth, through NIST by
carrying out technology programs with U.S. industry, and through NTIS by
disseminating technology information.
For further information, call 202-482-1575.
Office of Technology Policy
The primary role of the Office of Technology Policy is to offer
assistance to private sector and government communities in advocating
and pursuing policies that maximize the impact of technology on economic
growth, and by exercising leadership to define the role of government in
supporting U.S. industrial competitiveness in the post-cold war
environment. The Office serves as a liaison to the private sector,
identifying barriers to the rapid commercialization of technology,
eliciting support for Administration civilian technology policies, and
ensuring that industry's interests are reflected in standards and
technology agreements and civilian technology policy. It also assists
Federal, State, and local officials, industry, and academic institutions
in promoting the technological growth and competitiveness of the U.S.
economy.
For further information, call 202-482-5687.
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) assists
industry in developing technology to improve product quality, modernize
manufacturing processes, ensure product reliability, and facilitate
rapid commercialization of products based on new scientific discoveries.
The Institute's primary mission is to promote U.S. economic growth
by working with industry to develop and apply technology, measurements,
and standards. It carries out this mission through four major programs:
--an Advanced Technology Program (ATP) that provides cost-shared
awards to industry to develop high-risk enabling technologies with
significant economic potential;
--a Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), a network of
extension centers and experts providing technical and business
assistance to small manufacturers in adopting new technologies;
--a strong laboratory effort planned and implemented in cooperation
with industry that focuses on infrastructural technologies such as
measurements, standards, evaluated data, and test methods. Research is
mainly performed in the areas of: electronics and electrical
engineering, manufacturing engineering, chemical science and technology,
physics, materials science and engineering, building and fire research,
computer systems, and computing and applied mathematics; and
--a quality improvement program that is associated with the Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award. The award recognizes quality
achievements in the areas of manufacturing, service, and small business.
For further information, call 301-975-3058. Fax, 301-926-1630. E-mail,
inquiries@nist.gov. Internet, http://www.nist.gov/.
National Technical Information Service
The National Technical Information Service (NTIS) is the Nation's
largest central clearinghouse and governmentwide resource for
scientific, technical, engineering, and other business-related
information. It acquires information from U.S. Government agencies and
their contractors, as well as from foreign, primarily governmental,
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sources. The Service is a self-supporting Federal agency within the
Technology Administration of the Department of Commerce.
The Service's collection of information, exceeding 2.5 million
works, covers current events, business and management studies, research
and development, manufacturing, standards, translations of foreign
works, foreign and domestic trade, general statistics, and more. Since
the implementation of the American Technology Preeminence Act (ATPA),
NTIS is able to offer an even more diverse and practical range of
information. The Act requires all Federal agencies to transfer, in a
timely manner, unclassified scientific, technical, and engineering
information resulting from federally funded research and development
activities to NTIS. The Service's multimedia products range from paper
copy technical reports and periodicals to CD-ROM's, audiovisual
products, computer software and electronic databases, and online
services.
FedWorld The Service's electronic marketplace provides public
access to thousands of Government documents; connects to several hundred
Federal on-line systems; and offers instant electronic delivery of
selected products from NTIS. FedWorld provides both dial-up
and Internet access to information from numerous Government agencies and
programs, at no charge to the public.
The NTIS Preview Database on FedWorld contains titles
entered into the NTIS collection within the last 30 days (approximately
7,000 new products each month). The database is a 30-day rolling window
of citations updated semimonthly. Half of the citations are removed
midmonth, and newer citations are added.
To connect to FedWorld, set modem parity to none, data
bits to 8, and stop bit to 1. Set terminal emulation to ANSI. Set duplex
to full. Then set your communications software to dial
FedWorld at 703-321-FEDW. To connect to FedWorld on
the Internet, either telnet to fedworld.gov, or ftp to ftp.fedworld.gov,
or point your Web browser to http://www.fedworld.gov/. For more
information or technical assistance, please call the FedWorld
help desk at 703-487-4223.
NTIS Database The NTIS Bibliographic Database is available on CD-ROM or
online through commercial vendors listed in the free NTIS Products and
Services Catalog (PR-827NEB). The database is also available to research
and development organizations and agencies on direct lease. For more
information, call 703-487-4929.
Subject Area Selections The Service has a large collection of
information on the environment--including handbooks and guides,
regulations and updates, economic studies, and applied technology. It is
the exclusive distributor of Superfund documents. For the free catalog
Environment Highlights, ask for PR-868NEB.
The Service distributes health care materials such as the National
Library of Medicine's Grateful Med and MeSH search tools, as well as an
extensive range of other technical reports in the health field. Request
your free catalog on health-related products, Health Care Highlights
(PR-745NEB).
Business Highlights catalog (PR-985NEB) provides product listings
for data necessary for decisionmaking in today's business market. As
part of its expansion in the business subject area, NTIS is rapidly
increasing its collection of overseas business information.
NTIS Alerts are published twice each month and contain summaries of
the latest Government-sponsored projects and their findings. They are
available in more than 30 broad subject areas. The Service also prints
customized Alerts from over 150 available subtopics to suit recipients'
needs. For a free catalog, call 703-487-4650 and request PR-797NEB.
Published Searches are exclusively prepared bibliographies
containing 50-250 of the latest abstracts of research reports and
studies available from a preselected individual database. With each
order, a completely new and updated bibliography is produced. For more
information on Published Searches, call 703-487-4650 and request PR-
186NEB.
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Government Reports Announcements & Index Journal announces
approximately 80,000 research and development and engineering results
annually. Its comprehensive coverage provides thousands of entries
within each issue making it a valuable, multidisciplinary current
awareness resource. This item is available by subscription and is
published twice a month. Call 703-487-4630 to receive answers to your
inquiries on this product.
Technology Transfer The Service provides technology transfer services
such as patent licensing and publishes the Directory of Federal
Laboratory and Technology Resources. This valuable directory guides you
to hundreds of Federal agencies, laboratories, and engineering centers
willing to share their expertise to aid in your research. Request flyer
PR-746NEB for more details on this product.
It also produces the Federal Research in Progress (FEDRIP) Database
that summarizes more than 150,000 ongoing U.S. Government research and
development and engineering project summaries. The database is available
for lease by calling 703-487-4929; it is also available online through
commercial vendors. For a free search guide, call the NTIS Sales Desk at
703-487-4650 and request PR-847NEB.
Global Competitive Intelligence As part of its expansion in the
business subject area, NTIS is rapidly increasing its collection of
information from international sources. The new Foreign Technology
Update, a twice-monthly publication, tracks scientific and technical
developments from around the world. To receive information on this
subscription product, please call 703-487-4630. A publication such as
the International Trade Administration Bibliography (PB93-218360NEB),
with more than 1,000 competitive intelligence-related reports and
studies, is also available. Call the NTIS Sales Desk at 703-487-4650 for
price quotes and more information.
Through an agreement with the Japan Center of Science and
Technology, NTIS makes available the Japanese Online Information System
(JOIS). To receive information on searching JOIS, call 703-487-4819. To
help you keep up with technical information from Japan, NTIS, in
conjunction with the Department's Japan Technology Program, has updated
popular Japanese directories, request PR-825NEB for more information.
Continuous Acquisition and Life-Cycle Support Information Center With
the support of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, NTIS operates the
Continuous Acquisition and Life-Cycle Support (CALS) Information Center
to promote the widespread understanding, acceptance, and use of CALS
principles through an effective flow of CALS-related technical
information. The Center provides a public source of CALS, Electronic
Commerce, Electronic Data Interchange, and related information including
standards and specifications, technical reports, training materials,
computer datafiles, and the CALS Electronic Bulletin Board system
(available on FedWorld). To receive the free brochure CALS
Information Services from NTIS, request PR-898NEB.
Federal Computer Products Center The Service provides computer software
and datafiles on tape, diskette, and CD-ROM, as well as video tapes.
Call the NTIS Sales Desk at 703-487-4650; or fax your requests to 703-
321-8547 to receive free product information on the Directory of U.S.
Government Software for Mainframes and Microcomputers (PR-261NEB) and
the Directory of U.S. Government Datafiles (PR-629NEB).
National Audiovisual Center The National Audiovisual Center (NAC)
consolidates most of the U.S. Government's activity in the duplication
and distribution of audio, visual, and multimedia products. The
collection contains more than 9,000 Government-produced audiovisual
products in a wide range of formats. The range of subject areas includes
foreign language training, occupational safety and health, law
enforcement training, fire service training, history, science, medical
training, business and economics, agriculture, and natural resources.
For the free Media Resource Catalog that
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lists NAC's most popular titles, call the NTIS Sales Desk at 703-487-
4650 and ask for PR-1001NEB.
Joint Ventures The Service works with private industry to build
strategic alliances. These include the use of contracts or cooperative
agreements with the private sector, individuals, or other organizations.
The objective is to create new information products for U.S. Government-
produced data and software. The Service seeks partnerships to open new
channels of sales and distribution. Call 703-487-4785 for more
information about joint ventures.
Free NTIS Catalogs To obtain copies of the catalogs or brochures listed
above, or to receive a free copy of the NTIS Catalog of Products and
Services (PR-827NEB), call the NTIS Sales Desk at 703-487-4650, or send
your request by fax to 703-321-8547.