Opportunities for Entrepreneurs in the Area of Soldier Technology

 

Congress established the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program over 20 years ago. Eleven federal agencies participate in this program, with $2 Billion dollars set-aside for American owned small companies. The Department of Defense (DoD) has $1 Billion of the total; the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is next with $650M.

DoD program managers generate topics to help the warfighter win the war. These topics are published on the web at http://www.acq.osd.mil/sadbu/sbir . DoD is the ONLY agency that allows the small business community to have technical dialogues with the DoD topic authors. There is a 6 week window for these technical dialogues. DoD will have 3 solicitations in fiscal year 2005.

For Universities, Congress established the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program. Five agencies participate and there is over $200M available for this program. The small business receives the award, BUT they MUST have a partner -- any university, any non-profit, or any Federally Funded Research and Development Center. The small business HAS to perform a minimum of 40% of the work and the partner CAN perform up to 60% of the work. The Principle Investigator can be with the small business OR the partner.

Each state has many Small Business Development Centers and several Procurement Technical Assistance Centers. These are paid for by the state and the Small Business Administration. They are available to help the small business community weave their way through the federal bureaucracy. They can also help a company develop SBIR and STTR proposals.

DARPA

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is the central research and development organization for the Department of Defense (DoD) . It manages and directs selected basic and applied research and development projects for DoD, and pursues research and technology where risk and payoff are both very high and where success may provide dramatic advances for traditional military roles and missions.

OnPoint

OnPoint is a not-for-profit organization originally funded by the U.S. Army that focuses on technologies with the potential to address the requirements of both the individual soldier and the commercial market. These technologies may include anything from long-lasting batteries to novel power-generating devices, so long as they address commercial AND Army needs. OnPoint uses a range of investment approaches, including making equity investments, project partnering, research sponsorship, licensing arrangements, and others. OnPoint also acts as a bridge between the Army and the innovation community (entrepreneurs, established companies, universities, researchers, and venture capitalists) to develop business relationships.

US Army Soldier Systems Center

The Army's SSC is located in Natick, Massachusetts and is home to their Future Force Warrior Technology Program Office. Jean-Louis "Dutch" DeGay, one of the speakers at our September 23rd "Technology and the Future Warrior" broadcast, works out of this office. His slide presentation, including contact details, can be seen here.

The SSC is the Army's one-stop soldier-support organization, responsible for researching, developing, fielding, and managing food, clothing, shelters, airdrop systems, and soldier support items. Their goal is simple:
Provide America's soldiers with the best equipment in the world. To achieve this goal, the Natick team has consolidated full life-cycle management of soldier items into a one-stop, soldier support organization.

Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies

The Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (ISN) is an interdepartmental research center at MIT. Established in 2002 by a five-year, $50 million contract from the U.S. Army, the ISN's research mission is to use nanotechnology to dramatically improve the survival of soldiers. The ultimate goal is to create a 21st century battlesuit that combines high-tech capabilities with light weight and comfort. It's a long-range vision for how technology can make soldiers less vulnerable to enemy and environmental threats.