Innovative Nevada businesses encouraged to attend at the Las Vegas Business Success Center
LAS VEGAS, Nev. ? Last year, 14 Nevada companies received grants through the Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer Programs (SBIR/STTR), federally funded programs that support companies pursuing innovative technologies. However, those involved in economic development in the state believe that more Nevada companies can successfully compete for these grants that can provide companies with more than $1 million to develop cutting-edge technologies.
The Nevada Small Business Development Center (NSBDC) and the University of Nevada, Reno College of Business will offer a workshop Dec. 5 at the Las Vegas Business Success Center to assist Nevada companies that may be interested in competing for these funds. The workshop will provide intensive training on proposal writing techniques and tips and is intended to increase the number of awards received by Nevada companies.
?The competition for these grants is stiff ? approximately one in 15 proposals are funded in Phase I,? explained Fritz Grupe, professor emeritus at the University of Nevada, Reno College of Business and manager of the Small Business Innovation Research Program at the NSBDC. ?Nevertheless, these programs remain the largest startup fund in the United States, and Nevada companies need to go after them aggressively.?
Through the two programs, 11 agencies, such as the Department of Defense, the Department of Agriculture and the National Institutes of Health, award $2.5 billion annually in grants in two phases. In the first phase, up to $150,000 enables companies to do feasibility studies. In the second phase, as much as a $1.5 million is provided to support further research and development. Each of the agencies has specific priorities and awards the grants to encourage feasibility research and prototype development that helps to meet those identified needs.
The Dec. 5 workshop in Las Vegas will focus on Department of Defense programs, but is applicable to all the SBIR/STTR agencies. It will be led by Becky Aistrup, a nationally recognized consultant who was previously the SBIR/STTR program director for the Minnesota Science and Technology Authority. Aistrup also has extensive private sector experience within the advanced materials, electronics, biotechnology and medical industry sectors. She closely tracks how the 11 federal agencies are changing priorities and what kinds of proposals are being funded. She will share that information, as well as valuable tips on writing effective proposals, at the workshop.
?The workshop aims to show attendees how to win funding, not just how to write proposal that meet the basic criteria,? Grupe said.
The workshop will be divided into two sessions. Session One will be held 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., Dec. 5, and will provide an overview of the SBIR/STTR programs. It is free. Session Two will be held 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and will provide tips on successful proposal writing. Session Two costs $25. Both sessions will be held at the NSBDC?s Las Vegas Business Success Center, 1951 Stella Lake St., Room 30. For more information on the workshop, contact Bob Shriver, associate program manager at 775-287-8020 or reshriv@yahoo.com. Register for the workshop at http://nsbdc.org/education-training/business-training-calendar/, or call 775-784-4436 or 775-784-1717.??
# # #
The Nevada Small Business Development Center is a statewide business-assistance outreach program of the University of Nevada, Reno, College of Business supported in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration that provides a wide variety of technical assistance to support Nevada business and to help entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses in today?s dynamic market.?
Nevada?s land-grant university founded in 1874, the University of Nevada, Reno has an enrollment of 18,000 students and is ranked in the top tier of the nation?s best universities. Part of the Nevada System of Higher Education, the University has the system?s largest research program and is home to the state?s medical school. With outreach and education programs in all Nevada counties and with one of the nation?s largest study-abroad consortiums, the University extends across the state and around the world. For more information, visit www.unr.edu.?
Media Contact:
Claudene Wharton
Media Relations Officer
University Media Relations
University of Nevada, Reno/108
Reno, NV 89557
whartonc@unr.edu
775-784-1169?? phone
775-784-1422?? fax
Media newsroom: http://newsroom.unr.edu
More releases
jared sullinger jaleel white levi johnston 2013 srt viper scott walker recall fisker atlantic social darwinism
No comments:
Post a Comment