Getting There First

Transforming laboratory curiosities into technically feasible commercial technologies is an essential part of the race to develop new products. The NIST Advanced Technology Program gives individual U.S. companies and industry-led joint ventures a financial boost to help them over the often formidable initial hurdles. Expected to grow substantially in the next decade, the program provides direct grants for the development of precompetitive, generic technologies with significant commercial potential. The technical accomplishments of NIST research projects are also of little value if they are not put to use. NIST believes that efficient use of new technologies requires a two-way flow of information in which the Institute and its "customer,"-whether it be industry, government, or the scientific community-confer early and often to define goals, agree on exchange mechanisms, carry out the work, and use the results.

Collaborative research projects in which industry or academic researchers work side by side with NIST researchers on projects of mutual interest are often the best way to move Institute-developed technologies toward the marketplace. In this case, research results do not require "transfer." They are passed along continuously during the project. In recent years, NIST has completely revamped its policies on cooperative research efforts to take advantage of new laws that better protect joint intellectual property and improve incentives for industry to collaborate with federal laboratories.

The Institute's explicit congressional mission to serve the competitiveness needs of U.S. industry, its reputation for neutrality on regulatory matters, and the high technical competence of its research staff, make it an ideal research partner for any organization, large or small, interested in securing its technological future.