Innovation. It’s the buzz word that I hope won’t get overused or abused. For the past few years, we have heard how it’s the driver to grow a business and the economy as a whole. And, while that is true, “innovation” is not so novel. In 1982, the federal government took a progressive, bold step and mandated set-aside funding for innovation in US small businesses. Since then the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program has been a launching pad for competitive small businesses with big ideas to solve tough problems.
Annually, the feds invest about $2.5B in US small businesses to carry out R&D with a goal of commercialization. At any given time, there are about 6,500 active SBIR projects working to overcome a critical problem that has been identified by the federal government. In other words, all those R&D projects are not “technology push” ideas looking for a market. Quite the contrary, the federal government has done the market research and is positioned itself to be the ultimate customer for the technologies being developed or has identified industry needs the SBIR company can address.
To read the full, original article click on this link: SBIR $ and MEP Assistance: A Path to Commercial Success | Manufacturing Innovation Blog
