Revisiting the Department of Defense SBIR Fast Track Initiative (2009) / Chapter Skim
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1 Assessing the SBIR Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement Programs at the Department of Defense
1 Assessing the SBIR Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement Programs at the Department of Defense
Pages 7-27
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It begins with a sketch of the operation of the SBIR program within DoD, drawing on related NRC studies of SBIR and also describes the growing emphasis on commercialization as an objective of the DoD SBIR program as a background to the Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement programs.2 KEY FEATURES OF THE SBIR PROGRAM The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was created in 1982 by the Small Business Innovation Development Act.
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See Zoltan Acs and David Audretsch, Innovation and Small Firms, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1990. 4 Testimony of Michael Caccuitto, DoD SBIR Program Administrator, before the House Committee on Science and Technology, June 26, 2007.
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Commercial sales and transition to acquisition programs are the principal goals of SBIR Phase III at DoD. The purpose of both Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement is to increase the number and magnitude of Phase III transitions resulting from DoD SBIR awards.
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in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) coordinates the overall DoD SBIR program.8 SADBU provides oversight and sets policy concerning the SBIR program in coordination with the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E)
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NOTE: The DoD SBIR program, funded at approximately $1.14 billion in FY 2008, is made up of 12 participating components: Army, Navy, Air Force, Missile Defense Agency (MDA) , Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
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funding. All of these factors, which may impact commercialization, vary among the DoD component SBIR programs.
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Technologies developed under the SBIR program 11 DoD often sets objectives for defense contractors for the involvement of small businesses, and contractors often support small businesses in their SBIR efforts.
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NGA makes only two or fewer Phase II awards per year. NGA is the only DoD component that participates voluntarily in the SBIR Program because they see the potential benefits of leveraging this powerful program.
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Also, while BMDO had a single Source Selection Authority for all SBIR awards -- The SBIR Program Manager -- that selection decision is now made at MDA by a committee and steering groups. A GROWING EMPHASIS ON COMMERCIALIZATION The 1992 Reauthorization The 1992 SBIR reauthorization resulted in an increase in the portion of the agency extramural R&D budget set-aside for the SBIR program from 1.25 percent to 2.5 percent.
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In conjunction with the emergence of innovative small start-ups in computing, biotechnology, and advanced materials, there was ample support for program expansion in 1992.13 The increase in the percentage of R&D funds allocated to the program was accompanied by a stronger emphasis on encouraging the commercialization of SBIR-funded technologies. The 1992 reauthorization explicitly highlighted commercial potential as a criterion for awarding SBIR awards.14 For Phase I awards Congress directed SBIR program administrators to assess whether projects have "commercial potential" in addition to scientific and technical merit when evaluating SBIR applications.
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The Fast Track Initiative Initiated with the 1996 SBIR solicitations, as a two-year pilot policy -- the SBIR "Fast Track" allowed SBIR projects that attracted matching funds from third-party investors during the Phase I award period to receive a significantly higher probability of a Phase II SBIR award, as well as expedited processing to reduce the delay in reaching the market. Toward the end of a small company's Phase I SBIR project, the company and its investor submit a Fast Track application.
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Specifically, the original language describing a SBIR Phase I proposal for selection and award was: (A) a first phase for determining, insofar as possible, the scientific and technical merit and feasibility of ideas submitted pursuant to SBIR program solicitations: (96 Stat.
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This one aspect of the SBIR Program was very purposefully changed by the Congress with the 1992 legislation, which placed private-sector commercialization on an equal footing with scientific and technical merit. However, the DoD components do not implement this is exactly the same and equal way.
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With that commitment, applicants received essentially continuous funding from Phase I to Phase II. In launching a broader Fast Track initiative, DoD sought to attract new firms and encourage commercialization of SBIR funded technologies throughout the Department.
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Early submission of the Phase II proposal and prompt evaluation eliminates some of the gap that occurs in the standard SBIR program between the end of Phase I and the start of Phase II. Submission of a Fast Track proposal also results in four months of gap funding at the rate of the Phase I funding to allow efforts to continue while the Phase II proposal is being evaluated.
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There are also drawbacks to Fast Track from the agency viewpoint. For SBIR program managers, the Fast Track program requires extra administrative effort.
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• Leverages acquisition program funding; i.e., an acquisition program has its R&D investment in Phase II Enhancement matched by SBIR funding, thereby achieving more with its programmed funding. ASSESSING THE FAST TRACK INITIATIVE The Initial NRC Assessment of Fast Track At the conclusion of the initial pilot period for Fast Track in 1998, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology (USD (A&T)
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The Phase II Enhancement Since 2000, DoD Components have developed policies to further encourage the transition of SBIR research into DoD acquisition programs and/or the private sector. Under this policy, DoD Components provide an eligible firm with additional Phase II SBIR funding (up to $500,000)
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22 The resulting report, published in 2000, was at the time the largest and most thorough review of an SBIR program. National Research Council, The Small Business Innovation Research Program: An Assessment of the Department of Defense Fast Track Initiative, op.
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As a part of this comprehensive assessment, NRC is examining the SBIR programs at the Department of Defense, the National Institutes of Health, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Energy, and the National Science Foundation, which are the five largest SBIR programs. This comprehensive assessment, published in 2008, focuses on the quality of the research projects being conducted under the SBIR program, the commercialization of that research, and the SBIR contribution to accomplishing agency missions.26 Although much broader based than the 1999 review, the 2008 NRC study, "Capitalizing on Science, Technology, and Innovation: An Assessment of the Small Business Innovation Research Program," employs similar case study and empirical analysis as well as survey questionnaires that are based on those used by the NRC in its 2000 report.
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o Analysis of how DoD acquisition programs support SBIR Phase III efforts, including interviews of DoD managers for their perspectives on Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement. o Comparison of commercialization rates of Fast Track and Phase II Enhancement projects to the overall DoD SBIR commercialization rate.
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