SBA opens nominations for ‘Small Business Innovation Research’ awards
The U.S. Small Business Administration is seeking nominations for awards honoring the critical economic role small businesses play in federally funded research and development through SBA’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
Two awards will be given: the “Hall of Fame” award recognizing companies that have an extended period of extraordinary success of research, innovation, and product commercialization; and another, the “Tibbetts Award” with two categories, one for companies that have participated in the SBIR/STTR programs, and another for individuals who advocate on behalf of the programs.
The Tibbetts Awards are named after Roland Tibbetts, who was instrumental in developing SBIR, a highly competitive program to ensure small businesses get a chance to compete for federal research and development funding, along with the opportunities it provides to profit from commercialization of the technologies they develop.
“Small research and innovation companies are a well-kept secret in Puerto Rico,” said SBA Deputy District Director María de los Ángeles de Jesús. “What better way to publicly recognize their unique contributions to our economic development than by nominating them to this prestigious award.”
The SBIR and STTR programs currently account for more than $2.5 billion per year in federal R&D funds and are coordinated by the SBA in cooperation with 11 other federal agencies with large external research and development budgets.
The awards are presented to companies and individuals that are beacons of promise and models of excellence in high technology.
Nominations for these awards will close at 5 p.m. EST on Jan. 31, 2013. Awards will be presented in Washington, DC, in May 2013. To submit a nomination, please visit http://tibbetts2013.challenge.gov/ (Tibbetts Awards – companies and individuals) and http://sbirhof2013.challenge.gov/ (Hall of Fame Awards).
