Michigan Edition - February 2020
Do you have a medical technology relevant for DoD? The call for MHSRS Abstracts is now.
The 2020 Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS) Call for Abstracts opened February 12 and closes March 25. 

The MHSRS is the Department of Defense’s premier scientific meeting. It provides a collaborative environment for military medical care providers with deployment experience, DoD scientists, academia, and industry to meet and exchange information on the unique medical needs of the Warfighter. The 2020 MHSRS is focused in four primary presentation areas: Warfighter Medical Readiness, Expeditionary Medicine, Warfighter Performance, and Return to Duty. 

Click here to submit an abstract and review the titles and descriptions of the 2020 scientific breakout sessions. The MHSRS website is password enabled so submitters need to be issued a username and password before they will be able to submit an abstract.  More information
This BBCetc program is helping Midwest researchers move life science innovations from lab to market
If your life science company is headquartered and has R&D operations in (or plans to be in) one of the Central Region states of Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, North Dakota or South Dakota, you should get to know about SHARPhub. 

The Sustainable Heartland Accelerator Regional Partnership - or SHARPhub – is a program of BBC Entrepreneurial Training & Consulting (BBCetc) that provides the infrastructure to help researchers commercialize their innovative life science technologies through startup companies. Through collaboration with university leadership in the five states, SHARPhub participants have access to training and mentoring, tools and templates, and connections with investors and prospective partners. Read on
Letters of Commitment for Your SBIR/STTR Proposal
As you prepare your NIH proposal, don’t forget to leave plenty of time to request letters of support from any consultants, collaborators and other partners who will be included on your SBIR/STTR project.

Although these are called Letters of Support, you should instead consider them to be Letters of Commitment. Think of them as IOUs from your collaborators to the company and, as such, they should always be addressed to the Principal Investigator (PI) on the project or the Business Official at the company, and not to NIH.

Let’s take a look at what goes into these letters:
  • A letter from a Senior/Key person (including the PI) will need to be included if the person your company is planning to hire is currently employed elsewhere but plans to join the company at the time of award. The letter will state ... Read on
NIH Commercialization Readiness Program an Assist for SBIR/STTR Phase I and IIB Awardees
The NIH Commercialization Readiness Program (CRP) is a funding opportunity for HHS SBIR/STTR Phase II or Phase IIb awardees.

This additional funding is designed to facilitate the commercialization transition for projects, and support work that is not typically supported through SBIR/STTR Phase II or Phase IIB awards. The type of work that is supported includes:
  • Preparation of documents for a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) submission
  • Development of an intellectual property strategy
  • Investigational New Drug (IND)-enabling studies
  • Clinical studies
  • Manufacturing costs
  • Regulatory assistance
  • Subcontracted work to other institutions, including contract research organizations (CRO)
  • A combination of services.

Although a significant portion of the work and budget can be subcontracted ... Read on
2020 Novel Coronavirus 
BARDA is supporting U.S. Government market research to identify medical countermeasures with the potential to help address the 2020 novel coronavirus outbreak. If your company is developing diagnostics, therapeutics, vaccines, or other products that could combat the transmission of this disease or contribute to the treatment, click here to submit your ideas. 

DoD Innovation Units Join Forces to Engage Small Business
In the collaborative nature of innovation efforts in the Department of Defense, five agencies came together to present the first-ever Joint Small Business Innovation Research Open Topic for the first application period of 2020.

DoD SBIR/STTR deadline extended
The DoD Small Business and Technology Partnerships Office has extended the Proposal Submissions deadline from February 12, 2020 to February 26, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. ET to offset the challenges experienced with submitting proposals during the transition to DSIP (Defense SBIR/STTR Innovation Portal).
Note: The Air Force deadline did not extend their deadlines for all but one topic: AF201-DCS01. This single topic has a deadline of Feb 26 at 8pm.
Make Your Offer Clear when Hiring
Every business at some point needs employees. Here are some things to consider when making a new hire, even when hiring your best friend(!):
 
  • An offer letter confirms the verbal offer and details discussed with the candidate during the interview process. It provides a way to present the job without a legal commitment.  
  • In your offer letter include the job title, full time or part time, contingencies, employment type (exempt, non-exempt) salary, payroll period(s), benefits, equity agreement, paid leave (vacation, holidays), management structure, and an overview of responsibilities.  

With these topics covered succinctly, both parties will have a clear understanding of the position before a commitment is confirmed.

DOT SBIR Solicitation is Now Open
The U.S. Department of Transportation FY20 Phase I Solicitation opened on February 6 and will close on March 9. View topics and instructions here.
Solicitations

Health & Human Services-NIH/CDC/FDA Omnibus
Clinical Trials not allowed:
PA-19-272 PHS 2019-02 SBIR-NIH, CDC, FDA
PA-19-270 PHS 2019-02 STTR-NIH
Clinical Trials required:
PA-19-273 PHS 2019-02 SBIR-NIH
PA-19-271 PHS 2019-02 STTR-NIH
Standard close dates: Jan. 5 Apr. 5, Sept. 5

Nat'l. Science Foundation
Submission windows:
Dec. 18, 2019 - Mar. 5, 2020
Mar. 6, 2020 - Jun. 4, 2020
Jun. 5, 2020 - Sep. 3, 2020
Sep. 4, 2020 - Dec. 3, 2020

Dept. of Defense
Closes Feb. 26, 8pm ET

Dept. of Energy
Closes Feb. 24, 11:59pm ET
ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy) Funding Opportunities View

Dept. of Transportation
Closes Mar. 9
New Pitch Day approach announced for submissions

NASA
Closes Mar. 20

Closes May 27 Note: Phase II projects must have previously completed a successful Phase I project before applying for a Phase II grant

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Upcoming Training and Events

SBIR/STTR Funding: Is it Right for Me?
February 19 - Kalamazoo, MI

Proposal Prep & Commercialization for SBIR/STTR Funding
Jan. 23 - Grand Forks, ND
Jan. 30 - Omaha, NE
Feb. 6 - Sioux Falls, SD
Mar. 6 - Kansas City KS

SBIR/STTR Proposal Prep for NIH
March 13 - E. Lansing, MI

Project Pitch and Tips for NSF SBIR/STTR
April 8 - E. Lansing, MI

Preparing a Pitch
April 15 - Kalamazoo, MI
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AUTM Annual Meeting
March 8-11, San Diego, CA

APTAC Spring Conference
March 9-12, Chicago, IL

NIH Regional Seminar
April 20-22 - Baltimore, MD

NIH-HHS Small Business Conference
April 28-30 - Las Vegas, NV

SBIR/STTR Spring Innovation Conference
June 29-July 1 - National Harbor, MD

SBIR/STTR Pursuit Webinars
BBCetc's SBIR/STTR Pursuit Recorded Webinar Library which provides a variety of SBIR/STTR topics, and now includes a series of short (10-15-min.) single-topic webinars call Tips at a Clip. Our recordings are updated regularly to keep them current. View our selection on our website or our YouTube channel.

This month's suggestion:

A bout BBCetc
BBC Entrepreneurial Training & Consulting manages Michigan's SBIR/STTR Assistance Program, which provides training and proposal development services to MI tech companies with most costs covered by the program. Its Michigan clients have been awarded over $289 million in funding since 2002. 

Contact us:   www.bbcetc.com / 734.930.9741 / info@bbcetc.com
Funds for this initiative were provided by the 21st Century Jobs Fund, a MSF program designed to accelerate the growth and diversification of Michigan’s economy.