Arkansas science and technology entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to meet with leaders of the $2.5 billion SBIR federal funding program when the 2016 SBIR Road Tour visits Little Rock on April 19.
The 15-state tour is coming to the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Donald W. Reynolds Center for Business and Economic Development to promote the federal Small Business Innovation Research program. SBIR and its sister Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) provide $2.5 billion annually to small companies for state-of-the-art research and product development.
Those encouraged to attend include university researchers, small business owners and entrepreneurs who have a research idea or an innovation that could be developed for commercialization, said Janet Roderick, state director of the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center.
SBIR program managers from at least nine federal agencies will speak and meet one-on-one with entrepreneurs.
“It provides an opportunity for researchers and small business innovators to meet directly with the program managers from the federal agencies, so Arkansas folks can meet and ask questions about their research and innovations and see if there is a fit for them to apply and receive the SBIR/STTR grants that are given out,” Roderick said.
Agencies scheduled to participate include the Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and military branches.
Rebecca Norman, innovation consultant and SBIR specialist at the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center, said meeting the program managers in person gives Arkansas entrepreneurs an edge in the highly competitive award process.
“Program managers can recommend how to modify a research concept to better align with a specific SBIR/STTR topic area or recognize if another agency may offer a better fit for your technology,” Norman said. “When your research is relevant to more than one agency, the best way to find out which agency to target first is to meet with the agency reps in person at the SBIR Road Tour event.”
Participants can also learn about state funding opportunities and resource providers during the afternoon session. Norman will speak, and a panel will feature three Arkansas companies who have received SBIR grants, including UALR spin-out Synanomet LLC.
Representatives from state agencies will provide details about state-level funding available for innovative companies. The final panel will highlight work being done at university technology transfer programs – University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences BioVentures and UALR’s Tech Launch.
Registration is required and available online here or by calling 501-683-7700. The cost is $50.
Main image: ASBTDC client and UALR professor Dr. Tito Viswanathan (left) and his company Synanomet have won multiple SBIR funding awards. He he will participate in the “From the Trenches: Victory and Defeat, Stories of SBIR/STTR Success and Failure” panel during the SBIR Road Tour afternoon session in Little Rock. Photo courtesy of UALR.