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Selection Process
Phase 1
All proposals are subject to a comprehensive and rigorous selection process that includes the consideration of:
Only those technical topics that have undergone scrutiny within the technical laboratories, from bench researcher, up through division level, and formally approved by the laboratory technical deputy director, are published in the annual solicitation document.
An administrative screening to ensure each proposal meets seven (7) stringent administrative requirements outlined in the solicitation document. Proposals failing to meet these explicit requirements are returned to the proposer without technical reviews.
An in-depth technical evaluation by two independent NIST scientists or engineers knowledgeable in the specific field of technology of the proposal. This peer evaluation of the proposal is uniform across the agency and made according to five (5) pre-determined and announced criteria based on a numerical scale, as required by congressional legislation creating the program.
A review by each laboratory technical deputy director of the final evaluations within the OU, with a priority ranking of all the technical reviews by the technical deputy director to ensure that the proposed research is consistent with the objectives of the laboratory’s research programs.
Each laboratory’s priority ranking, along with the two completed evaluations for each proposal submitted, are then subjected to a third round of competition and review by an agency-wide selection committee of the OU SBIR coordinators and the SBIR program manager to determine the best and most promising technical proposals across the agency’s full spectrum of technologies.

Phase 2
Only those companies successfully completing work in the Phase 1 round of competition awards are permitted to submit proposals for a basic research effort in Phase 2. These Phase 2 proposals are subjected to a comprehensive and rigorous selection process that includes the consideration of:
An in-depth technical evaluation will be conducted by two independent scientists or engineers who are NIST or other government employees knowledgeable in the specific field of technology of the proposal. The technical representative of the Phase 1 contract is not permitted to serve as a reviewer of the Phase 2 proposal.
The technical evaluation of the proposal is uniform across the agency and made according to five (5) pre-determined and announced criteria based on a numerical scale, as required by congressional legislation creating the program.
This second technical review and evaluation is based upon extensive information including the success of the Phase 1 effort as contained in a final report from the proposer and a commercialization plan developed by the proposer. In addition, the technical representative coordinating the Phase 1 effort provides information as to the degree of success of the proposer in meeting the objectives of the Phase 1 effort.
A review by each OU SBIR coordinator of the final evaluations within his or her organization, with a priority ranking of all the technical reviews by each technical deputy director of the final scoring of all proposals to ensure that the proposed research is consistent with the objectives of the laboratory’s research programs.
Each laboratory’s priority ranking, along with the two completed evaluations for each proposal submitted, are then subjected to a third round of competition and review by an agency-wide selection committee of the OU SBIR coordinators and the SBIR program manager to determine the best and most promising technical proposals across the agency. In addition, the researcher who served as technical representative in the Phase 1 effort may be required to make an oral presentation of the Phase 1 results, and the probability of successful commercialization of the Phase 2 effort.



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For technical questions concerning the Small Business Innovation Research Program, contact us:

Office of Technology Partnerships, NIST, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 2200, Gaithersburg, MD 20899-2200
Phone: (301) 975-3085, Fax: (301) 548-0624, Email: sbir@nist.gov

Date created: February 15, 2002
Last modified: January 9, 2004

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