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History of Technology Transfer Partnerships and Future Plans

USDA, ARS and Economic Development:. History of Technology Transfer Partnerships and Future Plans. Richard J. Brenner, Ph.D. Assistant Administrator of ARS Office of Technology Transfer. … a competitive world. The Challenges of Today….

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History of Technology Transfer Partnerships and Future Plans

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  1. USDA, ARS and Economic Development: History of Technology Transfer Partnerships and Future Plans Richard J. Brenner, Ph.D. Assistant Administrator of ARS Office of Technology Transfer

  2. … a competitive world The Challenges of Today… “…American leadership is anything but assured in today’s global economy – in fact, it’s very much at stake. We face more significant challenges to our innovative capacity and long-term competitiveness than ever before. To succeed in the face of growing challenges we’re going to need extraordinary efforts from industry, educators, and policy makers. Bruce P. Mehlman Former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Technology Policy; “Partners on a Mission: Federal Laboratory Practices Contributing to Economic Development,” Nov. 2003 And we’re going to need our federal labs to continue in their long tradition of rising to meet our toughest challenges.”

  3. Commercialization: A Complex (and Expensive) Process • Basic discoveries require further R&D for commercial feasibility ($) • Regulatory aspects require further validation and documentation ($) • Marketing strategies likely have international implications requiring intellectual property (IP) protection outside the U.S. ($) • Private sector investors will look to recover costs by acquiring some exclusivity / marketing advantage (protected IP, service exclusivity, trade secret know how)

  4. Office of Technology Transfer Manages intellectual property issues for the Secretary of Agriculture • Has sole authority for licensing any inventions developed within any of the USDA agencies (including Forest Service, Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS), Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)) Has authority to develop and sign Cooperative Research And Development Agreements (CRADAs) for ARS Coordinates all Tech Transfer activities in ARS

  5. Patenting Marketing Licensing Tech Transfer Coordinators • 8 registered patent agents • Located in Beltsville, MD; Peoria, IL; Albany, CA • Targeted marketing • Web subscribe Tech Alerts • Partnering opportunities • 4 senior licensing specialists • HQ based • 7 specialists with life science / ag background • Distributed across geographic Areas of ARS Office of Technology Transfer Centralized in policy and approvals, licensing, marketing; decentralized in negotiation and implementation of CRADAs

  6. Key Points for Discussion • Federal R&D agencies are not positioned -- nor do they have the responsibility --- to provide the full assistance necessary for the private sector to succeed in producing products / services from federal inventions. • Local / regional economic development entities can provide complementary assets critical to private sector companies. • Agencies have some tools to facilitate these partnerships, but authority varies by agency.

  7. Annual Report to Congress on Technology Transfer --- FY 2006 Metrics • Licenses: • Active: 332 • Licenses with products on market: 100 • CRADAs: 211 active • Approx. 45% of licenses and CRADAs are with small businesses • Often lack business expertise, or fiscal resources necessary – we can’t help.

  8. History of TEDCO partnership MOU: Established May 2000 • 4 Technology Showcase events at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center • 8 partnerships with small / start-up companies • 7 projects: three different TEDCO funding programs • 3 other CRADAs in negotiation that may apply for TEDCO Maryland Technology Transfer Funds

  9. Future of TEDCO partnership Where do we go from here? • ARS in process of establishing first Partnership Intermediary Agreement (PIA) to foster long-term relationship with TEDCO • ARS / USDA proposing to request Enhanced Use Lease authority from Congress • Facilitates longer-term partnerships with private sector • Allows private sector to renovate / build infrastructure on federal property in exchange for long-term lease of space. • Encourages joint investment / risk sharing for more difficult research goals (e.g., nutrition / disease prevention; biofuels) • ARS would use PIA partner to manage relationships

  10. Solutions From Concept to Commercialization… Biomass to Ethanol / Energy Research Advanced processes for freeing fibers & sugars Better crops for ethanol Product recovery Newly discovered fungi for better enzymes Scale up fermentation bioprocesses

  11. Enhanced Use Lease to facilitate Public / Private Partnerships Pilot plants and other ARS Infrastructure:

  12. Photo: Quiet Waters Park, Annapolis, MD (Joann Perkins) Office of Technology Transfer 5601 Sunnyside Ave Beltsville, MD 20705 (301) 504-6905 http://www.ars.usda.gov/Business/Business.htm Richard J. Brenner, Ph.D. Assistant Administrator

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