Opportunity Information: Apply for 15 570
Apply for 15 570
- The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Partnerships for Innovation Accelerating Innovation Research Technology Translation" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.041 Engineering Grants.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 28, 2015 and posted on May 28, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Oct 9, 2015. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $9,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $800,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 45 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- Who May Submit Proposals Proposals may only be submitted by the following Academic / Research Institutions includes universities and two and four year colleges (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in, the US acting on behalf of their faculty members. Includesnon profit academic / research institutions. Who May Serve as PI Lineage Requirement The Principal Investigator (PI) or a co PI must have had an NSF award that ended no more than 6 years prior to the chosen submission windowrsquos full proposal deadline date or be a current NSF award recipient. The proposed proof of concept or prototype/ scale up must be derived from the research results and/or discoveries from this underlying NSF award. Note a proposal describing sole lineage to any of the following programs is not allowed and may be returned without review Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU), Research Experiences for Teachers (RET), the Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP), PFI AIR TT, PFI AIR RA, I CorpssupTM/sup, and SBIR/STTR. The PI must be a faculty member at a U.S. academic / research institution at the time of the award. In addition to the PI, there must be at least one other participant on the project (e.g., someone listed as a co PI, Senior Personnel, Other Professional, subawardee, consultant, collaborator, etc.) with explicit business experience (for example, someone from the technology transfer office, the business school, a local/regional development office, a business entity, etc.). This person must have an active role that is explicitly described along with the specification of a time commitment on the project.
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Opportunity Summary:
The National Science Foundation (NSF) Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) program is designed to help move research results out of the lab and toward real-world use. It sits within NSF's Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships (IIP) and includes two related tracks: Accelerating Innovation Research (AIR) and Building Innovation Capacity (BIC). This specific opportunity focuses on the AIR side and is titled PFI AIR Technology Translation (PFI AIR TT). The main purpose is to provide an early, practical push for promising technologies that came from prior NSF-funded research, helping them advance along the commercialization pathway by supporting activities like proof-of-concept validation, prototype development, or scale-up work. A key theme is translation: taking prior research discoveries and doing the applied, risk-reducing work that makes the technology more ready for industry adoption, licensing, or startup formation, while also involving faculty and students in entrepreneurial and innovation-focused thinking.
The solicitation (NSF Publication 15-570; Funding Opportunity Number 15-570) is a discretionary grant opportunity in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category, tied to CFDA 47.041 (Engineering Grants). NSF anticipated making about 45 awards, with an estimated total program funding level of $9,000,000. Individual awards could be as large as $800,000 (award ceiling). There is no cost sharing or matching requirement listed, which means applicants are not required to contribute a formal cost share as a condition of eligibility. The opportunity was posted May 28, 2015, with a full proposal deadline of October 9, 2015 (the archived record shows the archive date as May 3, 2017).
Eligibility is centered on U.S. academic and research institutions. Proposals may be submitted by accredited U.S. universities and two- and four-year colleges, including community colleges, as well as nonprofit academic/research institutions, as long as they have a campus located in the United States and are submitting on behalf of their faculty. The Principal Investigator must be a faculty member at a U.S. academic/research institution at the time of award. A critical requirement is the "lineage" rule: the PI or a co-PI must have held an NSF award that is either currently active or that ended no more than six years prior to the chosen submission window's full proposal deadline date. The technology translation work proposed must be derived from the results and/or discoveries of that underlying NSF award, meaning the proposal needs to clearly trace the proposed proof-of-concept, prototyping, or scale-up tasks back to NSF-supported research outcomes.
The program also draws boundaries around which prior NSF support can count as the sole lineage source. Proposals that trace solely to certain NSF programs are not allowed and may be returned without review. The disallowed sole-lineage sources include Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU), Research Experiences for Teachers (RET), the Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP), prior PFI AIR TT awards, PFI AIR Research Alliance (PFI AIR RA), I-Corps, and SBIR/STTR. Practically speaking, applicants need to ensure the prior NSF award they cite as the originating research award is an eligible research award and that the translation effort is credibly and directly connected to that funded work.
Another defining feature of this solicitation is that NSF expects real business or commercialization engagement on the team, not just technical development. In addition to the PI, the project must include at least one other participant with explicit business experience who plays an active, described role and has a stated time commitment. This could be someone from a university technology transfer office, a business school, an economic or regional development office, an industry partner, or another individual with commercialization and market experience. The point is to ensure the project is not only technically sound, but also guided by people who understand market needs, customer discovery, intellectual property and licensing pathways, partnerships, and how innovations actually get adopted.
NSF indicated it would host a webinar within about six weeks of the solicitation release to answer questions, with details posted on the IIP website. For access issues with the full announcement on Grants.gov, NSF directed applicants to contact NSF Grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov.
FAQs: NSF Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) AIR Technology Translation (PFI AIR TT) (NSF 15-570)
What is the NSF PFI program, and where does this opportunity fit?
The Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) program is an NSF program intended to help move research outcomes from the lab toward real-world use. It sits within NSF's Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships (IIP) and includes two related tracks: Accelerating Innovation Research (AIR) and Building Innovation Capacity (BIC). This opportunity is specifically part of the AIR track and is titled PFI AIR Technology Translation (PFI AIR TT).
What is the goal of the PFI AIR TT solicitation?
The goal is to provide an early, practical push to advance promising technologies that came from prior NSF-funded research along a commercialization pathway. The solicitation emphasizes "translation," meaning applied, risk-reducing work that makes a technology more ready for industry adoption, licensing, or startup formation, while also involving faculty and students in innovation and entrepreneurial thinking.
What kinds of activities does PFI AIR TT fund?
Based on the solicitation description, supported activities include proof-of-concept validation, prototype development, and scale-up work. These activities should be framed as technology translation tasks that reduce risk and increase readiness for real-world use.
What makes this a "technology translation" opportunity rather than basic research?
This opportunity is focused on taking prior NSF-supported discoveries and doing practical development work that advances readiness for commercialization. The proposal should clearly connect the planned proof-of-concept, prototyping, or scale-up tasks to results from an eligible NSF award and show how those tasks help move the technology toward adoption, licensing, or startup formation.
Who is eligible to submit a proposal?
Proposals may be submitted by accredited U.S. universities and two- and four-year colleges (including community colleges), and by nonprofit academic/research institutions, provided they have a campus located in the United States and are submitting on behalf of their faculty.
Who can serve as the Principal Investigator (PI)?
The PI must be a faculty member at a U.S. academic/research institution at the time of award.
What is the "lineage" requirement?
A key eligibility requirement is that the PI or a co-PI must have held an NSF award that is either currently active or ended no more than six years prior to the chosen submission window's full proposal deadline date. The proposed translation work must be derived from the results and/or discoveries of that NSF award, and the proposal should clearly trace that connection.
How recent does the prior NSF award need to be?
The prior NSF award must be active or must have ended no more than six years before the full proposal deadline date for the submission window being used.
Does the prior NSF award have to be held by the PI?
The prior NSF award (the lineage award) must have been held by the PI or a co-PI.
What does it mean that the translation effort must be "derived from" the prior NSF award?
It means the proof-of-concept, prototype, and/or scale-up tasks proposed in the PFI AIR TT project should come directly from outcomes of NSF-supported research. The proposal is expected to clearly connect the translation plan back to specific results and/or discoveries from the underlying NSF award.
Are there NSF awards that cannot be used as the sole lineage source?
Yes. The solicitation notes that proposals tracing solely to certain NSF programs are not allowed and may be returned without review. The disallowed sole-lineage sources include REU, RET, GRFP, prior PFI AIR TT awards, PFI AIR Research Alliance (PFI AIR RA), I-Corps, and SBIR/STTR.
If our only prior NSF support was I-Corps or SBIR/STTR, can we use that as the lineage award?
No, not as the sole lineage source. The solicitation indicates proposals that trace solely to I-Corps or SBIR/STTR (among other listed programs) are not allowed and may be returned without review.
What happens if a proposal is based solely on a disallowed lineage source?
The solicitation states that proposals that trace solely to certain disallowed NSF programs may be returned without review.
Is business or commercialization expertise required on the project team?
Yes. In addition to the PI, the project must include at least one other participant with explicit business experience who plays an active role that is described in the proposal and has a stated time commitment.
Who can fill the required business-experienced role?
The solicitation indicates this could be someone from a university technology transfer office, a business school, an economic or regional development office, an industry partner, or another individual with commercialization and market experience.
Does NSF specify what the business participant should do?
The solicitation emphasizes that the project should be guided by people who understand market needs, customer discovery, intellectual property and licensing pathways, partnerships, and how innovations get adopted. The business-experienced participant is expected to have an active, described role and a stated time commitment.
How many awards did NSF anticipate making, and what was the total funding level?
NSF anticipated making about 45 awards with an estimated total program funding level of $9,000,000.
What is the maximum award size?
The award ceiling listed is $800,000 for an individual award.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No cost sharing or matching requirement is listed in the provided information, meaning applicants are not required to contribute a formal cost share as a condition of eligibility.
What is the solicitation and funding opportunity identification?
The solicitation is NSF Publication 15-570, and the Funding Opportunity Number is 15-570.
What is the assistance listing / CFDA associated with this opportunity?
The opportunity is tied to CFDA 47.041 (Engineering Grants).
What category of funding opportunity is this?
It is described as a discretionary grant opportunity in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category.
When was the opportunity posted, and what was the proposal deadline?
The opportunity was posted May 28, 2015. The full proposal deadline was October 9, 2015.
Is this opportunity still open?
The record is described as archived, with an archive date of May 3, 2017, and the listed full proposal deadline was October 9, 2015.
Did NSF offer an informational webinar?
NSF indicated it would host a webinar within about six weeks of the solicitation release to answer questions, with details posted on the IIP website.
Who should applicants contact if they cannot access the full announcement on Grants.gov?
For access issues with the full announcement on Grants.gov, NSF directed applicants to contact NSF Grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov.
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