(Photo courtesy of Oregon BEST)
Oregon BEST, a non-profit that funds and supports cleantech startups in Oregon, is hosting a series of introductory seminars around the state for small technology companies to learn information about available federal and state research and development funding. The program will focus on federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding programs.
The event hosted in Bend will be held at E::SPACE Labs on May 17 from 6-9pm.
Each year the federal SBIR and STTR funding programs award approximately $2.5 billion in non-dilutive funding to small, high-tech, innovative businesses. SBIR encourages small for-profit companies and research institutions to pursue risky but potentially rewarding endeavors to ensure the United States remains the world’s innovation leader. The funding is awarded based on a competitive process that considers both the technical merit of the technology to be developed and the potential for successfully introducing it to the market.
The seminar will start with a quick 10-minute overview on Oregon BEST programs and assistance offered for startups. Followed by Leon Wolf, a specialist in SBIR/ STTR government grants, who will give a 30-minute presentation on government grants to help companies understand the process and eligibility. Free application support is available to eligible companies.
“There is a lot of support for higher risk technology startups. We typically look at early stage tech companies before any other investor will, and we offer many benefits such as connections to university labs for testing and technology validation, networking, showcasing your company at conferences, interns, accelerators and more,” states Wolf.
Oregon BEST is committed to developing the “clean” technology sector in Oregon, and will clarify what that means, since it is very broadly defined and an often confused term. Many companies who don’t think they are a “cleantech” company may qualify.
The event is being cohosted at E::SPACE Labs by Central Oregon Inventors Network (COIN) and the COCC Small Business Development Center (SBDC).
Oregon BEST nurtures clean technology innovation by transforming new ideas, research, and products into green collar jobs, greater sustainability, and economic prosperity for Oregon. They were founded in 2007 as the Oregon Built Environment & Sustainable Technologies Center, Inc (Oregon BEST) – an independent nonprofit. Oregon BEST provides leadership and leverages expertise, resources, and relationships to achieve impact beyond their scale.
E::SPACE Labs is a membership based technology incubator dedicated to advancing the high-tech electronic hardware device industry in Central Oregon. They provide engineering tools and high level technical education to those with an interest in electronic hardware design coupled with training courses focused on the needs of startup operations.
For more information, go to http://oregonbest.org/sbir-training.
Contact: Margaret Lydecker
Oregon BEST
(503) 928-7902
margaret.lydecker@oregonbest.org
www.oregonbest.org
