U.S. Department Of Energy, Chicago Operations Office, 9800 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, Illinois 60439

B -- SOLICITATION FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE APPLICATION FOR COMMERCIALIZATION ASSISTANCE FOR AWARDEES IN THE SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH (SBIR) PROGRAM SOL DE-FC02-98ER12217 DUE 122997 POC Peter Waldman, Panel Chairman, Contract Specialist, 630/252-2189 WEB: ACQ's Current Acquisition Page, http://www.ch.doe.gov/business/ACQ.htm. E-MAIL: Peter Waldman, Panel Chairman, Contract Specialist, peter.waldman@ch.doe.gov. The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Research (OER) announces its interest in receiving applications to enhance the commercialization of SBIR recipients' technologies resulting from their research and development. The Department may select more than one offeror for award under this solicitation. The selected applicant(s) may provide SBIR Awardees with individualized assistance in preparing business plans and developing presentation materials for raising capital or finding strategic partners to support the commercialization of their SBIR-developed technology. DATES and ADDRESS; The complete solicitation document will be available on or about November 26, 1997 on the Internet by accessing either the OIT grant program homepage at (http://www.oit.doe.gov/ or the DOE Chicago Operations Office Acquisition and Assistance Group home page at (http://.www.ch.doe.gov/business/ACQ.htm) under the heading "Current Acquisition Activities" Solicitation No. DE-FC02-98ER12217. Applications are due no laterthan 3:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time (CDT), approximately 30 days after the issuance of the solicitation. Awards are anticipated by February 15, 1998. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Completed applications referencing Solicitation No. DE-FC02-98ER12217 must be submitted to the U. S. Department of Energy, Chicago Operations Office, Attn: Peter R. Waldman, Bldg. 201, Rm. 3F-11, 9800 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439-4899. As a result of this solicitation, DOE may award two(2) cooperative agreements. Total available funding, irrespective of the number of offerors selected, is $250,000.00 in FY 1998, and subsequent follow-on funding is approximately $250,000.00 for FY1999 and FY2000. The solicitation invites only small business organizations to submit applications. The SBIR program is a small business set-aside program. Prior experience on this program has shown that a small business award recipient provides more credibility to SBIR participants. Past experience with previous commercialization assistance projects also confirms that small businesses develop stronger and more productive business relationships with another company that has dealt with business problems similar to their own (i.e., raising capital, preparing business forecasts, marketing products, etc.). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter R. Waldman at 630/252-2189, U. S. Department of Energy, 9800 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439-4899; by fax at (630) 252-5045; or by e-mail at peter.waldman@ch.doe.gov. (0309)

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