Congressman George Brown, Jr. Honored by FLC

"Successful Partnering'' was the topic of the Federal Laboratory Consortium's (FLC) Far West Regional Meeting held in August at the University of California's Riverside (UCR) campus. The two day meeting showcased the successful partnering efforts of the three-pronged collaborative: federally funded researchers, private sector industry, and universities.

Ms. Tina McKinley, FLC Chairperson, recognized the efforts of Congressman George Brown, Jr., on behalf of technology transfer and presented him with the FLC Science and Technology Award. The congressman has long been a strong proponent of federal research and has led the way in support of US firms capitalizing on this valuable national resource. He was a leader in passing legislation that enabled the FLC to get its official charter with the authority to enter into cooperative research and development agreements (CRADA) with outside partners. Most recently, he supported the amendment to the Stevenson-Wydler Act passed in March of this year - as well as leading bi-partisan support for last year's National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act. In accepting his award, Congressman Brown cautioned those in attendance that the US must not become complacent in its supremacy in the world of R&D. Foreign competition has recognized the value of R&D and is looking to increase spending in the recruitment of the finest researchers at a time when the US is the only country considering cutting back funding for R&D and the possible disarming of laboratories.

In his keynote speech, UC Riverside's Chancellor Raymond Orbach focused on the post cold war environment of research and how the future intellectual exchange between institutions of higher education, government and the private sector, between Federal and State agencies, and individuals and corporations will be vastly different from the last fifty years. Citing the shrinking funding platform, he emphasized that university research cannot survive if it remains dependent on the same structure, format, and patronage which it enjoyed in the past. The Chancellor illustrated his point with three innovative approaches to partnering that UCR is involved in: (1) College of Engineering-Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT), (2) The Institute for Desert Agriculture, and (3) Conservation Biology Group.

Jon Paugh, Director, Technology Competitiveness Staff at the US Department of Commerce, presented an overview of Effective Partnering: A Report to Congress on Federal Technology Partnerships.

Lawrence Udell, Exec. Director, Center for New Venture Alliance, California State University, Hayward; and Daniel Larson, Past President, Inland Empire Economic Council (IEEC) paneled a discussion "Valuing and Funding New Technology Opportunities."

Three case studies were presented by (1) Leo Reddy, President, The National Coalition for Advanced Manufacturing (NACFAM); Joseph Harris, Manger of External Programs, Sandia National Lab.; and Woodrow Clark, Manger Strategic Planning, Energy Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; (2) Gordon Bourns, President & Chairman of the Board of Bourns International and Dr. Joe Norbeck, Director of the College of Engineering-Center for Environmental Research & Technology (CE-CERT); and (3) Dr. Martin Rachmeler, Director of Technology Transfer Office University of California San Diego.

The second day began with the Far West Regional business meeting. A legislative update was given by the FLC's Washington, DC Liaison, Tyrone Taylor, on PL l04-113, the Technology Transfer Act of 1995. He stressed that while the Morella-sponsored bill passed without a sunset clause, even with bi-partisan support related to technology, the reality of the situation is that both President Clinton's and Capital Hill's budgets reflect cuts in funding. Survival will be dependent on the perception of value to industry and value as seen by the large percentage of freshmen Republicans. His suggestion was to find substantial new relations in industry and to build on old partnerships. "Be creative as possible and keep building trust in the FLC."

A how-to training "Building Collaborative Partnerships" was presented by Marketing Dynamics Corporation.