§ 278k. Regional Centers for the Transfer of Manufacturing Technology

• (a) Creation and support of Centers; affiliations; merit review in determining awards; objectives

  The Secretary, through the Director and, if appropriate, through other officials, shall provide assistance for the creation and support of Regional Centers for the Transfer of Manufacturing Technology (hereafter in this chapter referred to as the "Centers"). Such centers (FOOTNOTE 1) shall be affiliated with any United States-based nonprofit institution or organization, or group thereof, that applies for and is awarded financial assistance under this section in accordance with the description published by the Secretary in the Federal Register under subsection (c)(2) of this section. Individual awards shall be decided on the basis of merit review. The objective of the Centers is to enhance productivity and technological performance in United States manufacturing through -

  (FOOTNOTE 1) So in original. Probably should be capitalized.

  • (1) the transfer of manufacturing technology and techniques developed at the Institute to Centers and, through them, to manufacturing companies throughout the United States;
  • (2) the participation of individuals from industry, universities, State governments, other Federal agencies, and, when appropriate, the Institute in cooperative technology transfer activities;
  • (3) efforts to make new manufacturing technology and processes usable by United States-based small- and medium-sized companies;
  • (4) the active dissemination of scientific, engineering, technical, and management information about manufacturing to industrial firms, including small- and medium-sized manufacturing companies; and
  • (5) the utilization, when appropriate, of the expertise and capability that exists in Federal laboratories other than the Institute.
• (b) Activities of Centers

  The activities of the Centers shall include -

  • (1) the establishment of automated manufacturing systems and other advanced production technologies, based on research by the Institute, for the purpose of demonstrations and technology transfer;
  • (2) the active transfer and dissemination of research findings and Center expertise to a wide range of companies and enterprises, particularly small- and medium-sized manufacturers; and
  • (3) loans, on a selective, short-term basis, of items of advanced manufacturing equipment to small manufacturing firms with less than 100 employees.
• (c) Duration and amount of support; program descriptions; applications; merit review; evaluations of assistance; applicability of patent law
  • (1) The Secretary may provide financial support to any Center created under subsection (a) of this section for a period not to exceed six years. The Secretary may not provide to a Center more than 50 percent of the capital and annual operating and maintenance funds required to create and maintain such Center.
  • (2) The Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register, within 90 days after August 23, 1988, a draft description of a program for establishing Centers, including -
    • (A) a description of the program;
    • (B) procedures to be followed by applicants;
    • (C) criteria for determining qualified applicants;
    • (D) criteria, including those listed under paragraph (4), for choosing recipients of financial assistance under this section from among the qualified applicants; and
    • (E) maximum support levels expected to be available to Centers under the program in the fourth through sixth years of assistance under this section. The Secretary shall publish a final description under this paragraph after the expiration of a 30-day comment period.
  • (3) Any nonprofit institution, or group thereof, or consortia of nonprofit institutions, including entities existing on August 23, 1988, may submit to the Secretary an application for financial support under this subsection, in accordance with the procedures established by the Secretary and published in the Federal Register under paragraph (2). In order to receive assistance under this section, an applicant shall provide adequate assurances that it will contribute 50 percent or more of the proposed Center's capital and annual operating and maintenance costs for the first three years and an increasing share for each of the last three years. Each applicant shall also submit a proposal for the allocation of the legal rights associated with any invention which may result from the proposed Center's activities.
  • (4) The Secretary shall subject each such application to merit review. In making a decision whether to approve such application and provide financial support under this subsection, the Secretary shall consider at a minimum (A) the merits of the application, particularly those portions of the application regarding technology transfer, training and education, and adaptation of manufacturing technologies to the needs of particular industrial sectors, (B) the quality of service to be provided, (C) geographical diversity and extent of service area, and (D) the percentage of funding and amount of in-kind commitment from other sources.
  • (5) Each Center which receives financial assistance under this section shall be evaluated during its third year of operation by an evaluation panel appointed by the Secretary. Each such evaluation panel shall be composed of private experts, none of whom shall be connected with the involved Center, and Federal officials. An official of the Institute shall chair the panel. Each evaluation panel shall measure the involved Center's performance against the objectives specified in this section. The Secretary shall not provide funding for the fourth through the sixth years of such Center's operation unless the evaluation is positive. If the evaluation is positive, the Secretary may provide continued funding through the sixth year at declining levels, which are designed to ensure that the Center no longer needs financial support from the Institute by the seventh year. In no event shall funding for a Center be provided by the Department of Commerce after the sixth year of the operation of a Center.
  • (6) The provisions of chapter 18 of title 35 shall (to the extent not inconsistent with this section) apply to the promotion of technology from research by Centers under this section except for contracts for such specific technology extension or transfer services as may be specified by statute or by the Director.
• (d) Acceptance of funds from other Federal departments and agencies

  In addition to such sums as may be authorized and appropriated to the Secretary and Director to operate the Centers program, the Secretary and Director also may accept funds from other Federal departments and agencies for the purpose of providing Federal funds to support Centers. Any Center which is supported with funds which originally came from other Federal departments and agencies shall be selected and operated according to the provisions of this section.