This technology transfer public-private partnership project at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory demonstrates friction stir welding, a process that overcomes the challenges of traditional laser welding, enabling manufacturers to use more lightweight materials in more vehicle components, thus improving fuel efficiency. | Photo courtesy of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Blog post by Zack Baize, Program Lead, Small Business Vouchers, October 11, 2016.

Hundreds of business leaders, policy makers, entrepreneurs and designers gathered at the South by Southwest Eco (SXSW Eco) conference in Texas this week to discuss ways to drive social, economic and environmental change in America. These leaders brought their latest innovations and ideas to the forefront through panel discussions, keynote speeches, and a series of startup showcases.

SXSW Eco has quickly become a launch pad for the latest cleantech innovations set to positively impact society and the environment. The event’s Energy Startup Showcase was a great venue to celebrate sustainability solutions and emphasize the Energy Department’s new $12 million investment into its Small Business Vouchers (SBV) pilot program. 

Small businesses play a pivotal role in driving job creation and economic growth in America. Many are developing some of the most promising solutions across the clean energy sector. However, these companies often need greater support to overcome critical technology and commercialization challenges impeding their product’s path to market.

SBV meets this need by awarding qualified U.S. small businesses a voucher allowing them to access the world-class expertise and facilities housed at U.S. national laboratories. With these vouchers—valued between $50,000 and $300,000—businesses can participate in a wide variety of projects with national labs, including prototyping, testing and validation, cost modeling, and more.

To date, SBV has forged 76 collaborative partnerships with 12 national laboratories, totaling nearly $15 million in vouchers. Businesses interested in being part of SBV’s third round can now submit a Request for Assistance (RFA) via the SBV website.

No one industry leader, startup, national laboratory, or government entity can independently address the barriers to bringing clean energy technologies to market. That’s why the Energy Department’s Technology-to-Market activities, including the Lab Impact initiative, facilitates new relationships between business leaders, investors, and innovators to develop solutions to our sustainability challenges.

By introducing round three of SBV at SXSW Eco, we made sure this unique opportunity reached a forward-thinking environment where new stakeholders and small businesses could learn about the federal resources available to them. We believe that a robust innovation ecosystem can only be built by forging new and better partnerships. To achieve this goal, the Energy Department has a renewed focus on reaching out to companies that have not worked with the national labs before, and helping them leverage national lab resources to solve big commercialization challenges.

We enthusiastically welcome small businesses across the nation to submit an RFA for SBV round three. To learn more about the pilot, including current projects and the participating labs, visit www.SBV.org