Local Company Strikes SBIR Gold

Susquehanna Resources and Environment, Inc. landed a $3 million Army contract for commercialization of a technology developed through the Army SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) program. The contract is with the Distributed Common Ground System-Army office (DCGS-A) in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, which manages Net-centric Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance. Dr. Shin-Yi Hsu, President, created a new pattern recognition technology which provides image automated target cueing and mapping. The technology is used to assist the Army for treaty verification, to monitor boundary agreements and watch movement of tanks, troops and munitions. Dr. Hsu will be integrating his software into the Army’s computing systems, and training Army personnel to use it.

TDO’s Marcie Sonneborn, provided support to Dr. Hsu in the submission of multiple SBIR grant applications over the last eight years and most recently in the negotiations for the Phase III commercialization contract with the Army. The TDO works in collaboration with Dr. Hsu’s local Regional Technology Development Center in Binghamton, AM&T, to provide services to SBIR clients throughout the Southern Tier.

The purpose of the federal SBIR program is to foster small business development through funding of technology innovation by the government for high risk research and development. SBIR grants of up to $100,000 are available to fund Phase I feasibility and proof of concept, and Phase II prototype development for up to $750,000 leading to product development and commercialization. This Army contract is considered a Phase III, which is the commercialization of the technology, but is not funded from the pool of federal SBIR funds. In Phase III, companies rely on their own resources, a commercial partnership, venture funding or a government contract from an interested agency, frequently one that has sponsored the Phase I and Phase II research. 11 government agencies participate in SBIR and provide grants for technology development. U.S. companies with fewer than 500 employees are eligible to apply.

Dr. Hsu’s success is only one example of the benefits of SBIR and STTR (Small Business Technology Transfer Research, a partnership with a research institution) in Central New York State. Over the past 12 years, TDO has assisted companies throughout a 35-county region to obtain well over $100 million in federal SBIR and STTR funds. If you’d like to explore the potential for SBIR in your business, contact Marcie Sonneborn at msonneborn@tdo.org or 315-425-5144.