NASA Comes Together Through SBIR Program

When Walter Kim talks about the way NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program operates, the phrase E Pluribus Unum-Out of many, one-comes to mind.

	Glenn's SBIR Manager Walter Kim and Chief of Power and Propulsion Sandra Reehorst hold Hall thrusters, a technology area where NASA's SBIR has contributed to improvements in electric propulsion for space applications.

"While each NASA center has its unique capability and technical expertise, we all follow the same process under the SBIR Program," explained Kim, Glenn Research Center's SBIR program manager in the Commercial Technology Office. "The process involves Headquarters and all NASA centers working across the six strategic enterprises for one common goal."

Congress established the SBIR Program in 1982 to ensure that the best and most innovative concepts become part of Federal research and development efforts that benefit the Nation.

Under the program, NASA field centers identify critical technologies that are needed to enhance the Agency's ability to meet mission goals. Once those needs are established, companies submit proposals explaining how their innovations would support NASA's mission and how they plan to pursue commercial applications for their products. SBIR companies then develop and commercialize their innovations through a three-phase process.

"The center(s) who collaborate with these small businesses are chosen solely for their technical expertise," Kim explained. "Operating under this One NASA philosophy through the years has required the cross-center team to consider all decisions within the context of what is best for the Agency rather than for any one center."

Kim stressed the value of strong communication among SBIR managers throughout the centers. Managers meet monthly through videoconferences and attend semiannual program management gatherings, where they invite personnel involved in the SBIR process.

"Many people within and throughout the centers play a vital role in the SBIR process," Kim said. "In fact, more than half of NASA's yearly procurement activities are SBIR-related, and Glenn has oversight for all Agency SBIR procurement policies and guidelines."

Fiscal year 2002 ended with another successful season for the SBIR Program. NASA awarded more than 450 Phase I (feasibility and technical merit), Phase II (promising development), and Phase III (commercialization) contracts. Kim noted that throughout the years SBIR companies have worked with several centers on portions of the same contract.

ViGYAN, Inc., Hampton, VA, for example, developed the Federal Aviation Administration-certified Pilot Weather Advisor system using satellite technology to substantially increase the amount of weather information available to aircraft pilots in flight. Phase I and II, funded by Langley Research Center, resulted in the development and patent of the original system concept. Phase III, funded by Glenn, developed and demonstrated an affordable, commercially viable satellite data link system for the dissemination of weather information. The Phase III effort led to a spin-off company, WeatherStream, which has since been acquired by Weather Services International, Inc.

Kim, who began his career at Glenn as a researcher in 1979, is proud to be part of the SBIR Program. "I feel that I'm making a contribution to the Agency and to small businesses by helping to find a place for technological innovation," explained Kim, who received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for outstanding leadership of the SBIR Program and in the area of technology transfer and commercialization in 1996.

Working in the SBIR Program for the past 13 years, Kim has gotten to know and respect his colleagues throughout all NASA centers. He sees the program as a prime example of how cooperation and collaboration breed success.

Kim affirmed, "We all have our roles, but come together as one."

By Doreen B. Zudell, Editor
AeroSpace Frontiers
NASA Glenn Research Center