§278k–1 Competitive Awards Program

Summary

The Director must run a competition inside the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership to give awards to Centers or groups of Centers. The goal is to add new abilities to the Partnership and fund projects that solve new or emerging manufacturing problems. The Director decides the problems after talking with the MEP Director, the MEP Advisory Board, other federal agencies, and small and medium-sized manufacturers. The Director may set one or more yearly themes. Centers can be reimbursed for costs. Applications must follow the Director’s rules made with the MEP Advisory Board. Awards must be peer reviewed and chosen competitively, and the Director should try to pick projects from many regions. Winners will be those that meet one or more goals: improve regional industry competitiveness; create jobs or train new hires; help move research from colleges, national labs, other federal research, or nonprofit research institutes into business; recruit a diverse manufacturing workforce, including outreach to groups named in sections 1885a or 1885b of title 42; or other results that advance the objectives in section 278k(c) or section 278l. No matching funds are required. The Director may consider global-market potential with the MEP Advisory Board and the Secretary. Awards last no more than 3 years. Key terms are defined in section 278k.