NIST to Fund Monitoring, Inspection Technologies for Public Infrastructure
July 29, 2008 // Published as a news service by IHS
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The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is seeking proposals for high-risk research projects to develop innovative technologies for inspecting, monitoring and evaluating critical components of the nation's roadways, bridges and drinking and wastewater systems.
The competition for cost-shared R&D support is the first from the newly established NIST Technology Innovation Program (TIP).
Based on 2008 funds, NIST expects to award approximately $9 million in first-year funding for R&D projects focused on new, efficient, accurate, low-cost, reliable sensors and related technologies that provide quantitative assessments of the structural integrity or degree of deterioration of bridges, roads, water mains and wastewater collection systems.
The NIST competition addresses a critical national need for improved sensing technologies to help local, state and national authorities more cost-effectively monitor and maintain the nation's vast public infrastructure, some portions of which have been in place for many years and are rapidly aging.
"As a society we stand atop what most authorities believe is an increasingly shaky platform of aging transportation and public utility systems, including roadways, bridges and water and wastewater pipelines," said TIP director Marc Stanley.
"It's estimated, for example, that nationwide we lose about 15% of our treated drinking water to leaky pipelines, and a major bridge collapse in Minneapolis last year that took 13 lives is a sobering reminder that infrastructure failures can cost far more than just money. With this first TIP competition we hope to foster significant technology innovations to assist our nation's engineers in monitoring and maintaining these critical systems."
TIP was established by the 2007 America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education and Science (COMPETES) Act to support, promote and accelerate innovation in the U.S. through high-risk, high-reward research in areas of critical national need.
The merit-based competitive program can fund cost-shared R&D projects by small-sized and medium-sized businesses, institutions of higher education, non-profit research organizations and national laboratories. There are some restrictions on the size of companies, ownership and the types of research that are eligible.
TIP awards are limited to no more than $3 million total over three years for a single company project and no more than $9 million total over five years for a joint venture.
NIST must receive proposals for the current TIP competition by 3 p.m. EDT, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2008. Review, selection and award processing should be completed in November 2008.
For more information on the TIP 2008 competition, go to www.nist.gov/tip/comp08_apply.html.
Source: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).