DoD Engagement with Its Manufacturing Innovation Institutes Phase 2 Study Final Report (2021) / Chapter Skim
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4 Improving MII Linkages with DoD and Other Federal Sponsors for Technology Development and Transition
4 Improving MII Linkages with DoD and Other Federal Sponsors for Technology Development and Transition
Pages 80-115
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From page 80... ...
In this chapter the committee addresses improving MII linkages for technology development and transition. In contrast to other federal agencies, DoD is not only a sponsor of MII technology development but also a customer for the resulting technologies.
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Current OSD ManTech Support fewer core activities Become more self-sustaining plan B Improve OSD ManTech Same as A, with Same as A, with improvements core improvements in core in core processes and network processes and network C
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The committee's perspectives on the strategies for increasing aware ness and engagement of the MIIs within the DoD, for building programmatic relationships with the S&T community, for building programmatic relationships with the acquisition and sustainment organizations across the department, and for improving MII connections with other federal agencies are discussed in the follow ing sections. Throughout this chapter, while recognizing that each MII comprises a consortium of industry and academia members, the committee's primary focus is on the interface between the MII host organization and DoD and other federal agencies.
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From page 83... ...
In 2020, they published the DoD Manufacturing Technology Program Office Manufacturing Innovation Institutes Communication and Outreach Plan. As stated in the document, a key goal is "OSD ManTech seeks to better integrate the Institutes with DoD and National research, development, acquisition, production, and sustainment infrastructures to facilitate transition of advanced manufacturing capabilities into fielded systems and programs of record." The plan further states that the MIIs "support the full life-cycle of Defense manufacturing beginning with the requirements through to technology sustainment by directly engaging with the Military Services and the Defense Agencies." The plan is focused on OSD ManTech's strategic approach to increasing outreach and awareness of the MIIs internally within the DoD and federal government as well as with the public with a goal of ensuring awareness in all stakeholder groups of the value proposition of the MIIs which will lead to utilization and integration.
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From page 84... ...
Publicly sector -- branch House staff, MIIs promote priorities, promote the Executive leadership at governors, domestic availability, institutes as officials the federal, mayors manufacturing and access instruments state, and growth to for ensuring local levels support the domestic national manufacturing defense and growth and economic the national prosperity. defense (2)
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Publicly sector -- professionals officers, facilitate officers promote the Acquisition internal and program faster and work in very institutes as professionals external to managers/ more efficient risk averse an acquisition the DoD MIIs program development environments. mechanism including executive and Material (2)
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From page 86... ...
Publicly sector -- and Logistics MIIs grow a clear promote the Operations sustainment Agency, flight the national, mechanism institutes as offices lines, fleet regional, on how best an opportunity readiness and local to approach for local centers economy and these governments establish an organizations to grow the industrial local economy commons. and establish an industrial commons (2)
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From page 87... ...
Publicly sector community engineering provide an of the promote the -- S&T professionals professionals, opportunity DoD MIIs; institutes as community government for the S&T establishing a resource laboratories, community process for outreach DIU, Small to leverage and map of organizations Business existing relationships (2) Meet in Innovation ecosystems, person to Research/ access SMEs, discuss and Small and find connect with Business technology institutes Technology transition Transfer, S&T opportunities executives 9.
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instructors, mentors and administrators can leveraging the Manufacturing USA ecosystem as a new way of doing business
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ecosystem discuss and connect with institutes 12b. Private Traditional Assistant The DoD MIIs Engage (1)
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, iterative engagement will be needed to develop the value proposition the MII offers for meeting specific DoD needs. In addition to aware ness of the Institutes overall, additional information which would be useful for OSD ManTech's utilization goal includes detailed description of the capabilities of the MII for the communities of interest within the DoD, as well as a clear defini tion of the engagement mechanisms by which DoD groups can contract with the MIIs for projects.
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4-7 and have the needed connections to invite DoD Acquisition and Sustainment inputs to road mapping activities. All MIIs need to develop similar understanding of DoD customers and build their own network of contacts.
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BioFab USA and BioMADE are not affiliated with a JDMTP subpanel. Since OSD ManTech is responsible for MII core funding, the JDMTP ties are cur rently focused more on awareness and coordination than on connections with the organizations represented by JDMTP.
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From page 93... ...
These linkages offer a starting point for engaging sponsors of technology projects beyond the OSD ManTech funded core, but can depend heavily on personal contacts and existing communities that do not scale. Current Linkages to DoD S&T Sponsors beyond Core Funding The MIIs were established as partnerships to focus on pre-competitive TRL/ MRL 4-7 technology development, with contracts, organizations and practices optimized for this purpose.
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This has been an impediment for industry member participation in cases where cost share is mandatory and the project is aimed at a defense need rather than a commercial need. Some directed technology projects have been executed using other transaction agreements (OTAs)
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To attract users, contracting will have to be easy to use and able to transition to production fast enough to hit technology insertion windows and avoid barriers to non-traditional defense contractors. For all of these reasons, the committee looked at transition projects as a separate line of business for MIIs, distinct from core and S&T-sponsored development projects.
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Consortium teams Sponsors NSF, ARO, AFOSR, OSD ManTech Acquisition and Acquisition and NRL, etc. R&D programs sustainment sustainment EWD programs programs programs Contract type Grants, FAR Cooperative OTs, FAR contracts FAR contracts contracts, agreements, TIAs, agreements OTAs Current MII Tech scouting Systematic Limited engagement Some visibility of linkages pipeline for MII engagement with with DoD customer MII success stories projects core sponsor communities Less with other sponsors NOTE: Acronyms defined in Appendix F
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From page 97... ...
Maturation at MRL 7 and beyond would require MII or MII member full-scale facilities for manufacturing hardening of technologies, similar to approaches used in the United Kingdom with the University of Sheffield, its related Advanced Manufacturing Research Center, and the UK Catapult initiative.8 As the MIIs move beyond their startup period and start to deliver transitionready outputs, a scalable and repeatable process is needed to engage acquisition and sustainment sponsors. Contracting The MIIs have been contracted using a variety of mechanisms that include CAs, TIAs, and OTAs.
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For example, America Makes has entered a third CA and has had good success in accepting externally sponsored technology projects since, for public purpose, there is no cost share requirement. AIM Photonics operates under a CA with a 1:1 cost match requirement.
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Several of the institutes were able to secure OTAs for directed technology projects for DoD customers. The OTAs provide maximum flexibility for the institutes to work with their membership and the federal government.
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A strong argument has been made that OTAs are a more appropriate contractual instrument for DoD directed R&D than FAR contracts or assistance instruments.12 Best Practices for Transition Engagement To inform the committee's findings and recommendations on improving DoD MII linkages for technology transition the committee identified transition oriented best practices in Service ManTech programs, the Metals Affordability Ini tiative, SBIR, OTA consortia, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Entrepreneur in Residence programs.
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Each COE has a task order contract for R&D that generally does not require cost share, allows project level teaming between large and small companies, allows work beyond TRL/MRL 7, and has a path to transition to a prime contractor, procurement office or sustainment activity. Navy ManTech projects have a technology transition agreement which is signed by the platform PMs which represents a commitment by the PMs to transition and implement successful ManTech programs.
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The potential lesson for MIIs is that help from Service and ManTech organiza tions, or their joint coordination body, the JDMTP, can be instrumental in estab lishing partnerships with DoD acquisition and sustainment program and opening avenues for technology transition. For example, each Manufacturing Technology Program project has an implementation plan which is periodically reviewed with prospective technology users.17 While not every MII project needs such an imple mentation plan, understanding implementation requirements and communicating with prospective users/customers is critical for transition projects.
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SBIR Practices for Transition SBIR programs throughout DoD award contracts for Phase I feasibility studies and Phase II R&D demonstrations. Phase III commercialization contracts are not funded by SBIR, but rather by DoD acquisition or sustainment programs.
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and DoD networking events have been successful over the history of the SBIR program, with great benefits to DoD.24 The DoD MII program has an opportunity to adopt these or similar practices to improve contracting and encourage transition of successful MII technology development results. Best Practices 4.
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This is a powerful incentive for DoD sponsors to use OTs and has the potential to greatly speed transition of successful prototypes. The facilitation provided by the consortium manager may include mentoring of small companies, liaising between government and industry, maximizing teaming and working group opportunities, streamlined contracting actions and active engagement to recruit and retain non-traditional members.27 The OT consortium model had been effective in attracting DoD sponsors and industry participants on a scale orders of magnitude larger than the MII model.
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The opportunity for MIIs and their sponsors is to facilitate connections between MII members who need assistance with transition to commercial manufacturing and DoD programs such as DARPA's EEI or DoD's Trusted Capital program.29 Opportunities for Improving Transition and Commercialization The best practices discussed above suggest that improving MII technology tran sition will require more than ad hoc adaptation of mechanisms designed for pre competitive TRL/MRL 4-7 projects. As recommended in the Phase 1 study, adding processes and tools for transition will necessitate dedicated staff and effort, and changes in both DoD and MII processes to facilitate engagement with acquisition and sustainment communities.
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OSD ManTech has the opportunity to work with other DoD programs, such as the Defense Manufacturing Community Support Program,30 to strengthen the national security industrial base.
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. MII LINKAGES TO OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES Current Linkages Several examples exist of DoD MIIs engaging with federal agencies other than the DoD and the National Laboratories to support technology development, both in the TRL/MRL 4-7 range and in earlier stage research, and for ecosystem develop ment.
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, • Ease and speed from economy by MII host overhead single contracting office for of scale, common terms • Participation by MII members transition projects tailored to task orders and subs only • Contracting agent can be • Multi-MII projects require one selected to give high priority MII to take the lead to all customers (d) New OTA Consortium for • Widely used approach for • Creates a new organization Transition Projects prototyping and transition • Transition projects burdened (>$15 billion in fiscal year by consortium manager 2020)
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In this case, America Makes part nered with the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and Veterans Affairs to "efficiently and safely match health care provider needs for PPE with manufacturers capable of providing 3D-printed supplies."34 Further, America Makes and NIH worked to connect manufacturers with free PPE designs, including the rapid vetting, certifying, and fielding of these PPE designs.35 Finally, the DoD MIIs have also engaged with the National Laboratories, al though on a limited basis. Examples include AFFOA working with Lincoln Labora 32 U.S.
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A number of these linkages were catalyzed by legislative initiatives; for example, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act appropriated funding for NIST to spend in projects "at other Manufacturing USA institutes" including the DoD MIIs. Opportunities for Improving MII Linkages to Other Agencies The linkage between MIIs and other federal agencies is necessary for a nationally networked system of manufacturing technology, EWD and ecosystem advancement.
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For TRL 4-7 technology projects, DoD MIIs could look for opportunities to work with other federal agencies in funding work relevant to their technology area. For example, DoD MIIs could run their funding solicitations in collabora tion with specific agencies, so that promising proposals can be funded by any of the collaborators.
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From page 113... ...
Individual MIIs have broadened the available set of contract vehicles to include OTAs and project level agreements better suited to sponsor directed technology transition projects, however, changes will be needed in government facilitation, contracting mechanisms, and MII membership arrangements. These changes are essential to attract industry participants and DoD acquisition and sustainment sponsors whose primary interest is transition.
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Recommendation 4.3: OSD ManTech should fund a team of transition facilita tors to assist MIIs in engaging Service acquisition and sustainment communi ties. This team should establish DoD connections through coordination with the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel (JDMTP)
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Recommendation 4.5: OSD ManTech should designate a focal point to develop an MII engagement strategy for other federal agencies which defines the value proposition of the MIIs relative to the organizational needs of these agencies, and to execute this strategy. DoD should actively engage members of the National Science and Technology Council Subcommittee on Advanced Manufacturing to raise awareness of the MIIs and their roadmaps, identify common priorities in the technology focus areas of the MIIs, and discover actionable paths forward (including contracting mechanisms)
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