Does Technology Created in Federal Labs Impact Me?
WASHINGTON (PRWEB) July 10, 2018 -- The internet, insect repellent, seedless grapes … three seemingly unrelated things that are used and enjoyed by people around the world daily. What you may not realize is that these items have one major thing in common: they were each created and developed in a federal laboratory, and are in your life thanks to a process called technology transfer (T2). Through technology transfer, a means for moving federally developed innovations from the lab to the commercial marketplace, federal research and development (R&D) can meet public and private needs, as well as boost our economy.
The Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC) launched LabTech in Your Life, a virtual-reality experience that walks you through the significant ways federal laboratories play a role in your everyday life. The first environment, LabTech at Home, takes you through a relatable home to learn about lab-to-market successes. The entire project highlights widely used technologies that are the products of taxpayer-funded research and eventually introduced to the market through collaborative T2 partnerships that take place between the government and industry.
“Federally funded research is responsible for more mass-market products than most realize. LabTech in Your Life demonstrates just how big an impact this research has on our lives and the American economy, even in the most familiar of settings,” said John Dement, FLC Chair. “Technology transfer agreements allow federal technologies and resources to reach the market through invaluable partnerships that create significant innovation.”
Federal agencies such as the Department of Defense, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are represented in LabTech at Home as you seamlessly move from room to room. Visit the kitchen and learn how research from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration put healthy fish oil tablets in your vitamin routine. Or walk into the living room and discover how work done at the National Institute of Standards and Technology brought closed captioning to your television.
LabTech in Your Life creates a real-world connection with technology transfer and portrays the possibilities our federal laboratories offer to entrepreneurs interested in furthering their research and development. For visitors seeking information about how to work with a federal lab, LabTech in Your Life connects directly to FLC Business—the most comprehensive free database of ready-to-license federal technologies, equipment, funding and other valuable resources. The unique FLC Business database allows innovators to search laboratory data, engage with a federal lab, and connect with resources that will help them achieve their R&D goals. By linking LabTech in Your Life with FLC Business, the FLC aims to encourage innovation and spur future technology transfer success stories.
Experience LabTech in Your Life in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari browsers, as well as some versions of Internet Explorer. An ADA-compliant version is also available through the platform.
About the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (FLC)
Organized in 1974 and formally chartered by the Federal Technology Transfer Act of 1986, the FLC is a nationwide network of approximately 300 federal laboratories, centers, parent departments, and agencies that establishes strategies and opportunities for linking laboratory mission technologies and expertise with the marketplace. To accomplish its mission of assisting the movement of innovative federal research and development into the U.S. economy, the FLC provides various resources—from training to regional and national meetings—so its members can obtain the resources they need to achieve successful technology transfer. To learn more about the FLC and its mission, visit http://www.federallabs.org.
Kaitlyn Porch, Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer, https://www.federallabs.org/, +1 (856) 667-6770 Ext: 306, [email protected]
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