Awards

The FLC Awards Program annually recognizes federal laboratories and their industry partners for outstanding technology transfer achievements. The FLC’s 30 plus years of advancing tech transfer to meet the needs of our nation’s economy would not have been possible without the creativity and dedication of the federal scientists and inventors we recognize through the Awards Program, as well as the innovative professionals who work alongside them to achieve their goal of creating available technologies to countless people around the world.

The FLC awards are ranked as some of the most prestigious honors in the T2 field and are given as a symbol of well-deserved recognition for phenomenal technological efforts.

The FLC recognizes honorees in the following categories:

Awards for Excellence in Technology Transfer

Recognizes employees of FLC member laboratories and non-laboratory staff who have accomplished outstanding work in the process of transferring federally developed technology.

Laboratory Director of the Year

Honors directors of FLC laboratories who have made maximum contributions to support technology transfer activities in their organizations.

FLC Service Award

Recognizes significant contributions to the Consortium. Awards are presented in three categories:

• Harold Metcalf Award– for an FLC laboratory employee who has provided sustained significant service to the FLC as an organization.

• Representative of the Year Award– for an FLC Representative who has made the most significant contribution to the FLC in the past year.

• Outstanding Service Award– for an individual or group who is not an FLC laboratory employee for a notable contribution to the FLC in terms of sustained support and/or service.

Interagency Partnership Award

Recognizes agency and/or laboratory employees from at least two different agencies who have collaboratively accomplished outstanding work in transferring a technology.

Outstanding Technology Transfer Professional Award

Recognizes the efforts of an FLC laboratory technology transfer professional (or team) who has demonstrated outstanding work transferring a technology in a manner significantly over and above what was called for in the normal course of their work. Office of Research and Technology Applications (ORTA) representatives, technology transfer program managers, and commercialization managers are ideal candidates for this awards.

State and Local Economic Development Award

Recognizes successful initiatives that involve partnership between state or local economic development groups and federal laboratories for economic benefit.

Rookie of the Year Award

Recognizes the efforts of an FLC laboratory technology transfer professional who has demonstrated outstanding work in the field of technology transfer in a manner significantly over and above what was called for in the normal course of their work during the past year. The nominee must be new to technology transfer, with three years (or less) experience in a technology transfer position

Tech Focus Award

As part of the FLC’s new Tech Focus initiative, this award will be presented to a laboratory which has most successfully completed a transfer effort of a featured technology under the initiative for that year. The inaugural award will recognize water-related technology transfer. Nominations will be accepted for this award from any of the aforementioned FLC Award categories, and all submitted nominations can receive an award whether or not they win in their original submitted category.

Tips for Nominating

Whether you’re new or experienced in writing nominations and are looking for an edge to catch the judges’ attention, check out our “Writing a Successful Nomination” video tutorial. This brief video provides inside tips on what makes an ideal nomination, as well as a list of do’s and don’ts.