Two Companies Inducted into SBIR Hall of Fame

WASHINGTON, April 24, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Eighteen small businesses and six individuals were honored today by SBA in Washington, D.C., for the critical role they play in research and development for the government and for their success in driving innovation and creating new jobs.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110909/DC65875LOGO )

The Tibbetts Awards, given by the U.S. Small Business Administration, honor outstanding small businesses and individuals who participate in the SBA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. Two past participants in SBIR who represent the very best of the 30-plus-year SBIR program were named to the second SBIR Hall of Fame class.

"Creating an economy built to last requires redoubling our commitment to supporting innovative entrepreneurs like those we honor with Tibbetts Awards," said Karen Mills, SBA administrator. "In particular, our two 2012 Hall of Famers started small, but their growth has powered our economy for years. Their stories illustrate the promise of the new generation of innovative entrepreneurs and remind us all how central the success of one high growth small business can be to our competitiveness as a nation."

The Tibbetts Awards, named after Roland Tibbetts, who was instrumental in developing the SBIR program, are presented to companies and individuals from all over the United States who are beacons of promise and models of excellence in high technology.

Tibbetts award winners are selected based on the economic impact of their technological innovation, and on whether they have met federal research and development needs, encouraged diverse participation in technological innovation, and increased the commercialization of federal research.

Two types of Tibbetts Awards exist: awards for businesses that have participated in the SBIR award programs, and awards for individuals who have supported the SBIR Program but who have not received economic assistance from the program.

Another category, created last year, is the SBIR Hall of Fame Awards, which recognize companies with a long period of extraordinary success of research, innovation, and commercialization within the SBIR program.

The SBA's Small Business Innovation Research program accounted for more than $2.5 billion in FY 2011 in federal research and development funds and is coordinated by the SBA in cooperation with 11 federal agencies.

The presentations will be made at the White House, with Todd Park, Chief Technology Officer of the United States, serving as keynote speaker.

Companies

Advanced Circulatory Systems, Inc. – Roseville, MN; Axion BioSystems, Inc. – Atlanta, GA; BioStrategies, LC – State University, AR; Bridger Photonics, Inc. – Bozeman, MT; CHI Systems, Inc. – Ft. Washington, PA; FHC, Inc. – Dowdoin, ME; Nanoparticle BioChem, Inc. – Columbia, MO; Piasecki Aircraft Corporation – Essington, PA; Primordial – St. Paul, MN; RMD, Inc. – Watertown, MA; San Diego Composites, Inc. – San Diego, CA; Sensor Electronic Technology, Inc. – Columbia, SC; Separation Design Group, LLC – Waynesburg, PA; Stottler Henke Associates, Inc. – San Mateo, CA; Systems Technology, Inc. – Hawthorne, CA; The Design Knowledge Company – Fairborn, OH; TRX Systems – Greenbelt, MD; Vida Health Communications, Inc. – Cambridge, MA;

Individuals

Clara Asmail, NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership – Gaithersburg, MD; Roy Keller, LA Business & Technology Center – Baton Rouge, LA; Ronald Marchessault, Jr., General Dynamics Information Technology – Silver Spring, MD; Elizabeth Pyne, U. S. Navy – Crane, IN; Christine Villa, BRTRC – Fairfax, VA; John Waszczak, John Waszczak & Associates, LLC – Tucson, AZ

Hall of Fame

Genzyme Corporation – Cambridge, MA; Sensors Unlimited Goodrich Corp. – Princeton, NJ

For more information about SBIR, please visit SBA's extensive Web site at http://www.sba.gov/content/small-business-innovation-research-program-sbir-0  

Contact: Dennis Byrne (202) 205-6567
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration