NSF Policy Statement on Industrial Membership

1. NSF requires the ERC to develop a Center-level, generic membership agreement that governs industrial/practitioner (hereinafter referred to as industrial) participation and delineates the forms of industrial cash and in-kind contributions that constitute membership in the Center. Industrial/practitioner organizations that can be considered as members include firms, local government agencies, and other Federal agencies. Organizations contributing research and educational participants in the center, such as other universities, institutes, and hospitals should not be included as members. Foreign firms may be members of the ERC as long as they participate according to the membership agreement as U.S. firms do. These industrial members are expected to become involved with the planning, research, education, and technology transfer activities of the Center. Membership fees are pooled and allocated to Center functions according to the strategic and operational plans of the Center as designed and implemented by the Center's leadership. Industrial members may provide additional support above the membership fees for activities such as sponsored research projects, equipment donations, intellectual property donations, or educational grants. Potential industrial members that have not joined the Center, but contribute support for projects that fall within the scope of the ERC's strategic plan and are included in the Center's annual report, are not considered members but may be given another designation, such as affiliates. Attendance or participation at meetings, workshops, seminars, or site visits are benefits/responsibilities of membership, but do not qualify a firm for membership.

2. The ERC shall continue to develop and refine its technology transfer strategy and its intellectual property agreement, the latter in accordance with NSF's intellectual property guidelines (Grant Policy Manual, Section 730, "Intellectual Property") and the Awardee's policies.

3. The ERC's membership agreement, intellectual property policy must be included in the Center's Annual Report. A certification of the members and their financial contributions, signed by the university's AOR, must be included in the Center's Annual Report as well.

4. Industrial membership funds must be allocated for Center purposes. However, it is conceivable that they might not be expended in the year in which they are received. If this is the case, these funds must be placed in a Center account and reported to NSF and industry as unexpended funds that are held in reserve for future use. Progress reports on the expenditure of these funds should be provided to NSF and industry.

5. The ERC is required to hold a meeting, no later than three months after the effective date of the first year's award, with its industrial members who have committed to or are interested in supporting the Center. One purpose of the meeting is to gain industrial end-user insights, guidance, and support to help assure that the activities of the ERC are relevant to industrial interests and needs and enhance technology transfer. Another purpose is to gain industrial input into the development of the Center's membership agreement and the refinement of its intellectual property policy.

6. The ERC is expected to form an industrial advisory board comprised of all member companies and hold meetings of this board at least twice during every year of operation. Each year at one of these meetings, the industrial members will carry out an analysis of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats to survival (SWOT) of the ERC and present the results to the ERC's leadership team. Personnel from selected member companies are expected to participate in the annual NSF site visit where the SWOT analysis will also be presented. The ERC may also develop technical or educational advisory boards.

7. Costs for organizing meetings with industry will be borne by the ERC or the participants through a registration fee, as appropriate. Costs for attending these meetings by industry will be borne by their organizations.

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