NIST actively seeks industrial, academic, and non-profit partners to work collaboratively on projects of mutual benefit. Special efforts are made to tailor cooperative programs to the individual needs of the research partners.

NIST hosts about 1,200 guest researchers from industry, academia, and other government agencies each year at its Gaithersburg, Md., and Boulder, Colo., sites.

CRADAs. NIST has participated in 664 Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) since 1988. CRADAs typically cover joint research efforts in which both NIST and the cooperating company provide staff, equipment, facilities, and/or funds, in any number of possible combinations, for a project of mutual interest.

NIST is now working with more than 300 different research partners on 365 CRADAs in over 225 areas of research. Ninety-five percent of NIST's CRADA partners are U.S. businesses, with about equal numbers from large and small companies.

Under a CRADA, NIST can protect confidential or proprietary information exchanged during the project, keep research results confidential, and provide exclusive rights for intellectual property developed. Each CRADA is negotiated separately and most take 3 to 4 weeks to implement.

RESEARCH CONSORTIA. NIST may sponsor research consortia on topics of broad interest to a number of different partners. These consortia are usually structured through CRADAs and involve groups of companies and other organizations that exchange data, ideas, researchers, and/or materials among themselves and with NIST to meet agreed-upon research goals. Most require payment of membership fees in exchange for advance knowledge of research results produced by the consortia.

Active consortia open to U.S. companies are: Air Speed Proficiency Testing, BACnet Interoperability Testing, Ceramic Machining, Casting of Aerospace Metal Alloys, Coatings Service Life Prediction, Computer-Aided Manufacturing Engineering, Developing a Methodology for Evaluating Seams of Rubber Roofing Membranes, Enhanced Machine Controller, Environmentally Friendly New Flame Retardants, Flowmeter Installation Effects, Microwave Monolithic Integrated Circuits, North American Integrated Services Digital Network Users' Forum, Orthopaedic Accelerated Wear Resistance, and Scanning Capacitance and Electromagnetic Sensor.

INFORMATION. NIST publishes a detailed directory of research areas available for cooperative research entitled Guide to NIST. Free copies are available from Public and Business Affairs, A903 Administration Bldg., NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-0001, fax: (301) 926-1630. For more information on cooperative research opportunities at NIST, contact Rm. 213, Bldg. 820, NIST, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899-0001, (301) 975-3084.

NIST's Industrial Partners

• 2mm Program, Inc.
• 3M Center
• 4pi Analysis, Inc.
• 10A, Inc.
• Abbott Laboratories
• ADB, Inc.
• Adco Products, Inc.
• Adobe Systems Incorporated
• Advanced Lithography Group
• AHK & Associates
• Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Technology Institute
• Air Flow Developments Limited (Canada)
• Airflow Technical Products, Inc.
• Air Products and Chemicals, Inc.
• Aladdin Industries
• Alerton Technologies, Inc.
• AlliedSignal, Inc.
• Aluminum Association
• American Automatrix, Inc.
• American Dental Association Health Foundation
• American Foundrymen's Society
• American Heuristics Corp.
• American Institute of Chemical Engineers
• American Iron and Steel Institute
• American Red Cross
• American Society for Testing and Materials
• American Society of Mechanical Engineers Consortium on Gear Metrology
• American Superconductor Corp.
• Ameritech Services
• Analogy, Inc.
• Anatech Ltd.
• Andover Controls Corp.
• A.O. Smith Corp.
• Aristech Chemical Corp.
• Armstrong World Industries, Inc.
• Ashland Chemical Co.
• AT&T Bell Laboratories
• Atlas Electric Devices Co.
• Automotive Composites Consortium
• Babcock & Wilcox Co.
• Barber-Colman Co.
• Barnant Co.
• BBN Corp.
• Bell Atlantic Corp.
• Bell Communications Research
• BellSouth
• Biomet
• Biomineral Sciences International, Inc.
• Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.
• BIOSYM Technologies, Inc.
• BioTraces, Inc.
• Boeing Co.
• BP Chemicals Inc.
• Bruker Instruments, Inc.
• Calimetrics
• Carlisle Syntec Systems
• Carrier Corp.
• Cascade Microtech, Inc.
• Censtor Corp.
• Century Telephone Enterprises, Inc.
• Ceradyne Inc.
• Cercom, Inc.
• CERTICOM Corp.
• Cheng Fluid Systems, Inc.
• CID Technologies, Inc.
• Cimetrics Technology, Inc.
• Cimetrix Corp.
• CIMplus, Inc.
• Cincinnati Milacron, Inc.
• Clovis Thermal
• Collagen Corp.
• College of American Pathologists
• Creswell Scientific Products & Services
• Crucible Compaction Metals
• Cryenco Sciences, Inc.
• CryoGen, Inc.
• CYBO Robots, Inc.
• Cylink Corp.
• DECI
• Delta Controls, Inc.
• Delta Tau Data Systems, Inc.
• Deneb Robotics, Inc.
• Dentsply International, Inc.
• Digital Equipment Corp.
• Digital Instruments, Inc.
• Dow Chemical Co.
• Dow Corning Corp.
• Duron, Inc.
• DynCorp, Inc.
• Eastern Analytical, Inc.
• Eastman Kodak Co.
• Eaton Corp.
• E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co.
• Electric Power Research Institute
• Electronic Data Systems Corp.
• EMAG Technologies, Inc.
• Enterprise Integration Technologies Corp.
• Exotech, Inc.
• Exxon Research and Engineering Co.
• Firestone Building Products Co.
• Flow Vision
• Fluid Jet Associates
• Fluxtrol Manufacturing, Inc.
• Ford Motor Co.
• Fusion Semiconductor Systems
• Fusion Systems Corp.
• Galileo Electro-Optics Corp.
• Geltech, Inc.
• General DataComm, Inc.
• General Electric Co.
• General Motors Corp.
• Genetics Institute, Inc.
• GenFlex Roofing Systems
• Glastonbury Gage
• Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.
• Graseby Optronics
• Grey Pilgrim
• Grumman Aerospace Corp.
• GTE Southwest, Inc.
• Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc.
• Helaman Ferguson
• Hewlett-Packard Co.
• HIAC/ROYCO
• Honeywell, Inc.
• Horizon Technology Group
• Howmet Corp.
• Hughes Aircraft Co.
• IBM Corp.
• ICN Biomedicals, Inc.
• IGEN, Inc.
• IMRA America, Inc.
• Industrial Modernization Center, Inc.
• Intecom, Inc.
• Integrated Technologies for Medicine, Inc.
• International TechneGroup, Inc.
• IRE, Inc.
• IVS
• Johnson & Johnson Professional, Inc.
• Johnson Controls, Inc.
• Karta Technology, Inc.
• Kerr-McGee Corp.
• KLA Instruments
• Labsphere, Inc.
• Landis
• Landis & Gyr Powers, Inc.
• Life Technologies, Inc.
• Lucent Technologies
• Matec Applied Sciences, Inc.
• McQuay International
• MedImmune, Inc.
• Melles Griot
• Metrologix, Inc.
• MicroFab Technologies
• Micro-g Solutions
• Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Co.
• Montronix, Inc.
• Morrow Tech Industries, Inc.
• Morton Automotive Safety Products
• Motorola
• MOXTEK
• National Association of Corrosion Engineers
• National Center for Manufacturing Sciences
• National Elevator Industry, Inc.
• National Industrial Information Infrastructure Protocols Consortium
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory
• National Roofing Contractors Association
• NeuTek
• Nitrate Elimination Co., Inc.
• N-See Software
• Northern Telecom, Inc.
• Norton Co.
• Nuclear Energy Institute
• Nuclear Metals, Inc.
• NYNEX Corp.
• OASYS Group, Inc.
• Olin Corp.
• Open Communications Networks, Inc.
• Optex Communications Corp.
• Optical E.T.C., Inc.
• Optical Specialites, Inc.
• Oriel Corp.
• Orion Analysis Corp.
• Osteonics
• Park Scientific Instruments
• PCC Airfoils, Inc.
• PDES, Inc.
• P.D.I.T.
• PECO Energy
• Perkin-Elmer Corp.
• Photoelectron Corp.
• PlantSTEP, Inc.
• PolarSoft, Inc.
• PPG Industries, Inc.
• Pratt & Whitney
• Production Products Manufacturing and Sales
• Quantum Design
• Quantum Magnetics
• Radcal Corp.
• Raychem Corp.
• Rayex Corp.
• Ray V. Watson Co.
• RF Microsystems, Inc.
• Rheology Research
• Rincon Research Corp.
• RITEC, Inc.
• RLR Resources
• Rohm and Haas Corp.
• Roof Consultants Institute
• Sachs Freeman Associates, Inc.
• Sage Electrochromics
• Sandusky International, Inc.
• Schott Corp.
• Scott Specialty Gases
• SEMATECH
• Severn Communications Corp.
• Shaver Engineering
• Shortridge Instrument Co.
• Siemens Stromberg-Carlson
• Sierra Instruments, Inc.
• SILMA, Inc.
• Simulation Technologies Incorporated
• Smith & Nephew Richards, Inc.
• SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals
• Snorkel
• Solar Turbines, Inc.
• Sonimetrix, Inc.
• Sonix, Inc.
• Southwestern Bell Telephone Co.
• Southwest Research Institute
• Spectra Diode Laboratories, Inc.
• SPS Laboratories
• SPYRUS, Inc.
• Square D Co.
• Staefa Control System, Inc.
• Structural Composites, Inc.
• Symbolic Systems, Inc.
• TASC
• Technology Assessment and Transfer
• Tektronix Federal Systems, Inc.
• Telamon, Inc.
• Telecom Solutions
• Teletrol Systems, Inc.
• Teltone Corp.
• Texaco Research and Development
• Texas Instruments
• Timken Co.
• Torrington Co.
• Trane Co.
• Trans-Tech, Inc.
• Trevigen, Inc.
• TRW, Inc.
• UES, Inc.
• Union Carbide Corp.
• Uniphase
• Unisys Corp.
• United Technologies Corp.
• U.S. West, Inc.
• VeriSign, Inc.
• Vitesse Semiconductor Corp.
• VLSI Standards, Inc.
• Washington Software Technologies, Inc.
• West Advanced Ceramics, Inc.
• Westinghouse Electric Corp.
• Winters ElectroOptics
• W.R. Grace & Co.
• Wright Medical Technology, Inc.
• X-Ray Optical Systems, Inc.
• XXsys Technologies, Inc.
• Xyplex, Inc.
• Zimmer, Inc.