Dual-use program will highlight the benefits of industry/Air Force technology partnerships

Emily M. Smith
ASME NEWS

Industries looking to share research costs will find a friendly ear at the U.S. Air Force booth on the exhibit floor of this year's ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition.

Information about the Air Force Dual Use Science and Technology program will be available at the Air Force booth (No. 425), when the exhibit opens officially during the Monday evening reception on Nov. 18 in the New Orleans Hilton & Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

The dual-use program was created in 1997 in response to a congressional mandate that the Air Force partner with commercial industry and share the cost of research projects. Each fiscal year, the Air Force identifies specific areas of research that have military applications and goes out to industry to find partners with a commercial interest in similar technology.

Proposals are then submitted and contracts awarded. Since its inception, the program has initiated more than 120 projects with industry, which collectively represent a total value of more than $500 million.

For fiscal year 2004, the Air Force is seeking partners in 23 technology areas. Detailed presentations on six of them will be made during the Congress exhibit.

Presentations on three research areas will be made Tuesday, Nov. 19, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. The topics: Aircraft Sustainment, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technology Applications, and Aerospace Power and Thermal Management.

The topics covered on Nov. 20 will be Engine Health Management Architecture and Implementation, Aging Aircraft Structures, and Aging Aircraft Subsystems.

On both days, the topic presentations will be preceded by an overview of the program, which will be from 8 to 9 a.m. An hour-long panel session will follow the overview. The panel will consist of industry and government representatives who have firsthand experience working on projects funded through the dual-use program. Questions will be taken from the audience before the topic presentations begin at 10 a.m.

From 1 to 4 p.m. on both days, representatives from the Air Force will be available to speak privately with industry representatives. Specific dates and times may be scheduled in advance by visiting the Air Force booth during the exhibit hall opening reception or anytime after until the morning of Nov. 20.

For more information about the Air Force program, visit www.oai.org.

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