The following are frequently asked questions of the Ohio Federal Research Network.
You can join the Ohio Federal Research Network mailing list by signing up via the official website on the homepage, at:  ohiofrn.org  
You can find information on past and upcoming funding rounds by visiting the “solicitations” tab on our website, at ohiofrn.org. Within the “solicitation” tab are subtabs for each round (currently, Rounds 1 through 5) of Ohio Federal Research Network funding. 
You can find information on the Ohio Federal Research Network awarded projects by visiting our news tab on our official website, here https://ohiofrn.org/news. You can follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn to stay up to date on client success stories and R&D updates in real-time. 
You can contact our Ohio Federal Research Network team by emailing us at ofrn@parallaxresearch.org or by dropping us a message via our website’s contact page, or by calling us at +1 (937) 705-1000. 

We maintain consistent communications with our federal partners and support them in the process to develop the OFRN Areas of Interest. Further, OFRN funded teams have a standing relationship with a federal subject matter expert who has technical expertise and interest in the project’s research and output. The OFRN engages with its partners via meetings and quarterly briefings.  

Yes, the Ohio Federal Research Network provides proposal navigation to universities and companies throughout Ohio. Learn more about our proposal assistance and navigation service here. 
The OFRN areas of interest are aligned with the mission-critical needs of the OFRN’s federal partners. These areas of interest vary, but you can learn more about them by viewing our solicitation page, here.  
The OFRN focuses its efforts on Ohio. Nonetheless, our program does work with other states, such as West Virginia, on academic and industry collaboration to innovate science and technology that fulfill mission-critical needs. If there are other states interested in expanding their federal research in collaboration with academia and industry, then we may be able to assist and are available to discuss such efforts. Contact us here. 
Yes, Round 6 was released on March 1, 2023. There will be additional future rounds of funding managed by the Ohio Federal Research Network. You can stay up to date with announcements of future OFRN funding rounds by joining our mailing list via our website homepage, here.  
Yes, the Ohio Federal Research Network participates in, hosts, and/or cross-promotes various events occurring within the small business, academic, and federal agency networks. OFRN events cover a range of topics, from federal and state funding opportunities to colliders centered around a specific R&D topic, to OFRN solicitation webinars, and the list goes on. Please view our event page, here.  

To achieve the Ohio Federal Research Network mission, we catalyze federal, academic, and commercial collaborations to support the future growth of Ohio’s workforce with a focus on the priority research initiatives of Ohio-based federal and state partners, including: 

Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) 

Naval Medical Research Unit Dayton (NAMRU-D) 

National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC) 

National Aeronautical and Space Administration’s Glenn Research Center (NASA-GRC) 

Ohio National Guard 

The Ohio Federal Research Network partners with 21 Ohio universities and colleges. Please view our complete university and college partner list on the “Our Partners” webpage, here.  
The Ohio Federal Research Network partners with 97 Ohio industry businesses and growing. Please view our complete industry partner list on the “Our Partners” webpage, here. 
Each request for proposal defines specific requirements. Additionally, we provide training on proposal development during proposers’ days as part of the pre-solicitation process. Please stay connected with OFRN by attending OFRN events and signing up for OFRN newsletters and announcements to receive the timing of future opportunities. You can join the Ohio Federal Research Network mailing list by signing up via the official website on the homepage, at: ohiofrn.org 
Yes, the Ohio Federal Research Network provides team matchmaking services to support industry and academic applicants applying for federal and state R&D funding.  

The Ohio Federal Research Network team matchmaking service entails locating and connecting potential collaborators within the Ohio Federal Research Network to pursue federal and state R&D funding opportunities through collaborative innovation. 

The OFRN utilizes networking and collaboration as solutions to innovation gaps present within Ohio-based federal entities. The OFRN’s networking and collaboration service identifies science and technology capabilities across academia, industry, and the government and builds strategic partnerships between each group to support federal missions. To achieve this objective, the OFRN has identified a key suite of networking and collaboration services that are available to our network partners: 

Federal agency and congressional engagement strategies 

Planning and execution of industry outreach events, communication, and PR for OFRN and its funded research projects 

Team matchmaking to help those that need to find a required partner for a solicitation submission 

Ohio industry, academia, and government collaboration on Advanced Air Mobility research and transition 

Yes, you are still eligible for assistance from the Ohio Federal Research Network if you’ve worked with us in the past and/or have won an OFRN-funding round.  
The SEE program is the Student Experiential Engagement (SEE) program, which entails recruiting and hiring student interns to work and learn throughout an OFRN-funded R&D project. Learn more about the OFRN SEE program on our services page, here. 
Aside from our OFRN-funding opportunities, the OFRN also assists small businesses and startups with commercialization/technology transfer & transition, workforce development, networking, collaboration and team matchmaking, and education and training as well as state and federal proposal navigation and support. Please visit us on the services page to learn more.  
Contact our team at ofrn@parallaxresearch.org for an introduction to members of our network. 
The OFRN Opportunity Day events are organized by Parallax Advanced Research in collaboration with The Ohio State University and the Ohio Department of Higher Education. OFRN Opportunity Days are geared toward government, academic, and industry innovators and researchers in Ohio as well as anyone interested in collaborating on innovative ideas to solve government challenges. The OFRN Opportunity Day features networking, an OFRN program overview by Parallax Advanced Research leadership, presentations from government thought leaders (speakers and topics change per event), and a discussion with Q&A on state and federal R&D funding opportunities. 
If you are an academic or industry innovator with promising ideas or intellectual property you'd like to commercialize, are interested in collaborating with our network on research projects or need assistance and/or academic or industry partners in pursuit of federal funding opportunities, then you should consider working with OFRN. 

The OFRN offers Education, Training & Proposal Navigation for SBIR & STTR proposal teams.  

The OFRN education and training service offers in-person mentoring, training programs, and educational content that is focused on increasing academic and industry engagement and partnerships with federal and state agencies for science and technology research and development. The curriculum covers: 

(1) How to apply for a current OFRN solicitation round SBIR/STTR Proposal Process Navigation 

(2) Workforce development for meeting federal and state priorities reflected in a current solicitation 

Each OFRN-funded R&D project is aligned with federal requirements, has a clear path to job creation, and capitalizes on Ohio’s investment involving multiple Ohio research universities and firms that provide cost-share to further leverage the Ohio investment and attract other Department of Defense and industry funding in Ohio. Therefore, each OFRN-funded R&D project inherently contributes to workforce development and has resulted in spinouts, the creation of high-quality jobs in Ohio, and commercialized technologies. 

The achieve these workforce development objectives, the OFRN offers the following services: 

1) Funding for R&D projects that lead to high-quality job creation and spinouts 

2) Student Experiential Engagement (SEE) program, which recruits and hires student interns to work and learn throughout an OFRN-funded R&D project 

Yes, you can have as many as you want. Minimum is 2.
A minimum of one team member has to attend. An administrative manager would be perfectly fine.
All questions regarding the Round 6 Solicitation should be emailed to OFRN-Question@parallaxresearch.org
FAQ will be updated as questions come in  https://www.ohiofrn.org/faq
The only requirement for the industrial partner is that the company has to have a physical presence in the State of Ohio. As long as the organization has an office of some type – it doesn’t have to be headquarters for the company, but you do have to have some kind of a physical presence in the state of Ohio to participate in the program. There is no limit on number of employees.
The OFRN Round 6 Solicitation does not contain a general topic area of interest (AOI)

Recordings of the information sessions can be accessed from the OFRN Round 6 solicitation site https://www.ohiofrn.org/solicitations/ohio-federal-research-network-round-6-solicitation

Either method would be fine. I would suggest that you pursue what is best for you. The Matchmaking tool can be found at https://ohiofrn.org/matchmaking
Yes, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation would be acceptable as an industrial partner.
No, the Cleveland Clinic Foundation is a non-profit and would not be counted as a university partners.  CCF would be counted as an industry partner.
AFIT is considered an Ohio university and yes they can be considered part of the proposal team.

The OFRN Round 6 Solicitation site has a Matchmaking tool that you can utilize for finding a Round 6 partner. https://ohiofrn.org/matchmaking. 

SIGN-UP to list skills sought for a required partner or to list your skills to join a team for an OFRN proposal.

To request an introduction, select PARTNER INQUIRY. Then 1) Check the ID# for the organizations with which you would be interested in meeting. As you make selections, the Partner IDs are automatically entered into the form at the bottom of the screen (note: the list is on multiple pages, apply the filter to view more than 3 pages at a time). 2) At the bottom of the screen, Enter your contact information and select Get Started. 3)

We will review your request and send an email to connect you with the selected organization.
If the proposal leads to develop a physical sensor with a commensurate model or technology that addresses quantum communication or processing then it is considered an appropriate TRL.
Yes, you can if you meet the requirements for each submission..  In your submission, if listing multiple AOIs in the header of the document you will want to list the primary AOI first. 
Having 2 separate colleges that are part of The Ohio State University would count as 1 Ohio university partner.  (i.e., The Ohio State University College of Medicine and The Ohio State University College of Engineering are both considered part of The Ohio State University and would count as only one of the Ohio university requirements). You will need to have a totally separate Ohio university or college for the second university partner.
Anticipated awards range from $750,000 to $1,500,000 each, exclusive of any cost share proposed.  Proposed total costs target should be between $750,000 to $1,500,000 excluding cost share.
There may be certain opportunities for non-U.S. citizens to participate on the project teams, however any exceptions will need to be highlighted in the team’s proposal for the federal partner to review and approve.  Primary Applicants are responsible for export control compliance, including identifying the export control classification(s) of any projects and only utilizing employees that are U.S. persons or eligible to obtain the necessary export license to participate in the project.

As mentioned in the 3/14/23 training regarding facilities and equipment, equipment purchases need to be realistic, supportable,  essential to your research and fully utilized during your period of performance.  If there is an essential need for equipment, it can be proposed but the point of this program is not to buy equipment. You are encouraged to look for alternative ways to get the capability so your funding can support your research.