For informational purposes only. Terms of final membership agreement and bylaws take precedence/priority.

Membership

The principal investigator must be a member when the proposal is submitted. Subrecipients must be members before the award is executed.

Membership is mainly for organizations, and benefits apply to the organization.

Membership is a 3-year initial term commitment, with an expectation to stay through the five-year program for best benefits. Membership dues are paid when the agreement is executed and before next year commences for renewal.

SMEs have a designated level, and they can participate at different levels based on the dues they pay.

If in-kind contributions are not used, they can be rolled over to next year. The institute aims to leverage all contributions.

You have options: move to a proprietary project, apply to other projects, or roll over to the next year. The proprietary project must align with the institute’s vision and be vetted and approved. In the spirit of the mission of the institute, collaborative projects will be prioritized.

While all members can create proprietary projects, and dues can be used to fund students as part of the project budget, it is the intent of the institute to encourage and prioritize collaborative projects.

Projects can be multi-year. The project portfolio board will decide on project duration and value.

A for-profit startup could participate as a general participant or as a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME). It would be beneficial to team up with tiered members and potentially join as a subrecipient or a subcontractor on projects.

Yes, a Tier 3 member can participate in multiple projects by contributing their budget across different projects and potentially serving as a subcontractor or a subrecipient as well as increasing their budget based on available funds.

Different tiers have different levels of participation. Your cash investment is directly related to the benefits associated with that cash, such as the 1.5x research multiplier. SMART USA maintains an open membership to encourage widespread participation. Please review the membership levels to understand the different benefits.

Funds do not expire annually and can roll over to the next year if not used. The intent is to spend within the year, but in certain exceptional cases, the budget can be used in subsequent years.

Research Security

The security requirements follow federal guidelines for large federally funded research. Differences may arise due to specific technologies and tactics, such as non-human actors and vetting personnel, particularly students in research institutions.

Members will need to sign agreements around membership, digital persistent identifiers, and disclosure forms for financial interests and other items as are applicable to SMART USA business from time to time. There will be diligence associated with non-human actors and physical control of equipment.

SMART USA is planning to use NIST standards, particularly the Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) and 800-53 controls, and will rely on existing attestation programs like SOC 2 Type 2 rather than inventing new auditing programs. This will be refined and defined in the final security policy and procedure.

The SMART USA membership agreement will contain guidance on security flow downs. Members will need to make certifications around security, which are being drafted and will be circulated soon. Organizations familiar with NSPM 33 and IR 8484 will not find surprises in the agreement.

SMART USA acknowledges this complexity, and the identity system will be developed to implement security parameters within legal boundaries, ensuring compliance with federal law, SMART USA requirements, and member-specific requirements.

The approach is to create requirements around accessing data, not requiring the entire factory floor to meet 853 or 800-171 standards. The focus is on machines and personnel accessing covered data, with a requirements-based approach and flexibility in meeting those requirements.

There is room for new technical solutions, but the focus is currently on sorting out policy items. Once governance and policy are established, technical solutions will be sought to implement them.

There is an effort to align security requirements across different centers to avoid having separate sets of attestations and frameworks. Collaboration and sharing of experiences are encouraged to improve collectively.

The legal aspect of IP is covered in the membership agreement as per tiers and governance of SMART USA. The security team will protect IP according to the agreements in place, ensuring appropriate security measures.

IP security at SMART USA involves both contractual/legal aspects and information security implementation. SMART USA will develop and implement labeling and tagging requirements that ensure data is accessible only to authorized entities.

Please send an email to research-security@src.org.

Research Projects & Proposals

Conversations around projects and proposals will start in April 2025, with a project call in June 2025.

The Project Portfolio Board (PPB) establishes the base requirements for proposals, incorporating input from the budget allocation. Additionally, the PPB sets the topics based on the technology roadmap. Then the project solicitation for submissions is announced. Once the solicitation closes, the PPB reviews the proposals and conducts a ranking. The Strategic Governing Council (SGC) provides final approval for selected projects. The process is expected to kick off in April 2025 with the first project calls to be released in June 2025. Please note that the proposal process may be altered based on input from the SGC and PPB.

It is best to explore options for collaboration early. Virtual and in-person teaming opportunities will be available.

There are several avenues for collaboration such as in-person and virtual events, teaming and project calls, collaborative projects, access to training content, digital twin models and datasets. All these activities will lead to networking within the membership to achieve the objectives of the institute to reduce manufacturing costs and compress development cycles.

The process involves advisory committees reviewing proposals, providing input to the project portfolio board, and then making recommendations which go to the strategic governing council for final approval.

The focus will be on competencies for digital twin technology, evaluation, and testing in the semiconductor space, and developing the Smart Careers Marketplace. Additional topics will be added as per the guidance of the advisory committees and the PPB.

Collaborative projects take precedence, and proprietary projects will follow based on the input received and the alignment with the institute’s vision.

Yes, the institute aims to lower barriers to entry and facilitate data sharing among members.

There will be multiple calls, with the most appropriate funding available according to the proposal’s planning process.

Yes, licenses can be counted as cost share if their value is generally accepted and quantifiable, acceptable and follow the relevant cost share guidance provided by SMART USA.

SMART USA recognizes the importance of managing conflicts of interest and protecting confidential information appropriately. An appropriate policy and procedure will be developed to manage this.

Education and Workforce Development (EWD)

There is no separate membership for Education and Workforce Development.

Yes, there are different benefits based on membership tier, particularly geared towards the number of seats on the strategic government council and project portfolio board.

SMART USA plans to develop content and curriculum to expand the talent pipeline in order to attract, train, and upskill the workforce for industry appropriate requirements at the same time leveraging any synergies with existing programs.

This will come down to outreach programs and engaging the community through the nationally distributed Digital Innovation Semiconductor Centers (DISCs) to create awareness around semiconductor training.

The focus will be on learners from grades 9 through 12, community colleges, two and four-year degree programs, Masters, PhD, incumbent workforce, and emerging workforce.

Work Fab is the Education Workforce Development Advisory Committee, while the Project Portfolio Board focuses on reviewing and approving projects.

Each member at a tier level has guidance on cash dues and in-kind requirements.

SMART USA is engaging with MEPs and SBDCs, and the DISCs will be key in community engagement, with plans to have points of contact available on the website.

The DISC in Florida will be located at the University of Florida.

Assessments were made to understand the needs and capabilities in each area, and DISCs were established accordingly. Annual assessments will continue to ensure alignment with needs.

The DISCs will help coordinate and provide funding for such programs.

Yes, the DISCs are designed to support regional needs and can work with local agencies to develop training and content as well as get involved in other SMART USA programs and projects.