June 11, 2007

Defense Instrumentation Programs: DURIP Deadline is August 21; MURI LOIs Due August 6, MURI Proposals Due October 23

The Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Army Research Office, and Office of Naval Research are soliciting proposals for the fiscal year 2008 Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP). The DURIP program is “designed to improve the capabilities of U.S. institutions of higher education … to conduct research and to educate scientists and engineers in areas important to national defense, by providing funds for the acquisition of research equipment.”

The program will provide approximately $40 million in FY 2008 to purchase research equipment that costs $50,000 or more. Individual awards will not exceed $1,000,000. In FY 2007, awards ranged from approximately $50,000 to $950,000, averaging $205,000; very few awards exceeded $500,000. Awards are typically one year in length.

The solicitation is available at http://www.afosr.af.mil/pdfs/afosr_baa_2007_9_2.pdf. The proposal deadline is August 21, 2007. Proposals may be submitted electronically through Grants.gov or in hard copy.



AFOSR, ARO, and ONR are also requesting proposals for the FY 2008 Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program. The MURI program supports basic science and/or engineering research at U.S. institutions of higher education that is of critical importance to national defense. The program is focused on multidisciplinary research efforts that intersect more than one traditional science and engineering discipline to address issues of critical concern to the DoD. The FY 2008 MURI competition is for the 19 topics listed in the Broad Agency Announcement.

Total amount of funding for five years is estimated to be about $207 million. It is anticipated that the maximum award will be $1.5 million per year, with the actual amount contingent on availability of funds, the specific topic, and the scope of the proposed work.

The agency program announcements are posted at Grants.gov: ONR, AFOSR, and ARO. Applicants are encouraged to submit white papers (by email or in hard copy) by August 6, 2007, to minimize the labor and cost associated with the production of full proposals that are unlikely to be selected for funding. The deadline for full proposals deadline is October 23, 2007. Proposals may be submitted electronically through Grants.gov or in hard copy.