TIC.RFP

KACST Technology Innovation Centers (TICs)

Request for Proposal and Program Guidelines

2 July 2011

KACST TIC RFP & Guidelines, Copyright KACST 2011 Page 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 Important Dates ...................................................................................................................................... 4

2.0 Introduction to the KACST Technology Innovation Centers (TIC) Program ............................................ 4

2.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................................. 4

3.0 Eligibility .................................................................................................................................................. 5

3.1 Participant Requirements ................................................................................................................... 5

3.2 Essential Activities ............................................................................................................................... 6

3.3 Fields of Research ............................................................................................................................... 6

4.0 Funding ................................................................................................................................................... 6

4.1 Base Funding Sources ......................................................................................................................... 6

4.2 Industrial Funding Sources .................................................................................................................. 7

5.0 Duration .................................................................................................................................................. 8

5.1 Renewal ............................................................................................................................................... 8

6.0 Intellectual Property Management ......................................................................................................... 8

7.0 Governance and Management Structure ............................................................................................... 9

7.1 KACST TIC Center Manager ............................................................................................................... 10

7.2 KACST TIC Fellow ............................................................................................................................... 10

8.0 Application and Selection Process ........................................................................................................ 10

8.1 Application ........................................................................................................................................ 10

8.2 Selection Criteria ............................................................................................................................... 14

8.3 Site Visit............................................................................................................................................. 15

8.4 Seed Funding ..................................................................................................................................... 16

9.0 Contractual Process .............................................................................................................................. 16

9.1 Legal Agreements.............................................................................................................................. 16

9.2 Industrial Collaboration .................................................................................................................... 16

9.3 Payments ........................................................................................................................................... 16

10.0 Monitoring and Evaluation ................................................................................................................. 16

10.1 Annual KACST TIC Meeting ............................................................................................................. 16

10.2 Annual Review ................................................................................................................................ 17


11.0 Key Contact ......................................................................................................................................... 17

Glossary ....................................................................................................................................................... 18

Appendix A: KACST TIC Submission Cover Sheet ....................................................................................... 20

Appendix B: Key Personnel CV Template ................................................................................................... 21

Appendix C: KACST TIC Full Proposal Budget Template ............................................................................. 23


1.0 Important Dates Request for Proposal (RFP) Release: 2 July 2011

Letter of Intent Due: 24 September 2011

Letter of Intent Acceptance Decision 22 October 2011

Full Proposal Due: 7 January 2012

Award Announcement: 8 April 2012 (Expected)

Project Start: 1 May 2012 (Expected)

2.0 Introduction to the KACST Technology Innovation Centers (TIC)

Program KACST was directed by a 1986 Royal Decree to propose a national policy for the development of science and technology, and in July 2002 the Council of Ministers approved the 20 year Comprehensive National Policy for Science and Technology. KACST is responsible for programs that promote education and training, R&D, technology transfer, indigenization and development of technology, spread of technology, and optimizing its use and social benefits.

The goal of the KACST TIC program is to create a series of university-based industry collaborative research centers in carefully selected locations in the Kingdom. The KACST TIC program will be supported and coordinated by KACST to meet four broad objectives:

Address economic and social goals of the Kingdom;

Promote university-industry research collaboration and technology transfer in the Kingdom;

Strengthen university research and science and engineering education in KSA; and

Implement best practices and appropriate features of the structure, incentives, and requirements of successful programs in countries similar to KSA.

2.1 Overview Three KACST TICs have been selected and initiated in the 1st Selection Round. For the 2nd Selection Round, KACST anticipates awarding up to a maximum of two KACST TICs. The proposed centers must be broadly aligned with one or more of the 15 strategic technologies under the purview of the National Science, Technology and Innovation Plan:

1. Water; 2. Oil and Gas; 3. Petrochemicals Technology; 4. Nanotechnology; 5. Biotechnology; 6. Information Technology; 7. Electronics, Communication and Photonics; 8. Space and Aeronautics; 9. Energy;


10. Environmental Technology; 11. Advanced Materials; 12. Mathematics and Physics; 13. Medical and Health; 14. Agriculture Technology; and 15. Building and Construction.

The proposed KACST TICs (“Centers”) will have the following broad features:

Centers will be based in universities with strong, integrated research and education capabilities.

Center research must be guided by industrially relevant problems;

Initial funding will be for five years, with the option for successful centers to compete for an additional five years of funding;

Base funding by KACST will be up to SR 10M/Year. The Center will be assessed on an annual basis to determine the base funding amount;

If funds are available, industrial funds of up to SR 5M/Year to engage in project-based research programs may be matched 1:1 by KACST;

Centers must demonstrate institutional commitment in the form of infrastructure support, in addition to faculty and center administration relief time from teaching and/or administrative commitments; and

Centers will be coordinated, funded, managed and partially staffed by KACST.

3.0 Eligibility Successful centers must meet standards of research excellence, human and social capital development, and industry relevance. International experience has shown all three areas to be critical to success. Excellence in research and related activities is the essential element of industry-university collaborative centers. Excellence in industrially-relevant research will build confidence in industry that faculty and students possess the skills to address selected industry problems in creative and effective ways. The combination of research excellence and focus on industry-relevant problems not only builds trust, it also builds the human and social capital so highly valued by companies that have worked successfully with universities. This goes beyond faculty and student research skills and industry orientation; it includes knowledge of the processes of technological innovation, skills in planning and managing applied R&D, identifying and fostering potentially commercializable ideas, and managing intellectual property.

3.1 Participant Requirements

The institution must be a Saudi university with emphasis on education and a strong commitment to research involving post graduate and graduate students;

The leader of the proposal (Principal Investigator) must be the Chairman of the KACST TIC Scientific Committee; and

The institution may suggest international and industrial collaborators, but the selection will be made by the KACST TIC Program based on a multitude of factors including achievement record, program needs and availability of KACST TIC fellows.


3.2 Essential Activities The proposed Center must focus on the following activities:

Medium to long-term industrially relevant collaborative research;

Education and training programs including, but not limited to, a PhD program that complements the research programs and builds engagement, innovation, and R&D capacity with industrial members;

Efforts to deploy research outputs and encourage adoption by industrial members directly through licensing, or via spin-off companies, potentially through the national incubator program;

Strategic planning to achieve integration of research, education, outreach, and technology transfer and implement it in ways that engage faculty, students, and industry researchers and managers. Strategic planning has been shown to be an essential element in successful centers globally;

Actively recruiting women to work in Centers on industry problems as faculty members, graduate students, post docs, and technical professionals; and

Involving undergraduates in the research program is strongly encouraged, as well as an outreach program to middle and high school students.

3.3 Fields of Research All fields of research within the 15 strategic technology initiatives outlined above are eligible as the basis

for a Center. If there is doubt whether a subject area falls under the scope of a potential Center,

proposers are encouraged to contact the KACST TIC management unit: [email protected]

4.0 Funding There will be two primary sources of funding available at Centers:

1. Base Funding Sources: Provided by KACST and may be complemented by the host university. KACST will provide cash contributions of up to SR 10M/year, assessed on an annual basis.

2. Industrial Funding Sources: Funding provided by industrial members or other organizations for sponsored research. KACST may also provide matching funds for industrial funding according to the criteria detailed in Section 4.2.2 below.

4.1 Base Funding Sources Base funding is a stable, predictable revenue stream that constitutes the core investment in the Center.

Base funding will be applied as an ongoing revenue stream.

Each Center will be awarded baseline funding of up to SR 10M/year for a 5-year period, totaling a

maximum SR 50M, subject to annual review. Funding will be given as a direct payment of salaries,

incentives, and equipment and material purchases.

4.1.1 Use of Funds from Base Funding

The following categories of funding will be allowable under base funding:


Salary – broken down by specific categories – undergraduates, graduates, post graduate scholars, faculty, permanent staff, visitors, consultants;

Equipment to be purchased, including maintenance fees and upgrades;

Software to be purchased, including maintenance fees and upgrades;

Materials and supplies;

Travel – domestic and international in separate categories;

Conference hosting and executive education courses;

Legal and other professional services including consultants, marketing and promotion fees;

Publication fees;

Support services; or

Other categories.

Categories of funding that will NOT be permissible under this award include:

Infrastructure costs such as building facilities and refurbishing existing facilities (this is expected as the host university’s competitive advantage).

4.2 Industrial Funding Sources Each Center is expected to attract sponsored project funding from its industrial member entities. For

this purpose, industrial members will be any recognized Saudi company or entities outside the university

including quasi-government agencies (such as Saudi Aramco, SABIC, SAGIA, etc.), technology parks,

incubators, foreign companies with significant interests in the Kingdom, and multi-national companies.

4.2.1 Industrial Funding

Industrial entities might contribute their funding support in multiple ways and become a member of the

industrial partnership for that Center:

Member companies might contract with a single faculty or a group of faculty involved in the Center for company directed research;

Member companies can provide in-kind contributions in lieu of cash contributions by donating equipment that is supportive of the research and education agenda of the Center. For accounting purposes the in-kind contribution will be valued at 50% of the equipment fair market value retail price for used equipment, and 100% of the retail price for new equipment. Funds for equipment maintenance support will also be included as part of the in-kind contribution;

Member companies can also contribute in-kind services in lieu of cash commitments by placing company professionals in secondment (temporary assignment) to the Center. For accounting purposes, 100% of the professional’s base salary (not including company overhead) will be recognized as the industrial contribution; or

A sub-set of member companies might form a mini-consortium in a specific subject area and can increase their contributions to support project research in this sub-thrust.

There will be no upper limit to the amount of industrial funds a Center can attract.


4.2.2 KACST Matching

To encourage industrial investment in the KACST TIC program, KACST may, at its discretion, provide a 1:1

match for all Industrial Funding Sources defined above up to a total of SR 5M per fiscal year. This is in

addition to the base funding of SR 10M which KACST will provide to each Center annually. KACST

matching funding is subject to audit verification of the industrial funds. There will be no restrictions on

the use of these matching funds, which will be guided by the rules set for industrial funding by KACST.

5.0 Duration Each awarded Center will be provided with KACST support as described above for five years, subject to

annual review.

In the event that a Center fails to meet the expected standards for continuation in its annual review by

the KACST TIC Program office, the Center will be given written feedback within one month of the annual

review on expected improvements in its performance in specific categories, and KACST TIC program

management may provide on-site consultation from experts on implementation of improvements. If

the Center does not properly address the shortcomings outlined in the report in the timeframe required

by KACST, the Center may be notified of termination of its funding.

5.1 Renewal It is expected that successful Centers with a strong program of research, education, and industrial

participation will generate sufficient industrial funding to sustain themselves after the initial period of 5-

year funding. In exceptional cases, a successfully developing Center may need and be deserving of

continued government support for an additional 5-year period. Existing Centers will be allowed to

compete in the open competitive proposal process in their 4th year for continued funding.

6.0 Intellectual Property Management Negotiation of intellectual property (IP) rights can be a difficult subject when universities and industry

work closely together. Therefore, a standard IP governance and management policy is being developed

by the NSTIP Supervisory Committee for all NSTIP-funded research. Intellectual property includes:

Patents;

Industrial designs;

Layout designs for integrated circuits;

Plant varieties;

Trademarks and service marks;

Copyrights, including software; or

Trade secrets.

In all instances of disclosure of IP, KACST TIC researchers will have dual affiliation with the KACST TIC

being the first affiliation. For example, Researcher at KACST TIC # and Professor at University X. All

KACST TIC Fellows and KACST research staff will have their affiliation as KACST TIC #.


7.0 Governance and Management Structure KACST TICs will be funded, coordinated, guided and monitored by KACST TIC Program Management. A

Scientific Committee will be responsible for setting the intellectual direction of research at the center.

The Principal Investigator developing the proposal will serve as the head of the Scientific Committee at

each Center. The Scientific Committee must include equal representation of university administration,

industrial members, and KACST. The KACST TIC Scientific Committee must meet at least once a quarter,

and can meet more often as needed, up to twelve times a year.

The recommended management structure is shown below.


7.1 KACST TIC Center Manager The KACST TIC Program will recruit a competent manager to be placed at each of the funded Centers as

the KACST TIC Center Manager. These KACST TIC Center Managers will be recruited preferably from the

private sector with research and technology management experience. The KACST TIC Center Manager

will report to and be reviewed on an annual basis by the KACST TIC Program Executive Director. The

KACST TIC Center Manager will also report directly to the KACST TIC Principal Investigator for day-to-day

operations of the Center. All KACST TIC staff will report directly to the KACST TIC Center Manager.

7.2 KACST TIC Fellow Through the KACST Fellows Program, KACST may recruit and place multiple KACST TIC Fellows to reside

in each Center. Every Fellow will be a postdoc or recent Ph.D. from quality institutions and will be active

members of the KACST TIC research team. This multi-year prestigious fellowship is intended to attract

strong candidates who can participate in Center research, provide leadership, and be a liaison to the

KACST TIC Scientific Committee. The KACST TIC Fellow will report to the KACST TIC Center Manager in

the organizational structure and may also be assigned by KACST to be on the KACST TIC Scientific

Committee, provided he/she meets the proper criteria.

8.0 Application and Selection Process

8.1 Application

8.1.1 Timeline

8.1.1.1 RFP Release: 2 July 2011

8.1.1.2 Letter of Intent Due: 24 September 2011

A three-page letter of intent to submit a proposal in English (Times New Roman 12 point font, single

spaced, 1” margins on all sides) containing the following, to be submitted electronically to

[email protected]. Only electronic copies in Microsoft Word/Excel or Adobe PDF formats are required

and hard copies are not accepted. A confirmation email will be submitted after receipt of the

documents.

The following will be included in the Letters of Intent:

Cover Sheet (Please see Appendix A). The KACST TIC Letter of Intent Cover sheet from Appendix A should be utilized. The Cover Sheet is not included in the page limit;

Research Strategy. Vision, goals, and research thrusts. A section must be dedicated to how the research thrusts are integrated into a unified theme;

Problem Statement. Description of the issues that need to be addressed by the proposed Center;

Statement of Work. Description of the work activities, deliverables, and timeline of the activities at the Center;

Addressing the Objectives of the Program. Referring to Section 8.2, describe how the proposed Center will address the objectives of the KACST TIC Program;

mailto:[email protected]


Relevant Expertise. Summary of relevant expertise brought to the Center by key personnel;

Rationale for Funding. Summary of why KACST should fund the Center;

Potential Partnerships. Summary of potential partners and why they would be engaged;

Letter of Institutional Support. Documentation from the Vice Rector of Scientific Research or Rector (the Letter of Institutional Support does not count towards the page limit); and

Principal Investigator CV. The CV template is included as Appendix B. If the template is not used, CVs must not be over 2 pages in length. Please attach the CV as an appendix. Do not include CVs for any other staff. The Principal Investigator CV is not included in the page limit.

Letters of Intent will not be considered if:

The document or the Principal Investigator CV exceeds the specified page limit;

A strategic technology, as defined in Section 2.1, is not addressed;

Valid contact information is not provided;

A Principal Investigator submits more than one Letter of Intent (first-received Letter of Intent will be the only Letter considered);

The Letter of Intent is dedicated to a project by a single researcher;

The Letter of Intent is focused on building infrastructure;

The Letter of Intent, or any component, arrives after the deadline;

The Letter of Intent is in Arabic;

An institutional letter of support is not included; or

Any requested section of the Letter of Intent is not included in the document.

Letters of Intent will be reviewed by a panel of experts. Selection will be based on a multitude of factors

and questions, as defined in Section 8.2, including existing Center competencies, strategic technology,

research strategy, key personnel and their expertise, rationale for funding, and letter of institutional

support.

8.1.1.3 Full Proposal Due: 7 January 2012

By 22 October 2011, selected teams will be invited to submit Full Proposals based on KACST review of

the Letters of Intent. Full Proposals will be written in English with an additional Arabic Project Summary.

For English, Times New Roman 12 point font will be used with single spacing and 1” margins on all sides.

Tables and lists in the project description may be in 10 point font. Supplementary materials may also be

in 10 point font. For Arabic, Naskh 18 point font will be used with 1” margins on all sides. Page numbers

and the name of the proposed KACST TIC will be used in the footer section. Only electronic copies in

Microsoft Word/Excel or Adobe PDF formats are required and hard copies are not accepted. A

confirmation email will be submitted after receipt of the documents. Full Proposals and their

components not adhering to the specific page limit will not be accepted.

The following will be included in all Full Proposals:


Cover Sheet (Please see Appendix A). The KACST TIC Full Proposal Cover sheet from Appendix A should be utilized;

Project Summary (1 page limit). The problem statement and statement of work delivered during the Letter of Intent stage must be clearly stated, explicated, and summarized. The summary should be informative to persons working in the same or related fields and understandable to a scientifically or technically literate lay reader. Briefly indicate the unique opportunities that the Center will provide to all participants, and its interdisciplinary composition;

Table of Contents (no page limit);

Vision and Mission Statements (300 word limit). Vision statement should be a maximum of 2 sentences. Mission statement should be more specific. A vision statement is what an organization would like to happen as a result of the actions it takes. A mission statement is what actions an organizations take to accomplish its vision;

Guiding Principles (1 page limit). An itemized list of core guiding principles for the center’s operations – the proposers (Principal Investigator and Co-Principal Investigators) are encouraged to collectively agree on the Vision, Mission, and Guiding Principles to assure buy-in from all stakeholders;

Project Description (40 page limit including all figures, tables, and charts). Given the vision and mission, present the strategic research plan, including its deliverables, the major fundamental and technological barriers in the way of achieving them, and the major research goals. Describe how the research program will be structured into thrusts or groups of projects and the role of small and large firms, test beds, and collaborations with entities designed to speed innovation in achieving the vision. For each thrust area, provide a concise table listing the faculty participants by name, their departments, and institutions. Discuss the goals and objectives of the thrust vis-à-vis the overall goals. Position the research proposed for the thrust in the state of the art and discusses its role in the strategic plan. Provide information on projected fundamental knowledge goals and technology deliverables, and the specific fundamental knowledge and other barriers the thrust will address. Provide specific examples of key research projects in sufficient detail for the reviewers to judge how the work will be done and methodologies to be used. Discuss the integration of projects within the thrust and the interdependencies among the thrusts. Discuss the cross-disciplinary mix needed to achieve the thrust's goals. Discuss when and how small firms will be involved in translational research to speed innovation. Discuss technology commercialization opportunities and pathways;

Staffing Capacity (5 page limit, excluding CVs). Identify all researchers and key permanent employees; indicate their availability and degree of time commitment; provide a summary of his/her expected impact on the Center. CVs are required for:

Principal Investigator; Research Thrust Leaders; Supervisor of Industrial Relations; Supervisor of Outreach;

The CV template is included as Appendix B. If the template is not used, CVs must not be over 2 pages in length. Please attach the CVs as an appendix. Do not include CVs for staff outside of this list;

University Commitment (1 page limit). Describe the university’s level of commitment towards this specific Center. Please document specific actions that will be taken to provide


integration of the Center into the university’s research agenda. Examples of specific actions include release time from teaching responsibilities, reduction or elimination of overhead, supplemental fellowships or research assistantships granted to the program, letters of support from deans (please attach as an appendix), salary and incentive support, capital expenditures to be taken by the university, etc;

Industry, University, and Government Collaborations (2 page limit). Provide a list of potential collaborators and summarize each collaborator’s likely contributions to the Center and Saudi society, including technology commercialization opportunities. Provide information on the role of small and medium enterprises, if applicable. If the collaborator is foreign, please describe the rationale for choosing the collaborator over an institution in Saudi Arabia, as well as a specific description of the work to be completed by the foreign collaborator. An institutional letter of support should accompany each potential collaborator. Please attach these letters of support as an appendix. The letters will not be counted toward the page limit;

Strategy to Promote Participation of Women (2 page limit). Each Center must evolve its own strategy to promote the participation of women at all levels of the center’s activities – undergraduates, graduates, post doctoral scholars, faculty, external collaborations, and academic visitors. This strategy must clearly demonstrate a commitment by KACST TIC management to nurture women’s participation, either at the host institution or through collaboration with other Saudi institutions;

Education Plan (4 page limit). Include innovative approaches to developing curricula, training for undergraduates, graduates, post doctoral scholars, and technicians, who can integrate knowledge across disciplines, are experienced with innovation and systems, work in teams, and are prepared for success in academia and industry;

Milestones (2 page limit). Provide a milestone chart or "road map" depicting the timing of the key research topics and their interdependencies, the test beds, and deliverables over a five-year period;

Center Key Performance Indicators (3 page limit). Indicate how performance expectations will be established and measured – could include categories such as: Outstanding Research, Development of Educational Curricula, Training of Researchers, Robust Research Environment, Partnerships, Translation of Knowledge into products and services for society, Organizational Excellence, Public Outreach; indicate outcome indicators/markers;

Available and Needed Infrastructure (2 page limit). Briefly discuss the laboratories, shared facilities and equipment that will be utilized by Center researchers. Distinguish between equipment and facilities that are already available and any that will need to be developed, include a description of headquarters space, size, and functionality; include cyber infrastructure in this section;

Conferences to be Hosted/Attended (2 page limit). Include planned workshops, and executive training programs, international and regional conferences planned or to be attended;

KACST TIC Project Budget (no page limit). Please fill in the attached KACST TIC Project Budget (see Appendix C);

Annual and Cumulative Budgets for Five Years (See Appendix C). Please see Appendix C for the KACST TIC Budget Template; and

References Cited (no page limit). Please attach these documents as an appendix.

Full Proposals will not be considered if:


Any document, including CVs, exceeds the specified page limit;

Extraneous CVs are included;

A strategic technology, as defined in Section 2.1, is not addressed;

Valid contact information is not provided;

The Full Proposal is focused on building infrastructure;

The Full Proposal arrives after the deadline;

The Full Proposal, or any component, is submitted as hard copy; or

Any requested section of the Full Proposal is not included in the document.

8.1.1.4 Award Announcement: 8 April 2011 (Expected)

8.1.1.5 Project Start: 1 May 2011 (Expected)

8.2 Selection Criteria Letters of Intent and Full Proposals will be reviewed by the KACST TIC Program. Selection will be based on a multitude of factors including achievement record, program needs, competitive advantage, facility availability and availability of KACST TIC Fellows. All Letters of Intent and Full Proposals will also be evaluated against the overarching goal of the KACST TIC program to create a series of university-based industry collaborative research centers in the Kingdom to meet four broad objectives:

8.2.1 Address economic and social goals of the Kingdom

How well does the activity advance discovery and understanding while promoting teaching, training, and learning within one of the 15 strategic technology initiatives of the Kingdom;

To what extent will the Center enhance the infrastructure for research and education, such as facilities, instrumentation, networks, and partnerships;

Will the Center results be disseminated broadly to enhance scientific and technological understanding;

How well does the proposed activity broaden the participation of women; and

What may be the benefits of the proposed activity to society?

8.2.2 Promote university-industry research collaboration and technology transfer in the

Kingdom

Is there a convincing rationale for Industrial Members to partner with the university and the Center, and the means to engage these members in planning, research, education and innovation;

Are there strong collaborations with agencies and programs designed to speed innovation;

To what extent have small and medium firms, if appropriate to the research field, have been involved in university research collaboration;

Is there evidence of previous industry engagement by the university; and


How well qualified is the proposer team to conduct commercializable research? To what extent has the industrial partners previously commercialized university research output?

8.2.3 Strengthen university research and science and engineering education in KSA

How important is the proposed activity to advancing knowledge and understanding within its own field or across different fields;

Will university administrators from the lead and partner institutions join in partnership with the Center;

How well qualified is the proposer team to conduct the project and to what extent does the proposed activity suggest and explore creative and original concepts;

How well conceived and organized is the proposed activity? Is there sufficient access to resources;

Does the education strategy, including an assessment strategy, define innovative approaches to developing graduates who can integrate knowledge across disciplines, are experienced with innovation and systems, work in teams, and are prepared for success in a global economy;

Is there a plan to fully engage industry in the student’s educational experience;

Is there evidence of a plan to provide educational exchanges (workshops, etc.) with industry and affiliating organizations; and

Is the institutional configuration is appropriate to the goals of the Center and there is a convincing strategy for cross-institution collaboration in research and education?

8.2.4 Implement best practices and appropriate features of the structure, incentives, and

requirements of successful programs in countries similar to KSA

To what degree does the proposal define a leading edge culture of innovation with a symbiotic relationship between research, education, innovation, and life-long skill development to stimulate innovation and provide students and faculty with a globally-oriented research and education experience;

Is there a creative role for small firms to carry out translational research to speed technology transfer and provide students with an innovation experience;

Are experimental, computational, and other required equipment, facilities, and laboratory space in place or proposed to support the research of the center; and

Is there appropriate headquarters space and cross-institution communications equipment?

8.3 Site Visit Based on the review panel’s recommendations, a subset of proposals will be selected for a site visit by a

team of experts. The day for the site visit will be selected by KACST TIC Program Management in

consultation with the Key Contact. KACST staff will facilitate the site visit team’s deliberations, and will

attend each site visit as observers. The Principal Investigator (PI) and leadership of the proposed Center

will be given the chance to respond to perceived weaknesses. The site visit panel’s recommendation will

be final before KACST announces the awards.

In all cases, reviews are treated as confidential documents. Summarized copies of reviews, excluding

the names of the reviewers, will be sent to the Key Contact. In addition, the proposer will receive an

explanation of the decision to award or decline funding.


8.4 Seed Funding Proposal(s) that do not make the final award selection, but are considered meritorious, may at the

discretion of the KACST TIC management be considered for 1-year seed funding. The goal of this 1-year

seed funding phase will be to help the proposers strengthen their weaknesses to compete more

effectively for the next round of funding opportunities.

9.0 Contractual Process

9.1 Legal Agreements KACST has developed standard terms and conditions for the KACST TIC program that will be shared with

the KACST TIC applicants after the Centers has been awarded.

9.2 Industrial Collaboration A key component of each Center’s creation is the industrial need for cutting edge research in the

Center’s field leading to high value products across the Center’s target industries. In order to drive

active industrial collaboration from program inception to technology transfer, KACST will develop

programs to encourage technology developers and end users, entrepreneurs, technology

commercialization groups, etc. to participate in the Centers.

9.3 Payments KACST TICs will be managed and funded by KACST TIC Program Management. Payments for salaries of

administrative and non-academic scientific staff, incentives for academic staff, and purchases by the

Centers will be made directly by KACST. The KACST TIC Program Executive Director will be act as the

point of contact for funds disbursement.

10.0 Monitoring and Evaluation KACST will be responsible for improving the performance of the Centers through program oversight, the

Center’s operational management, the KACST TIC Program's annual meeting, and the annual and

renewal review processes. KACST also supports small teams of experienced staff from ongoing

university – industry collaborative research centers to visit new Centers to help establish effective

programs of administration and industrial collaboration. In addition, KACST staff will brief the new

Centers on-site at the lead institution on program and performance expectations shortly after signing of

the KACST TIC terms and agreement.

10.1 Annual KACST TIC Meeting KACST will organize an annual meeting of all Centers at KACST. This will provide an opportunity to

existing Principal Investigators, KACST TIC Center Managers and other administrators to learn from each

other about best practices, successes and challenges, and provide feedback to KACST TIC program

management. In addition, this will allow newly awarded Centers to showcase their proposed center’s

thrust, and learn from their peers. Members of all KACST TIC leadership teams are required to


participate. Prospective centers should include funds in their travel budgets to support the participation

in a 2-day meeting of the Principal Investigator, KACST TIC Center Manager, Research Thrust Area

Leaders, Supervisor of Industrial Relations, Supervisor of Outreach, KACST TIC Scientific Committee

members (if they choose to participate, marketing managers and students).

10.2 Annual Review KACST TICs will submit annual reports that are moderately extensive in scope. KACST will provide

guidelines for these reports. Centers will also collect and submit data on indicators of progress,

outcome, impact, and financial management. KACST will provide data definition guidelines and

templates for the recording and submission of these data through a secure web site.

11.0 Key Contact KACST TIC Program Executive Director

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


Glossary

Industrial Member – A select set of firms from the private sector will be identified and approached to

sponsor contract research at Centers. Each Industrial Member will have the opportunity to sponsor

contract research.

KACST TIC Center Manager – KACST will recruit and place at each KACST TIC a competent manager from

industry who has experience in managing large technological projects. The KACST TIC Center Manager

will report to the KACST TIC Executive Director and the Principal Investigator. The KACST TIC Center

Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the Center. All KACST TIC staff report directly

to the KACST TIC Center Manager.

KACST TIC Scientific Committee – Each Center will constitute a Scientific Committee with an equal

representation from the following categories:

University: From among the Rector, Vice-Rectors, Deans, Chairs of Departments, Research Thrust Area Leaders, or other academic researchers;

Industry: From among industry partners who have sponsored research, international industry leaders, or other industry representatives;

KACST: From among KACST administrators, research center leaders, researchers, or fellows;

The KACST TIC Scientific Committee will be chaired by the Principal Investigator in the role of Chairman of the Scientific Committee; and

The KACST TIC Center Manger will be a non-voting Secretary of the Scientific Committee and provide administrative support to KACST TIC Scientific Committee.

Research Thrust Area Leader – Each Center is expected to have multiple scientific/engineering thrust

areas. Each thrust area will be led by an expert who could be a faculty member at the lead or partner

universities, or experienced members on secondment from participating industrial entities. They will

report directly to the KACST TIC Center Manager, and may serve on the KACST TIC Scientific Committee.

Testbed –The testbed is a physical or conceptual infrastructure for final testing of a systems level

solution. It rests on two lower levels of technology – the fundamental research that produces the

knowledge base, and the set of enabling technology tools that emerge. The testbed integrates several

tools in order to provide a laboratory to do trial and error runs of the systems level solution. It is a

vitally important tool for proof-of-concept validation before acceptance by industrial partners. A sample

3-level chart from the Biomimetic MicroElectronics Systems (BMES) Engineering Research Center (ERC)

at University of Southern California is shown below:


Translational research - The concept of translational research has received very strong focus in the

biomedical community over the last few years, as a new way of thinking about and conducting life

sciences research to accelerate healthcare outcomes, and is often seen as the key missing component.

With its focus on removing barriers to multi-disciplinary collaboration, translational research has the

potential to drive the advancement of any technical field. By enabling end-users to leverage systems

technologies, translational research enables a feedback loop from the earliest stages of research to

product design. It does not involve the final commercialization concepts, which are expected to occur in

the incubators.


Appendix A: KACST TIC Submission Cover Sheet This cover sheet must be included within your KACST TIC Letter of Intent and Full Proposal.

KACST TIC Information

University

KACST TIC Name (The name format must be KACST TIC on “Technology Name” at “University Name”)

Primary Strategic Technology Area (The strategic technology addressed by the proposed KACST TIC)

Secondary Strategic Technology Areas (The secondary strategic technologies addressed by the proposed KACST TIC - number in order of importance)

Principal Investigator Information

Principal Investigator

Principal Investigator Email Address

Principal Investigator Mobile Number

Primary Contact Person

Primary Contact Person Name

Primary Contact Person Title

Primary Contact Person Email Address

Primary Contact Person Mobile Number

Research Thrusts

Research Thrust 1 Name

Research Thrust 1 Team Leader

Research Thrust 1 Team Leader Email Address

Research Thrust 1 Team Leader Mobile Number

(Please repeat for each Research Thrust)

Potential Industrial Partners

Industrial Partner 1 Name


Industrial Partner 1 Email Address

Industrial Partner 1 Mobile Number

(Please repeat for each Industrial Partner)

Appendix B: Key Personnel CV Template Name Description

Title: Please list current title, department, and university.

Education Achieved: Please list all degrees and certifications received. Please do not list training courses.

Undergraduate Institution(s)

Major Degree Year

Graduate Institution(s)

Major Degree Year

Postdoctoral Institution(s)

Area Years

Professional Appointments: Please list all academic and industrial appointments in reverse chronological order. Please do not show internships or undergraduate and graduate research assistantships.

Awards and Recognitions: Please list top 5 awards received.

Publications: Please list up to 5 publications closely related to the proposed KACST TIC. Each publication identified must include the names of all authors (in the same sequence in which they appear in the publication), the article and journal title, book title, volume number, page numbers, and year of publication. If the document is available electronically, the website address also should be identified. Please do not include unpublished manuscripts, self-published documents, invited lectures, etc.

Other Intellectual Property: Please list all patents, copyrights and software systems that have been filed. If the IP is a patent, please include the Patent Application Number and the country in which the patent application was submitted. Please note if the patented has been awarded or rejected, if applicable. If a patent was submitted in more than one


country, please include the Patent Application Number for each country.

Intellectual Property Licensing: Summarize in one paragraph, any licensing activities and revenue that has been generated from intellectual property produced by your research activities. Please describe if said activities and revenue were the direct result of your personal interaction with the licensee, or if the activities and revenue were the result of a third party entity.

Research Center Management Summary: Summarize in one paragraph, your experience managing a research center. If you do not have this experience, summarize your experience managing multiple projects simultaneously. Please show preference towards industry-related activities.

Industrial Relationship Summary: Summarize in one paragraph, your interactions with industry, including any research collaborations, sponsored research or consulting activities.

Other Synergistic Activities: Summarize in two paragraphs, multiple examples of work that demonstrates the broader impact of the individual’s professional and scholarly activities that focus on the integration and transfer of knowledge as well as its creation. Examples could include, among others: innovations in teaching and learning; contributions to science and learning; development and/or refinement of research tools; computational methodologies and algorithms for problem-solving; development of databases to support research and education; broadening the participation of groups underrepresented in science, mathematics, engineering and technology; and service to the scientific and engineering community outside of the individual’s immediate organization.


Appendix C: KACST TIC Full Proposal Budget Template Please use an Excel spreadsheet. Sample format below:

Sample KACST TIC Project Budget

Please use this template to complete your budget

University:

KACST TIC Name

Principal Investigator:

Year Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5

Income

KACST Base Funding SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000

Industrial Funding

KACST 1:1 Match Funding (maximum SR 5M)

Total Income SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000 SAR

10,000,000

Expenses

Project 1

Salaries

Researcher 1 Salary

Researcher 1 Incentive

Researcher 2 Salary

Researcher 2 Incentive

Researcher X Salary

Researcher X Incentive

Administrative Staff 1

Administrative Staff 2

Administrative Staff X

Graduate Student 1

Graduate Student X

Undergraduate Student 1

Undergraduate Student X

Other Staff 1

Other Staff X

Total Project 1 Salaries 0 0 0 0 0


Equipment, Materials and Supplies

Capital Item 1

Maintenance on Capital Item 1

Capital Item X

Maintenance on Capital Item X

Materials

Supplies

Total Project 1 Equipment, Materials and Supplies 0 0 0 0 0

Additional Costs

Travel - Domestic

Travel - International

Workshops and Executive Training

Publication Cost / Documentation / Dissemination

Consultant Services

Computer Services

Miscellaneous

Total Project 1 Additional Costs 0 0 0 0 0

Total Project/Thrust 1 Expenses 0 0 0 0 0

Please repeat for each project/thrust

TIC.RFP

Documents