DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ANNOUNCES NATIONAL PROTOTYPE CENTER CHARTER PARTNER SUBMISSION DEADLINE The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a deadline of April 15, 1998, for private sector companies to make initial submissions of project outlines for consideration as part of the National Prototype Center Charter Partners Program. DOE seeks to create prototyping partnerships with private sector companies at the National Prototype Center located at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant, managed and operated by Lockheed Martin Energy Systems for DOE. The Y-12 Plant was designated as the National Prototype Center (NPC) last year by the U.S. Congress. The NPC is a resource through which both government agencies and private industry can find the capabilities, skills, and resources needed to turn great ideas into innovative, affordable, manufacturable products. The NPC specializes in high-risk, complex prototype work integrating manufacturing, engineering, and scientific capabilities that are generally not available in the private sector. DOE is now seeking four Charter Partners from the private sector. The selected Charter Partners will be able to more rapidly develop their new products and processes through their on-site access to the unique capabilities of the NPC. The Charter Partners will work with NPC personnel and have access to the world-class expertise and facilities of the Centers for Manufacturing Technology at the Y-12 Plant and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Projects selected will benefit DOE's National Security mission and core competencies. Candidate projects must be submitted to the NPC on a special two-page form by April 15, 1998. Feedback on the appropriateness of the proposed project will be provided to companies submitting responses by May 1, 1998. By May 24, 1998, DOE and the NPC will identify Charter Partners Program finalists, who will then be asked to provide more detailed documentation on their proposed projects by June 30, 1998. Successful partners will be selected and notified by July 15, 1998. Charter Partners will locate a team of between two and twenty employees in Oak Ridge where they will work side-by-side with engineers and scientists from DOE facilities. Preference will be given to companies willing to assist in the economic development of the region. Y-12 has been developing unique one-of-a-kind prototypes for more than 50 years beginning with demanding requirements for national security missions in the early 1940s. More familiar examples of prototype successes include the Apollo "Moonbox," the Seawolf Submarine Propulsor Project, and the "hospital-in-a-box" developed last year for the U.S. Army and the Marine Corps. Currently, work is under way on the Marine Corps' Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle that will serve as a weapons platform for the Marines' challenging missions. Prototypes developed with private sector organizations include an automated spectroscopic telescope, ceramic components for a diesel engine, and a machine vision system for in-process monitoring of ceramic substrate components. A copy of the two-page form for April 15 submissions, along with the text of this announcement and information on selection criteria and NPC core competencies, can be accessed on the NPC web site at: http://www.ornl.gov/orcmt/charter.htm. Faxed copies of the form and additional information may be obtained by calling the phone numbers below. Completed forms may be faxed to (423) 574-2000 or mailed to the address below. For more information, contact: Paul C. Turner, Director National Prototype Center P. O. Box 2009 Oak Ridge, TN 37831-8091 (423) 574-0907 (800) 356-4USA WEB: National Prototype Center, http://www.ornl.gov/orcmt/npc.html. E-MAIL: Director, National Prototype Center, turnerpc@ornl.gov.

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