Sandia’s technology transfer professionals discussed how they are bringing the Labs’ ideas to the marketplace with peers from across the country at the Federal Laboratory Consortium’s recent national meeting in Albuquerque.

The Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) — a nationwide network of more than 250 federal laboratories and centers and their parent departments and agencies — provides a forum for its members to develop strategies for technology transfer. The national meeting was April 26-29.

Jackie Kerby Moore, manager of Technology & Economic Development Dept. 1933, is Sandia’s representative to the FLC. About 55 to 60 Sandians work to directly support technology transfer at the Labs.

Jackie says the FLC convenes meetings for technology transfer professionals, recognizes their best practices and provides training. “I think that’s where their strengths are,” she says.

Dick Fairbanks (1933), who runs the Entrepreneurial Separation to Transfer Technology program, says FLC’s panel discussions, like one Hal Morgan (1930), senior manager for Industrial Partnerships and Strategy, is moderating about public-private partnerships, help the audience understand what is possible.

“If there are barriers or people have perceived barriers about transferring technology, FLC’s service to them is putting on a national meeting that shows how it can be done,” Dick says. During the national meeting, Sandia employees also attended the Department of Energy’s Technology Transfer Working Group, which covered issues related specifically to DOE labs.