Memo from the Director on equipment grants (Acrobat Reader required)

CALS Equipment and Infrastructure Grants Awarded: 2004-06

Online Proposal Form

North Carolina Agriculture Research Services (NCARS) normally has funds from overhead receipts available for the purchase of research equipment by CALS faculty each fiscal year.  The CALS Research Committee administers this grant program, determines the objectives and procedures, and reviews and selects proposals to be funded.  For FY 08-09, we are pleased to continue the CALS Equipment Grant Program.  This year’s program will consist of a Small Equipment Grant Program.

 The objectives of this grant program is:

1. To support and advance innovative and competitive research efforts in CALS.
2. To support collaborative research efforts and encourage multi-user instrumentation.

SMALL EQUIPMENT GRANT PROGRAM

The Requests for Proposals are sent to the Department Heads in October for distribution to the faculty.  Proposals are due no later than 5:00 pm on Friday, Dec 5th, 2008 for review and selection by the CALS Research Committee.

Program Objectives: This program is designed to address the need for equipment of  $15K or less and is aimed at the purchase of equipment that significantly enhances the research capabilities of multiple users in CALS .

Evaluation Criteria: Each proposal will be given a numerical rating (0 to 5) for each of the following four criteria, and proposals will be ranked by their cumulative ratings:

1.  Innovativeness/Competitiveness of the Research:  Proposals that describe specific research that would benefit from the equipment will receive a higher score.   Even if the equipment will be used by a number of people with diverse research, stating specifically the innovative aspects of that research will yield a more favorable rating.
2.  Multi-user/Collaborative Nature of the Research:  Scores will increase if multiple PIs are listed on the project.  Equipment usage across departments or colleges is a plus.  General statements about large numbers of faculty or students (without specific information) will not improve the score.
3.  Need for the Equipment:  Proposals for equipment that is currently unavailable and would serve a new need for the PIs will receive more favorable scores. Replacement and upgrades to existing, functioning or oversubscribed equipment will receive lower ratings, depending on the apparent margin of benefit that the upgrade/replacement would produce.
4.  Proportion of Matching Funds Offered:  The greater the proportion of departmental or PI matching funds up to 50%, the higher the score given.

 In the past, awards have been made to purchase a broad range of equipment, such as a gamma ray counter, digital camera, video gel documentation system, seed planter, HPLC detector, isothermal titration calorimeter and accessories, tissue electroporator, chromatography workstation, plot thresher, environmental monitoring system, micro-scanning-kinetic spectrophotometer, electrophoresis unit, autoclave, plant temperature sensor and accessories, planters, cryostats.  Awards for computer purchases are made only if the computer is identified as a primary research tool.  Proposed equipment may include anything from basic equipment needed as a routine part of several diverse research projects to highly specialized equipment that is unique to a particular type of research.

Proposal Format: This year, proposals will be submitted online and will be completely paperless. The online form for submitting a proposal can be found at the following link. Several pieces of information are required, including Principal investigators, Equipment Requested, Total Cost, Funding Requested, Matching funds, Justification, Status of Similar or Related Equipment, and Location and Maintenance of Equipment. The total length of the Justification, Status of Similar or Related Equipment, and Location and Maintenance of Equipment sections, when combined, must not exceed 5,000 characters. Proposals that do not include all fields will not be reviewed.

Proposal Sections:

• Principal investigators (names, departments).
• Proposal Type (Small equipment or infrastructure).
• Equipment requested (name, model, and manufacturer).
• Total cost, Amount of funding requested and Matching Funds (source and amount by investigator)
• Justification, i.e. how the purchase will satisfy this RFP's funding objectives (describe research projects that require the equipment, how the equipment will be used, and note any collaborative uses).
• Status of current, similar or related equipment, if it exists, and why additional equipment is needed.
• Location of the equipment; who will maintain and repair it.

 The equipment must be delivered and paid for by June 30 of each year. Therefore, all funds granted must be encumbered (PO's must be submitted) by February 28 of each year.

 You must notify department heads of PIs and Co-PIs of this submission or the request will not be considered.

The Infrastructure-Level Equipment Grant Program has been suspended for 2008.  Please check back for further information.
INFRASTRUCTURE-LEVEL EQUIPMENT GRANT PROGRAM

The Requests for Proposals are sent to the Department Heads in October for distribution to the faculty.  Proposals are due no later than 5:00 pm on the third Friday in November for review and selection by the CALS Research Committee.

 Program Objectives: This program is designed to address the need for equipment that falls below the range of costs supported by federal specialized equipment programs and above the range of costs reasonably supported by individual PI grants proposals submitted to federal programs. 

 The CALS Research Committee has identified the following key issues in this RFP:

1.  The requested equipment must be clearly shown to address the need for an item of significant equipment that is either (i) in need of immediate replacement to maintain activities of existing grant funded research , or (ii) is currently unavailable on campus, but urgently needed to allow CALS researchers to become competitive for external research grants.
2.  The equipment must clearly show the ability to support grant-funded research efforts of multiple-users, not individuals.

 Evaluation Criteria: A subcommittee of the CALS Research Committee will review these requests.  Each proposal will be given a numerical rating (0 to 5) for each of the following criteria, and proposals will be ranked by their cumulative score.  The top ranked proposals (those with the highest score) will be forwarded, as a recommendation for funding, to the Director.

1. Impact on Current Research Productivity. Scores will increase if proposals demonstrate there is a clear impact of equipment availability on productivity associated with existing grant funding.  Proposals should identify the impacted funded projects and explain the significance of the impact (Please note:  This criterion is expected to be most significant for a proposal designed to replace existing equipment.  An example might be  an outdated piece of equipment on NCSU campus which lacks the expected performance capabilities.  This deficiency requires that samples are sent off campus for analysis and involves greater cost, a loss of flexibility and time delays).
2.  Impact on Ability to Secure Future Grant Funding. Scores will increase if a proposal provides clear evidence that the requested equipment will enable CALS researchers to apply for external grant funds, which they would otherwise be unlikely to be competitive for without access to the requested equipment.  Proposals should briefly describe  how access to this equipment would increase the likelihood of future funding  Proposals should identify specific prospective grant programs and provide URLs for the relevant program descriptions.  (Please note:  This criterion is expected to be most significant for proposals that provide CALS researchers with equipment that extends current research capabilities.  A generic example might be the purchase of a new gas chromatography system that increases the detection limits for selected bioactive compounds by several orders of magnitude.  This capability would enable multiple researchers to  routinely measure these bioactive compounds in human, animal and plant tissues and the capability would  significantly increase prospects for funding through NIH, USEPA and USDA).
3. Multi-user/Collaborative Nature of the Research:  Scores will increase if multiple PIs are listed on the project.  Equipment usage across departments or colleges is a plus.  General statements about large numbers of faculty or students (without specific information) will not improve the score.
4.  Proportion of matching funds offered:  The greater the proportion of departmental or PI matching funds up to 50%, the higher the score given.

 In the past, awards have been made to purchase a equipment including an infrared imaging system, a GC/MS, and an LC/MS.  Proposed equipment may include anything from basic equipment needed as a routine part of several diverse research projects to highly specialized equipment that is unique to a particular type of research.

Proposal Format: This year, proposals will be submitted online and will be completely paperless. The online form for submitting a proposal can be found at the following link. Several pieces of information are required, including Principal investigators, Equipment Requested, Total Cost, Funding Requested, Matching funds, Other sources of funding (if pursued), Accessibility of Similar or Related Equipment, Justification, Management Plan, and Impacted Programs. The total length of the Accessibility of Similar or Related Equipment, Justification, and Management Plan sections, when combined, must not exceed 10,000 characters. Requests that do not contain all necessary sections will not be reviewed. Supplementary materials that are directly related to the requested equipment (brochures, specifications, quotes etc.) are acceptable in the Appendix section.

Proposal Sections:

• Principal Investigators (names, departments). The PI for these proposals can be either individual faculty or departments. If a department submits an application, the Department Head should serve as the PI.
• Equipment Requested (name, model, and manufacturer). It should be clearly stated whether the proposal is for a new item of equipment or for the replacement of an existing item of equipment. It is expected that this section will be supported by a complete description of the core equipment, its capabilities and the specific role of any requested permanent peripherals.
• Total Cost, Requested Funds, and Matching Funds (source and amount). It is expected that this section include the total purchase cost of the equipment including taxes and shipping. This section should be supported by current company quotes for the specific item of equipment (add as appendix, not included in character limit). If matching funds are to be used to purchase the equipment the source of these funds should be clearly stated.
• Others sources of funding for this equipment if pursued. If other sources of funding for this equipment have been pursued, please identify. If funding is awarded from another source, funding from these equipment grants program will not be awarded.
• Accessibility of Same, Similar or Related Equipment at NCSU. It is expected that PIs will address whether the same equipment is available or accessible from other CALS units.
• Justification. In this section the PI needs to describe how the requested equipment will address this RFP's funding objectives. If the requested equipment is to replace an existing item, the PI should identify which research programs are impacted, the use patterns for the requested equipment and explain how research activities are currently continuing without fully functional equipment. If the requested equipment will provide new capabilities, the PI should identify which research programs will benefit from this equipment, the expected use patterns and explain how the absence of this equipment is currently limiting research productivity and the ability to compete for grant-supported research.
• Management Plan. All proposals submitted to this program must provide a summary of plans for the independently funded maintenance of the equipment for at least five years (service contracts, routine user maintenance, etc.).  In the case of equipment that offers new capabilities (not replacement of old equipment), all proposals must also describe mechanisms that will be put into place to allow and promote use of the equipment by CALS researchers.
• Impacted Programs: In support of the Justification section, the PI must provide a summary of the number and current funding level (direct versus indirect costs) from competitive grants awarded to the PI and Co-PIs.  This section must also be supported by an appendix that provides a full list of these grants, including the PI/Co-PIs name and department, the agency name, the award amount (direct costs), the duration of the project, the project title and a short description of how the equipment will benefit these projects.
• Appendix (if necessary). Supplementary materials that are directly related to the requested equipment are acceptable in the appendix section.

 The equipment must be delivered and paid for by June 30 of each year.  Therefore, all funds granted must be encumbered (PO's must be submitted) by February 28 of each year.

 You must notify department heads of PIs and Co-PIs of this submission or the request will not be considered.