Ray Friesenhahn, SBIR Outreach Manager for the Montana State University TechLink center, Receives National Award

Ray Friesenhahn of Bozeman was one of 17 people in the United States to win a 2007 National Tibbetts Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Small Business Innovation Research.

Announced by the Small Business Technology Council, the award named for Roland Tibbetts is given annually to small firms, projects, organizations and individuals. Tibbetts is the acknowledged father of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.

Friesenhahn is the SBIR Outreach Manager for the Montana State University TechLink center http://www.techlinkcenter.org/cgi-bin/techlink/index.html which is funded primarily by the Department of Defense (DoD) to transfer technology from DoD labs to private industry. Among its services, TechLink assists companies in licensing technologies and securing research and development funding from the DoD and other federal agencies.

Friesenhahn received the Tibbetts award Oct. 10 in Washington, D.C. Statements of support came from Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, as well as university and state economic development leaders

Schweitzer said Friesenhahn has been a model partner to the state’s Technology Innovation Partnership program and added that, "Ray’s leadership and cooperation have been major factors in why Montana is now ranked second in the nation for Phase I SBIR/STTR awards relative to Gross State Product."

The effective team approach to assisting companies under Friesenhahn’s programs roughly doubled the typical award rates for companies receiving assistance in this 12-state region and resulted in more than 165 awards worth more than $74 million. In Montana alone, his team’s efforts helped companies win over 80 awards with a total value of over $30 million. This was achieved over six years, starting in 2001.

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Added Comments:

This award was really recognition for the team of outstanding people we’ve been able to bring together to support the innovative and motivated companies we work with, which could not have happened without the strong program backing received from TechLink, MSU, DoD, and NSF EPSCoR.

We’re very glad to be making an impact on businesses in Montana and the region, and helping to keep creative companies growing in the state. The SBIR and STTR programs have now provided over $100 million in funding to more than 85 small technology companies in Montana, including several that have been successfully acquired by much larger firms, while remaining in the state. Too often, entrepreneurs are convinced they need to pursue Venture Capital or "Angel" funding for their start-ups, but the few that succeed usually find they’d need to leave Montana as a condition of funding. SBIR may be the very best source of development funding for many of these firms, without giving up any equity, and working with university researchers here in Montana is often the best way for them to win SBIR funding.

Sincerest regards,

Ray