The Federal Technology Symposium is an annual event that brings together warfighting challenges ascertained by military commands at the federal and state levels with the solutions and innovation to match those challenges.
Those solutions, according to Director of Defense Technologies at the North Carolina Military Business Center Bob Burton, come from area small businesses, entrepreneurs, researchers and universities. The NCMBC, in partnership with Fayetteville Technical Community College, Senator Thom Tillis, and Senator Ted Budd, organizes the event every year.
The event, which will take place on Sept. 9-10 at Fayetteville Technical Community College, brings together officials from agencies such as the U.S. Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security to explore the origins of these rapid innovations.
“They come to learn where those rapid innovation opportunities are that would turn research into prototypes, and prototypes into war-fighting solutions,” Burton said. “This is our fourth year running the Federal Technology Symposium, recognizing that there are technology needs across all government agencies. So it’s not just defense.”
Burton said that a soft theme for this year’s symposium is “Transformation In Contact,” which aligns with the overall approach the U.S. Army has taken in its operations this year.
“It has been like that for a while because of the speed of the threat, recognizing that budget cycles don’t line up with threat and adversarial intents for the nation,” Burton said. “Day one, on Sept. 9, we’re going to Fort Bragg to meet at the Airborne Innovation Lab and the LTG James M. Gavin Joint Innovation Outpost, which is where soldiers bring their problems to meet with industry, academia, researchers and develop solutions to those problems.”
“The key goal of the Federal Technology Symposium,” Burton said, “is for government agencies that have identified the current threat environment to connect with academia and industry.”
“What are our warfighters facing? What threats is the nation facing?” Burton said. “And then, how can North Carolina technology solutions provide solutions to those threats? What does that look like?”
The answers to those questions translate into funding opportunities in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, particularly through collaborations with universities.
“There are new challenges, there are new technologies, there are new threats, and we cannot be limited by budget cycles,” Burton said. “We need to understand that the threat and budgets inform where the nation makes its strategic investments and even tactical purchases for technology.”
THE AGENDA FOR THE EVENT IS AS FOLLOWS. ALL THE SEPT. 10 EVENTS WILL TAKE PLACE AT FAYETTEVILLE TECHNICAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE’S TONY RAND STUDENT CENTER:
• Rob Braun, Chief Technology Officer, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg.
• Brigadier General Ralph J. Rizzo, Jr., Commanding General, Marine Corps Installations East and Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune (invited)
According to Burton, “the rapidly changing geopolitical landscape and the need to counter emerging threats are key reasons why the symposium
is a vital event for both the federal government and innovators alike.”
“The ability to navigate changing geopolitical environments, countering the emerging threats, whether it’s terrorism or whether it’s large scale combat operations, requires an all-encompassing government approach,” Burton noted. “That means all agencies working together. We believe that in North Carolina, it requires an all-encompassing state approach to support the federal government. So hence our innovation ecosystem, with our small businesses, innovators, university researchers, public-private partnerships, and even investors to move technologies forward to make the critical investments needed to get the right capabilities into the warfighter's hands ahead of time.”
The event, he added, “serves as a strategic dialogue that needs to occur before critical demand arises.”
“It has to be in person where people are talking about and telling real stories, sharing real experiences and sharing those at a venue where we also provide solutions,” Burton said. “We’re not just talking about problems, we are solving them.”
For more information on the FTS visit: www.defense.ncmbc.us and www.ncmbc.us.
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