Secretary of Energy Hazel R. O'Leary announced the establishment of an office that will play an essential role in coordinating partnerships between DOE science and technology programs and industry. The goal of this office is to bolster U.S. economic competitiveness.
The Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Technology Partnerships and Economic Competitiveness, under the direction of Under Secretary Charles B. Curtis, will manage the department's industrial competitiveness business line. It will provide a single point-of-contact for industry, academia, and other government entities interested in applying the department's technological advances to practical problems confronting industry.
During the department's strategic planning process, DOE determined that it had an essential role in assisting U.S. economic competitiveness through research and development partnerships with the private sector. During the past several years there has been unprecedented growth in the number of technology partnerships between the department's laboratories and facilities and industry, academia, and federal, state, and local governments.
A central DOE office will manage department strategic planning, coordination, policy development, and issue resolution functions for industrial competitiveness. The department has five key business areas. In addition to industrial competitiveness, there are energy resources, national security, science and technology, and environmental quality.
The Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Technology Partnerships and Economic Competitiveness will incorporate and expand the duties of DOE's current Office of Technology Utilization. It will manage the process of priority setting, selection and balance of the department's portfolio of major partnerships involving multiple DOE programs, laboratories, and industrial sectors, including budget requirements.
The office will coordinate the departmental liaison for each major partnership and serve as a focal contact point for other federal agencies including the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the National Science and Technology Council.
