The Challenge: Leveraging Federal Support for Innovation
Several federal agencies support clean energy innovation, but their awardees must often supply a significant share of total project costs. This can be an obstacle for both academic researchers and innovative small businesses pursuing federal awards.
About
AmplifyMass supports academic researchers and companies who need cost-share or adders for federal/on federal prime awards. AmplifyMass provides up to $300,000 for academic or company projects pursuing cost-share or adders for federal or non-federal prime awards (such as awards from ARPA-E, NSF, DOE, and USABC), or up to $100,000 for academic projects that are not tied directly to a prime grant. The program supports projects that aim to commercialize or substantially de-risk an innovation that falls within MassCEC’s mission.
Funding Schedule
InnovateMass operates on a rolling basis. Awards are subject to availability.
| Process Step | Timing |
|---|---|
| Submit application | Rolling |
| Notification of award | 3 to 6 months from submission |
| Contracting concludes | About 1 month from award notification |
Who's Eligible
Eligible applicants include Massachusetts-based cleantech small businesses and academic institutions/universities.
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Proposals must satisfy the definition of “clean energy” as explained in the AmplifyMass Application Process and Eligibility document.
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Companies
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Must be a small business as outlined by the United States Small Business Administration’s “Table of Small Business Size Standards” and must have a significant Massachusetts presence
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May apply for projects pursuing cost share or adders for a federal/non-federal prime award (such as awards from ARPA-E, NSF, DOE, and USABC) only
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For cost share support, applications must be submitted before the primary funding is contracted.
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Massachusetts Academic Institutions/Universities
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May apply for projects pursuing cost share or adders for a federal/non-federal prime award (such as awards from ARPA-E, NSF, DOE, and USABC). Note: Awards are typically a fraction of the required cost share and the total project cost.
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For cost share support, applications must be submitted before the primary funding is contracted. Certain exceptions may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
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Academic/university applicants may also submit applications for individual or follow-on projects that are not cost share or simultaneous “adder” scopes. Such applications must aim to commercialize an innovation or substantially de-risk an innovation for commercialization purposes. Applications without a prime grant or which follow a concluded prime grant will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. These awards are capped at $100,000 apiece.
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For full Program details, please refer to the AmplifyMass Application Process and Eligibility document.
Apply
Application Process
The review and selection process entails several steps:
- MassCEC ensures that applicants meet the program’s eligibility criteria.
- Applications are submitted to subject-matter experts for technical review.
- Applications are surveyed by an internal award selection committee to identify the most compelling proposals among the competitive AmplifyMass pool, based on the review criteria.
- Upon confirming eligibility and funding availability, MassCEC will issue a firm commitment letter to provide cost share. A funding agreement will be provided for review at this time.
- Upon execution of funding agreements with both MassCEC and the corresponding prime award (if applicable), funds will be disbursed to awardees based on mutually agreed-upon milestones and deliverables, as negotiated per the contract.
Please review our sample grant agreements for universities and companies, as applicable. If you have any questions or concerns about these templates, please submit them along with your application.
For full Program details, please refer to the AmplifyMass Application Process and Eligibility document.
Application Materials
Sample Grant Agreements
Send completed application to: amplifymass@masscec.com
Quarterly Funding Opportunities Webinar
Watch this past webinar for information on how to apply to the program, application tips, and more!
Past Awardees
NewGrid, Inc.
Read the success story inside!
MassCEC awarded Dr. Pablo Ruiz of Boston University a $26,000 grant through the AmplifyMass program in March 2015, to develop a grid optimization technology with the potential to reduce the cost of grid congestion by 25-50%, saving over $1B annually. Additionally, the technology can enable a higher penetration of renewables onto the electric grid. At project completion in August 2015, Dr. Ruiz and his team spun out their technology to form NewGrid, Inc. Since then, the company has moved into Somerville-based Greentown Labs, the nation’s largest cleantech incubator and secured $290,000 in angel and founder investment funding. NewGrid also received a $40,000 Catalyst grant from MassCEC, and was featured in several prominent scientific publications, including publications of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Most recently, the company received a $100,000 MassVentures START award in August 2016.
Transaera, Inc.
Awarded $200,000 with prime source funding from NSF.
Transaera Inc is developing a high-efficiency air conditioning system to enable energy savings in cooling and dehumidification technologies.
Radical Plastics
Awarded $100,000 with prime source funding from USDA.
Radical Plastics has developed a biodegradable mulch film that will reduce agriculture-related transportation emissions.
ADL Ventures, Inc.
Awarded $125,000 with prime source funding from DOE-EERE-BTO.
ADL Ventures, Inc aims to develop a collaborative that accelerates the delivery of deep energy retrofit and new construction technologies to the market.
Fraunhofer USA
Awarded $87,057 with prime source funding from DOE-EERE.
Fraunhofer USA aims to develop a novel, technology-assisted approach to conducting thermal retrofits in buildings.
Triton Systems, Inc.
Awarded $200,000 with prime source funding from NOWRDC.
Triton Systems, Inc aims to develop and commercialize an innovative floating offshore wind anchoring system and installation tool.