By Christi Spargur, 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
/ Published January 11, 2021
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) --
Scott Air Force Base’s innovation hub, Elevate, received Air Force approval to be designated a defense laboratory, Jan. 6. The approval marks Scott AFB as the first Air Force innovation cell to become an official defense lab for technology transfer purposes.
The designation as a defense lab allows the Elevate team to partner with educational institutions under an Education Partnership Agreement in sharing resources, equipment and information. EPAs, however, do not allow the sharing of funds.
According to the Air Force Technology Transfer Handbook, “EPAs were created to help increase national technological and economic competitiveness by promoting increased interactions between defense labs and educational institutions. From the Air Force perspective, EPAs help cultivate, recruit, and diversify the Air Force workforce; help develop critically needed new technology; harness outside assistance with technology transfer and commercialization; and enhance an Air Force’s Activity’s visibility and image in the community…”