To ensure the best return on NOAA’s investment in R&D, at the completion of the R&D, it needs to be implemented for some use. Transition planning is critical to the successful implementation of R&D into use to meet mission needs or move to commercialization, and the most useful tool in transition planning is a transition plan. A transition plan is a roadmap that outlines the pathway for R&D to move into its intended use, whether it be the transfer of knowledge or a fully implemented technology used on a routine basis. To facilitate the development of transition plans, ORTA provides resources to NOAA staff and works with Principal Investigators (PIs) and their teams to create, review, and acquire signatures of leadership of the impacted offices.
NOAA recommends projects have a transition plan, and NOAA Research requires them for projects intending to move through Readiness Levels. For some NOAA granting programs, transition plans are recommended to be submitted in conjunction with submission of proposals to show that there is a plan in place to shepherd the R&D to its intended use. Project funding has often increased by having signed transition plans (for example, for uncrewed systems, climate studies, marine mammal machine learning, Artificial Intelligence (AI), amongst others) that help justify the need for additional funding to take the project to the next phase of development. ORTA engages in all aspects of the transition planning process across NOAA and often collaborates with other government agencies, industry partners, and academia on the NOAA process.
This paper will outline the transition planning process and provide examples of projects that have successfully transitioned into use.
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