Barbara,
Unless you have some reason to avoid doing so, I suggest you pose your
question to the DHHS Office of Research Integrity. If there is a
question downstream, you are in a better position to cite an ORI
opinion, rather than "somebody at XYZ University told me...". ORI
deals in this arena everyday, and I have found them more than willing to
explore issues.
Don
-----Original Message-----
From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG] On
Behalf Of Barbara Gray
Sent: Monday, September 11, 2006 12:09 PM
To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG
Subject: [RESADM-L] Royalties and Institutional Conflict of Interest?
The situation: A faculty member at a public institution of higher
education invents a new instrument under a federal research grant. The
university patents the instrument and commercializes it. ABC Scientific
Supply has an exclusive license to make and sell the instrument, and the
univesity receives royalty payments, which are generously shared with
the inventor. Now the same faculty member is working on a proposal to
another federal agency. He wants to buy twenty of the instruments from
ABC Scientific to deploy in the field (meaning the university would earn
royalties on the sale). This particular instrument allows measurements
that are important for the research that no other similar instrument on
the market can do, so a sole source procurement is justified. Is it
appropriate for the university to pay full price for the twenty
instruments using the new grant dollars and earn the royalties, which it
will then share with the inventor/PI, or should the university charge
the new grant for the cost of the equipment minus the royalty payment
(assuming that ABC Scientific is willing to sell the equipment to the
university at this reduced price)? I suspect there will be a difference
of opinion on this, so please share your rationale.
Thanks.
Barbara
--
Barbara H. Gray
Director of Sponsored Research
Desert Research Institute
2215 Raggio Parkway
Reno, Nevada 89512-1095
Telephone: 775-673-7381
Fax: 775-673-7459
E-mail: xxxxxx@dri.edu
www.dri.edu
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