NAPEX (National APEX Accelerator Alliance)
Can you share a little about your organization’s mission and how your work supports innovation, commercialization, and national security?
The APEX Accelerators have one job at heart: helping businesses find, win, and perform on government contracts. This network of APEX offices was first authorized by Congress in 1985 and is now funded through the Department of War Office of Industrial Base Growth. APEX counselors walk companies through everything from SAM registration and small business certifications, to cybersecurity requirements, bid preparation, and finding the right agency buyers – all at no cost.
NAPEX is the national professional association for the people doing that work at APEX Accelerators. We train counselors, share best practices, and advocate for the network at events like the FLC’s Innovation for Impact: A National Security Technology Transfer Forum. A breakthrough technology only strengthens our defense and our economy if the government can actually buy it. We help make sure the small, innovative companies behind those technologies are ready to sell to the government.
What challenge in the innovation ecosystem are you working to solve, and why is it important?
APEXs regularly see a gap that’s all too common. A company licenses a promising technology from a federal lab, or wins an SBIR award, and has real momentum. Then it hits a wall when it tries to become a government supplier. Suddenly there are registrations, compliance requirements, cybersecurity standards, and contracting vehicles that nobody warned them about. Great science can stall in that gap. It’s not a technical problem; it’s a “how do we do business with the government?” problem.
That’s exactly where APEX Accelerators shine. We help these companies get “contract ready,” so their innovations don’t get stuck between the lab and the warfighter, agency, or taxpayer who needs them.
What excites you most about Industry Engagement Day and the opportunity to connect directly with federal laboratory technology transfer professionals?
The chance to meet partners we should already be working with! Tech transfer offices and APEX Accelerators serve many of the same companies, often at different stages of their journey. You help them bring technology out of the lab, and APEX Accelerators help them sell it to the government. When we know each other, handoffs get smoother and fewer good companies fall through the cracks. We’re looking forward to hearing about your licensees’ challenges and building relationships that last beyond this one event.
What do you wish the federal technology transfer community knew about your organization, and how you can help them move innovation forward?
We wish more of you knew the APEX Accelerators are here, and that we’re probably already in your backyard! There’s an APEX Accelerator serving nearly every region of the country, often close to your lab.
When a licensee, startup, or CRADA partner asks, “How do we sell this to the government?”, you can send them to APEX for help with:
- Registrations like SAM and the SBA’s small business databases
- Small business certifications such as 8(a), HUBZone, and women-owned
- Cybersecurity and compliance readiness for defense work
- Finding agency buyers and prime contractor teaming partners
- Understanding contract types and preparing competitive proposals
Think of APEX Accelerators as an extension of your team for the business side of commercialization. A quick referral to your local APEX Accelerator could be the thing that gets their technology across the finish line.
How can people connect with your organization or learn more about your work?
The easiest place to start is napex.us. There, you can learn about how NAPEX supports the APEX Accelerator network. There are more than 300 local APEX Accelerator offices across the country, and most offer help by phone, email, and video too, so distance is never a barrier. You can find your local APEX Accelerator here. You can also follow us on LinkedIn or reach out to our Communications team at [email protected]. And of course, come find us at Industry Engagement Day during Innovation for Impact. We’d love to meet you!