Sandia National Laboratories executed 72 new Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) in fiscal year 2024, the second-highest number in its history. Sandia last reached similar levels in the early 1990s when the World Wide Web was introduced.
Brittany Humphrey holds a microneedle at Sandia National Laboratories. As part of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement, Sandia has modified the microneedles’ shape to speed up interstitial fluid extraction.
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(Photo by Craig Fritz)
CRADAs are collaborative agreements that allow federal laboratories and external organizations to jointly develop new technologies by combining their expertise and resources. In the early 2000s, Sandia averaged about half the number of CRADAs executed in 2024.
“We’re trying to make CRADAs more accessible by lowering the barriers to enter into an agreement with Sandia, including with a master scope of work,” said Jason Martinez, a business development specialist at Sandia. The master scope of work, currently in its pilot phase, was developed in collaboration with the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia Field Office.
The pilot has streamlined the CRADA approval process for low-risk projects. Using the master scope of work, 78% of CRADAs were completed in 30 days or less.
CRADAs are tailored for non-federal entities, and their potential is evaluated based on factors such as the collaborative nature of the work and the likelihood of developing new products or processes. “Our CRADA partners get to work with Sandia’s experts as well as the research and development capabilities and resources we have here,” Martinez explained. “Partners in industry and academia bring significant expertise that can help solve the problems Sandia is tackling.”
The CRADAs initiated in 2024 reflect Sandia’s broad scope of research, spanning advancements in microneedle technology to quantum photonics. For instance, as part of a CRADA, Sandia researchers optimized the shape of microneedles to enhance the speed of interstitial fluid extraction.
A look at new Cooperative Research and Development Agreements executed by fiscal year. Fiscal year 2024 had the second highest number of new agreements.
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Graphic by Ray Johnson
Historically, fiscal year 1994 holds the record for the highest number of new CRADAs at Sandia, with 84 agreements. However, the 2024 figure surpassed the 68 agreements in the budgetary year 1993.
“When the CRADA program launched in the early 1990s, the emphasis was on addressing U.S. economic security and meeting the needs of private companies,” said Mary Monson, senior manager for Sandia’s business development. “Today, while the process has been simplified, the focus has shifted to leveraging mission-related capabilities to help businesses and advancing Sandia’s technologies into broader applications.”
Economic impact
CRADAs have significantly contributed to economic growth. Studies commissioned by the National Nuclear Security Administration and Sandia examined the financial impact of CRADAs and patent license agreements from 2000 to 2023. These studies found that CRADAs and licenses contributed $140 billion to the economy and created over 600,000 jobs. During this period, Sandia ranked third in the number of CRADAs across the Department of Energy (DOE) enterprise.
Locally, CRADAs have spurred partnerships between Sandia and New Mexico businesses. Programs like the Technology Readiness Gross Receipts initiative, funded by state taxes, enable enterprises to collaborate with Sandia scientists and engineers to prepare inventions for commercialization.
For more information on CRADAs, visit Sandia’s website.
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