Prospective Members

Please consider joining our ever-growing list of consortium partners and enjoy all the benefits membership has to offer:

1. Consortium Membership and Benefits

A company joins a consortium of its choice by pledging an annual contribution to the research effort in the amount set for that particular consortium. Companies under $ 20 million of annual sales can join for 60% of that amount.

The research consortia are administered by the University of Maryland Foundation. 

Each organization that contributes funds is a Consortium Sponsor. Research projects within a consortium are those that are jointly funded and agreed upon by the sponsors. Examples of such projects are attached. Each sponsor assigns up to two employees as advisors to the advisory board and has five votes for the purpose of selecting research projects within the consortium. All recommendations regarding admission of new members, research and policy are made by the advisory board under the umbrella of University rules and regulations. The advisory board meets twice annually at a location determined by majority vote. Consortium sponsors are entitled to the following benefits:

• Influence on research direction
• Immediate access to research results
• Access to CEEE intellectual property
• Semi-annual reports available to sponsors only
• Software developed as part of the consortium effort is available to sponsors only
• 10 hours of free consulting per year through the consortium director (5 hours for those who join at 50%, see below)
• Highly leveraged research support
• First access to CEEE graduates
• 50% discount for CEEE workshops
• Exchange of scientists and engineers

2. Access to Previous Reports

A company joining an existing consortium may be entitled to purchase previous semi-annual reports at a fee set by the consortium director in coordination with the advisory board.  These funds are used to further the research in this consortium.

3. Multiple Memberships

Consortium sponsors who join additional consortia contribute the full amount to the consortium with the highest contribution and receive a 50% discount on all others.

4. Publications

Publications resulting from consortium research will be submitted to the sponsors for review and comment according to University policies.  Sponsors have the right to suggest changes to the publications to protect their competitive position. No information will be published that is proprietary to any consortium sponsor and was made available to CEEE under a separate Confidential Disclosure Agreement.

5. Intellectual Property

Rights to intellectual property developed by UM (University of Maryland) researchers, including patents and software, are defined by Univer-sity policy as described next.  The policy allows industry to retain its competitive position through negotiable licensing arrangements.  In particular the policy reads as follows:

All inventions arising from industrial sponsorship in the Consortium must be submitted to the University of Maryland at College Park (UM) Office of Technology Liaison (OTL) for review.  OTL will act on behalf of UM to evaluate and determine how all intellectual property ownership rights (including software) will be distributed among Consortium Sponsors (CS) and UM.   Rights to intellectual property whether patentable or copyrightable made solely by participating CS employees shall belong to CS.   UM will retain ownership of intellectual property where University personnel (faculty/staff and students) are either co-inventors with CS employees or the sole inventors.  CS will retain the right of first refusal to negotiate a CS-exclusive license (limited only to Consortia Sponsors) to make, use and sell products based on such intellectual property.  UMCP retains the right to license Consortium developed intellectual property to companies for applications outside of CS product interests.  If there is only one CS electing to receive a license,  an exclusive license can result.

The costs of protecting and maintaining intellectual property are not trivial,  and UM will carefully evaluate the commercial potential of all intellectual property before seeking its protection.  If at least one CS directs that UM seek such protection through a patent application or application for other intellectual property, UM shall promptly prepare, file and prosecute such U.S. and foreign application(s).   In these CS-directed cases,  the CS will bear all costs associated with the filing, prosecution and maintenance of a U.S. and/or foreign application(s).   If more than one CS directs UM to seek the filing of an application the costs will be divided equally among those Consortium Sponsors.   The CS will provide input to UMCP that assures that these filed applications will cover all items of commercial interest.

The following royalty distribution is agreed upon to benefit sponsors over outside licensees if there is a nonexclusive license.  Non-sponsors pay UMCP twice the royalty rate than that Sponsor(s) pay(s).

6. Amount of Contribution

At this time, December 2001, four consortia are operated within CEEE.  The individual consortia and the annual contribution are listed as follows.