TechCon Program Web Site

Web-based technical assistance and facilitation linked commercial technology vendors with DOE clean up project teams and stakeholders.

Need/Opportunity

• Link DOE project teams with technology vendors
• Assist DOE project teams in vendor selection
• Facilitate collection of vendor capability statements and project histories
• Allow vendors to make capabilities known to DOE

DOE site project teams look for technology-based approaches to their environmental restoration, waste management, and D&D problems that will reduce cost and risk and improve performance. Technology vendors need to identify potential business opportunities and transmit their capabilities to DOE project teams. The TechCon (Technology Connection) Program, started in 1997 and concluded in 2003, helped establish communications between DOE project teams and technology vendors.

Approach

• Provided an Internet-based meeting place
• Presented project-specific needs and status
• Created web-enabled vendor database
• Web-based capabilities and experience submittal
• Automate e-mail notification of project status
• Provided web forums and e-mail discussion lists

TechCon created and maintained project-specific web sites where DOE site project teams, stakeholders, and vendors exchanged information about a clean-up project. The template-based web sites enhanced technical assistance to the project team by providing information and collecting data from experienced characterization and remediation technology vendors. Project web sites presented project descriptions, status, baseline considerations, vendor capabilities, technical resources, and forums and workshops. Vendors used web forms to submit their capabilities and histories detailing where their technologies were deployed. DOE project teams used dynamically generated Web reports to view vendor credentials, which they matched to their decision-making criteria. Automated e-mail tools were used for new project notification and project status. Stakeholders, vendors, and project teams also communicated with each other via e-mail and online discussion forums.

Results

• Utilized for 14 projects
• 300+ vendor submittals
• 12,000+ Web users

TechCon's Web-based approach was utilized for 12 DOE remediation projects and 2 characterization initiatives since 1997. More than 300 vendors submitted capability statements and project histories.

Benefits

• Significant cost savings
• Easy access for vendors and project teams
• Broader vendor participation
• Project information and document archive

The TechCon web site facilitated better communication among DOE project teams, commercial technology vendors, and regulatory and community stakeholders. It made it easy for vendors to participate in the technology selection process, regardless of their location, and for DOE project teams to access vendor information. It provided convenient access to archived documents relating to past DOE remediation projects and characterization initiatives, while providing status on current projects. The TechCon web site allowed DOE to achieve significant cost savings by automating data entry and retrieval of vendor capabilities and project histories. Information distribution costs were reduced through its template-based approach to building project web sites and through effective use of e-mail.