FFRDC Research and Development Survey FY 2022

FORM APPROVED
OMB No. 3145-0100
Expiration Date: xx/xx/xxxx

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
ALEXANDRIA, VA 22314

FFRDC RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SURVEY
FY 2022
Please submit your survey data by January 17, 2023.
Your participation in this survey provides important information on the national level of R&D activity. The National Science
Foundation (NSF) is authorized to collect this information under the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended.
Your organization’s response is entirely voluntary.
Response to this survey is estimated to require 14 hours. If you wish to comment on the time required to complete this
survey, please contact Suzanne H. Plimpton of NSF at (703) 292-7556, or e-mail [email protected].
The Web address for submitting your data:
http://www.ffrdcsurvey.org

Or mail this form to:
ICF
530 Gaither Road, Suite 500
Rockville, MD 20850
Questions?
Technical support:
[email protected]
(866) 936-9376
General survey questions:
Michael Gibbons
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
National Science Foundation
[email protected]
(703) 292-4590
Thank you for your participation.

1

What’s New for FY 2022
Changes to Questions
•

Former questions 2 and 3 were reformatted and combined to create the current Question 2.

•

Question 6, which asks for full-time equivalents (FTEs) and headcounts of R&D personal, has been added to the
questionnaire.

2

Survey Definitions and Instructions
This survey collects data on research and development (R&D) activities at Federally Funded R&D Centers (FFRDCs).
Please report R&D activities and expenditures for your organization’s 2022 fiscal year.
Fiscal Year (FY)
Please report data for your organization’s 2022 fiscal year.
Research and Development (R&D)
R&D activity is creative and systematic work undertaken in order to increase the stock of knowledge — including
knowledge of humankind, culture, and society — and to devise new applications of available knowledge. R&D covers
three activities defined below — basic research, applied research, and experimental development.
•

Basic research is experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the
underlying foundations of phenomena and observable facts, without any particular application or use in view.

•

Applied research is original investigation undertaken in order to acquire new knowledge. It is directed primarily
towards a specific, practical aim or objective.

•

Experimental development is systematic work, drawing on knowledge gained from research and practical
experience and producing additional knowledge, which is directed to producing new products or processes or to
improving existing products or processes.

R&D Expenditures
Please include all current operating expenditures for activities specifically organized to produce R&D outcomes. This
includes basic research, applied research, and experimental development funded by external sponsors or separately
budgeted and accounted for by your organization using internal funds.
R&D includes:
•

Sponsored research (including federal and nonfederal
sponsors)

•

Indirect costs associated with R&D projects

•

R&D equipment and software

•

R&D subcontract expenditures

•

Clinical trials

•

Research training grants

R&D does not include:
•

Outreach or training programs

•

R&D conducted by staff at outside institutions that is
not accounted for in your financial records

•

Capital projects (i.e., construction or renovation of
research facilities)

•

Routine testing

•

Non-R&D program implementation or management

•

Policy development

3

Question 1.

How much of your total expenditures for separately budgeted research and
development (R&D) came from the following sources in FY 2022?
(See definition of R&D on the previous page.)
•
•

Report the original source of funds, when possible. For example, if you received
federal funds from another organization, report that amount under “U.S. federal
government.”
Please do not report capital construction costs.
R&D expenditures

Source of funds
a. U.S. federal government
Any agency of the United States government.
Include federal funds passed through from another organization.

$

______

b. State and local government
Any state, county, municipality, or other local government entity in the United States,
including state health agencies.

$

______

c. Business
Domestic or foreign for-profit organizations. (Report funds from a company’s
nonprofit foundation in row d.)

$

______

d. Nonprofit organizations
Domestic or foreign nonprofit foundations and organizations, except universities
and colleges. Funds from universities and colleges should be reported in row e.

$

______

e. All other sources
Other sources not reported above, such as funds from foreign governments,
and foreign or U.S. universities.

$

______

f.
1

(Dollars in thousands)
(for example, report $25,342 as $25)

Total1

$ TOTAL

Column totals are automatically generated on the Web survey.

4

Question 2.

Of the federally funded R&D expenditures reported in Question 1, row a, which
agencies funded this R&D and how much of the reported amount was from each
agency?
•
•
•

Funding agency

Report the agency that was the original source of funds, when possible.
Use rows h–q to list up to 10 other agencies that funded the largest R&D expenditures. Use row r to
report any remaining amount.
A list of federal departments, agencies and subagencies is included as a link on the web
questionnaire.
R&D expenditures

a. Department of Defense

$

______

b. Department of Energy

$

______

c. Department of Health and Human Services
(including the National Institutes of Health)

$

______

d. Department of Homeland Security

$

______

e. Department of Transportation

$

______

f.

$

______

$

______

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

g. National Science Foundation
h.

_____________________________________

$

______

i.

_____________________________________

$

______

j.

_____________________________________

$

______

k.

_____________________________________

$

______

l.

_____________________________________

$

______

m.

_____________________________________

$

______

n.

_____________________________________

$

______

o.

_____________________________________

$

______

p.

_____________________________________

$

______

q.

_____________________________________

$

______

r.

Other agencies not listed above

$

______

s. Total1
(should match total from Question 1, row a)
1

(Dollars in thousands)

$ TOTAL

Column totals are automatically generated on the Web survey.

5

Question 3.

What amounts of your FY 2022 R&D expenditures were for basic research, applied
research, and experimental development?
•
•

If possible, these categories defining the type of R&D should be coded at the individual
project level by the principal investigator or project director. Estimates are acceptable if
necessary.
See the table below this question for examples.
R&D expenditures

(Dollars in thousands)

(1)
Federal

(3)
Total1

a. Basic research
Experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire
new knowledge of the underlying foundations of phenomena and
observable facts, without any particular application or use in view.

$

______

$

______

$ TOTAL

b. Applied research
Original investigation undertaken in order to acquire new
knowledge. It is directed primarily towards a specific, practical
aim or objective.

$

______

$

______

$ TOTAL

$

______

$

______

$ TOTAL

$ TOTAL

$ TOTAL

c. Experimental development
Systematic work, drawing on knowledge gained from research
and practical experience and producing additional knowledge,
which is directed to producing new products or processes or to
improving existing products or processes.
d. Total1
Column 1 total should match Question 1, row a.
Column 3 total should match Question 1, row f.
1

(2)
Nonfederal

$ TOTAL

Row and column totals are automatically generated on the Web survey.

Examples
Basic research
A researcher is studying the
properties of human blood to
determine what affects coagulation.

Applied research
A researcher is conducting research
on how a new chicken pox vaccine
affects blood coagulation.

Experimental development
A researcher is conducting clinical
trials to test a newly developed
chicken pox vaccine for young
children.

A researcher is studying the
properties of molecules under various
heat and cold conditions.

A researcher is investigating the
properties of particular substances
under various heat and cold
conditions with the objective of finding
longer-lasting components for
highway pavement.

A researcher is working with state
transportation officials to conduct
tests of a newly developed highway
pavement under various types of heat
and cold conditions.

A researcher is investigating the effect
of different types of manipulatives on
the way first graders learn mathematical
strategy by changing manipulatives and
then measuring what students have
learned through standardized
instruments.

A researcher is studying the
implementation of a specific math
curriculum to determine what teachers
needed to know to implement the
curriculum successfully.

A researcher is developing and testing
software and support tools, based on
fieldwork, to improve mathematics
cognition for student special education.

6

Question 4.

Of the total R&D expenditures reported in Question 1, what were the amounts for the
following types of costs?
Please report only direct costs in rows a–e. Indirect costs should be reported in row f.
R&D expenditures

Direct costs from all sources

(Dollars in thousands)

a. Salaries, wages, and fringe benefits
Include compensation for all R&D personnel whether full-time or part-time,
temporary or permanent. Include salaries, wages, and fringe benefits paid
from internal funds and from external support.

$

______

b. Software purchases
All payments for software. Include both purchases of software packages
and license fees for systems.

$

______

c. Equipment
Payments for movable equipment. Include ancillary costs such as delivery and setup.

$

______

d. Subcontracts
Payments to subcontractors or subrecipients for services on R&D projects.

$

______

e. Other direct costs
Other costs that do not fit into one of the above categories, including
(but not limited to) travel, computer usage fees, and supplies.

$

______

$

______

Indirect costs
f.

Indirect costs
Include all indirect costs (overhead) associated with R&D projects.

g. Total1
(should match total from Question 1, row f)
1

$ TOTAL

Column totals are automatically generated on the Web survey.

7

Question 5.

What was the total executed operating budget of your FFRDC in FY 2022,
excluding capital construction costs?
(Dollars in thousands)

Total operating budget

Question 6.

$

______

How many full-time equivalents (FTEs) worked in the functions listed below throughout FY
2022 and how many personnel (headcount) are included in that calculation?
•
•
•
•

Functions are defined primarily by the nature of the employee’s work, not the employee’s
level of education. See page 9 for a description of each R&D function.
Exclude personnel that would be considered indirect research support such as research
administration and other personnel who were not paid for work on specific research projects.
Exclude subcontractors.
Include all personnel paid from R&D accounts during the fiscal year in FTEs and headcount
regardless of how much they were paid, how much time they spent on the project, or their
current employment status.

FTEs:
•
•
•

FTEs are calculated as the total working effort spent on research during your fiscal year
divided by the total effort representing a full-time schedule within the same period. See
table below this question for examples of FTE calculations.
When calculating research FTE using labor hours, divide hours spent on research
activities by the hours representing a full-time employee at your organization.
An individual cannot be more than 1.0 FTE. If an individual exceeds 1.0 research FTE
based on your standard calculations, adjust down to 1.0.

Headcount:
• Include each person only once in headcount. If they performed work in two roles (e.g.,
researcher and technician), include them in the headcount for their predominate role.
• We expect headcount to be larger than FTE.

a. Full-time equivalents (FTEs)
(round to 1 decimal place)

b. Headcount
1

(a)
Researchers

_____
_____

(b)
R&D technicians

_____
_____

(c)
R&D support staff

_____
_____

(d)
Total1

$ TOTAL
$ TOTAL

Totals are automatically generated on the Web survey.

Examples of FTE Calculations
Using labor hours:
The following examples assume a 40-hour work week during a 49-week work year (1,960 hours), which excludes 3
weeks for vacation, holidays, etc. However, you should use the hours per week and weeks per year that typically
represent a full-time employee at your organization.
10 researchers who spent a combined 13,720 hours on research: 13,720/1,960 = 7.0 FTE
2 research technicians who worked exclusively on research but left the organization after 32 weeks of work: (2 * (32 *
40))/1,960 =1.3 FTE
• 10 student employees during the summer who each worked on research full-time time for 10 weeks: 10 * (10/49) =
2.0 FTE
Using salary:
• 1 researcher with a $150,000 salary who was employed the entire year and $120,000 of salary came from R&D
accounts: 120,000/150,000 = 0.8 FTE
• 1 research support staff member with a $60,000 salary for a 9-month appointment, of which $40,000 came from R&D
accounts: (40,000/60,000) * (9/12) = 0.5 FTE
•
•

8

Description of R&D Functions
Researchers

R&D technicians

R&D support staff

Professionals engaged in the
conception or creation of new
knowledge, products, processes,
methods and systems and also in the
management of the projects
concerned. Include R&D managers in
this category.

Persons whose main tasks require
technical knowledge and experience in
one or more fields of science or
engineering, but who contribute to R&D
by performing technical tasks such as
computer programming, data analysis,
ensuring accurate testing, operating lab
equipment, and preparing and
processing samples under the
supervision of researchers.

Part of the workforce for a specific
research project or portfolio, but not
directly involved with conducting
research. They support the researchers
and technicians. These employees
might include clerical staff, financial and
personnel administrators, report writers,
patent agents, safety trainers,
equipment specialists, and other related
employees.

Researcher versus R&D technician
Researchers contribute more to the creative aspects of R&D whereas technicians provide technical support. For example, a
researcher (scientist or engineer) would design an experiment and a technician would run the experiment and assist in
analyzing results.
Question 7.

In what month did your institution’s 2022 fiscal year end?

________________

9

Primary Contact Information. Please complete the contact information for the person responsible for the survey.
Name
Job Title
Institution name
Office/Department
Mailing address (line 1)
Mailing address (line 2)
City, state, and ZIP Code
Phone number

______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
_____________ E-mail address ______________________

Other Contact Information. List individuals who should be copied on all e-mails about the survey or can create a login
account. Job Title should include information about office/department as appropriate (e.g., Office of Finance Director).
Other Contact 1
Name
Job Title
Phone Number

______________________________________________
______________________________________________
_____________ E-mail address ______________________

Other Contact 2
Name
Job Title
Phone Number

______________________________________________
______________________________________________
_____________ E-mail address ______________________

Other Contact 3
Name
Job Title
Phone Number

______________________________________________
______________________________________________
_____________ E-mail address ______________________

10