SwRI offers contract biomedical engineering research and development with many appealing business features.

	Through the SwRI Internal Research and Development Program, an inter- disciplinary project team developed an orthopaedic device to detect undesired motion after spinal fusion surgery. US Patent No. 6,656,135
	This off-chip MEMS mechanical relay was developed using the internal research and development program.

A unique corporate philosophy allows Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) to offer contract research and development with appealing business features.

• SwRI is independent and impartial. It is not affiliated with any government agency, educational institution, or corporate entity, nor does it endorse products or services.

• SwRI is nonprofit. There are no stockholders.

• SwRI performs applied contract research and development and encourages technology transfer.

• As part of a long-held tradition, patent rights arising from sponsored research at SwRI are often assigned to the client. SwRI generally retains the rights to internally-funded advancements.

• Eighty-five percent of our clients are repeat customers.

• SwRI has a wide range of technical competencies and breadth. Its 3,300 staff members in 12 technical divisions have expertise in such areas as chemistry, space sciences, nondestructive evaluation, automation, engine design, mechanical engineering, electronics, and more. SwRI can assemble a multidisciplinary team of experts required by any technical project, giving SwRI a teaming flexibility difficult to find at other R&D organizations.

• SwRI has state-of-the-art equipment and facilities located on more than 1,200 acres in San Antonio, Texas. Almost two million square feet of laboratories, offices, and test facilities support work on nearly 2,000 client projects each year.

• With a more than 55-year history and $435 million in annual revenue, we can provide long-term continuity for your current and future project needs.

• Our internal research and development program gives our staff the opportunity to develop new technologies and conduct basic research. In FY2005, internal research projects were funded at a value of $4 million.

• Engineers and scientists write proposals and manage projects, enabling business decisions to consider technical concerns.

For more information about biomedical engineering capabilities at SwRI or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Keith Bartels, Ph.D., at kbartels@swri.org or (210) 522-6062.