SLAS is pleased to announce the return of…
SLAS New Product Award (NPA) Designation
Award
The SLAS New Product Award (NPA) Designation will be conferred upon as many as three winning product entries in this annual LabAutomation2011 competition. Recipients of the award will receive the following:
- Official SLAS NPA Designation Plaque
- SLAS NPA Designation Media Coverage
- Inclusion in SLAS Awards News Release
- Picture on LabAutomation2011 Web site
- Listing in SLAS News Section of February Edition of LabSnap
- Interview on The Lab Man Podcast Show at LabAutomation2011
- Live and Recorded in the SLAS Member Center on the Show Floor
- Segment To Be Released with March 2011 Edition of LabSnap
Competition Guidelines/Process
- Prior to the exhibition each year, exhibiting companies will be notified about the SLAS NPA Designation competition and given the opportunity to declare participation.
- Additionally, on-site in Palm Springs at LabAutomation2011 entry forms will be placed in each booth during/after set-up (typically on Saturday) offering exhibiting companies the opportunity to opt-in to the competition. The exhibitors will place the entry forms into a ballot box located in the Show Office on the Exhibit Show Floor declaring participation.
- All product entries must be on the exhibit floor and have some supporting data indicating it works as advertised.
- The product entry must be less than one year old in its current form (since the prior LabAutomation conference) to be considered. Major product enhancements can be considered. Products CANNOT have been displayed at previous LabAutomation conferences.
- The winning companies of the SLAS NPA Designation must have agreed to participate in the competition
Evaluation Guidelines/Process
The evaluation process is a two-phase approach:
Timing
Sunday, January 30 — Phase 1 (if additional time is needed, primary judges will adapt)
Monday, January 31 — Phase 2
Tuesday, February 1 — Confirmation & Announcement
Phase 1 — Sunday, January 30
- The Lead Judge will divide the new product entries equally among the remaining primary judges.
- Commencing Sunday evening, each primary judge will visit, review and rank the top three new products entries assigned. The participating media will canvas the entire exhibit floor and rank their top three new products.
- Note — The team of judges may decide to identify themselves to the candidates or may choose to visit and judge each product anonymously.
- Sunday evening (and early Monday morning if necessary), the primary judges will meet to tally their respective rankings. This should result in a Top 9 List to be considered as part of Phase 2.
- Note — The primary judges are neither required to nor limited to choosing 9 new product entries for the second phase. At the primary judges' discretion, the list for the second phase may be nominally smaller or larger than 9 candidates.
Phase 2 — Monday, January 31
- Each of the primary judges will visit, review and judge each of the Top 9 new product entries using the scoring criteria below.
- Monday evening, the primary judges will meet to tally the scores and rank the Top 9 new product entries. The top three highest scoring new products will receive the SLAS NPA Designation.
- Note — At the primary judges' discretion, they may choose up to three top new product entries, but no more than three winners. In some years, there may only be one or two top new product winners.
Tuesday, February 1 — Confirmation & Announcement
- The top three product entries will be announced in the Exhibit Hall three hours before the close of the exhibition on the final day (Tuesday, February 1). Announcing well before the close of the Exhibit Hall will allow for the necessary media pictures and to record the live show of The Lab Man pod cast.
Scoring Criteria
As part of Phase 2, the primary judges will personally visit, review and score each of the Top 9 new product entries on the exhibit floor. The judges' decision criteria will be based on the following four categories (in no order of significance):
- market opportunity — narrow or broad in scope
- impact on the field of laboratory automation and technology
- extraordinary technical originality
- quality of supporting data
Scoring System
5-to-1 Rating Scale:
5 — Outstanding, Novel and Broad Impact for a New Product
4 — Very Good, Solid, Novel Product
3 — Some Unique New Product Qualities
2 — Needs More Proof and Development
1 — Not Substantially New or Improved
0 — Not New at All
Eligibility
The following individuals are not eligible to participate or be affiliated with the SLAS NPA Designation program: SLAS Board of Directors, officers, the LabAutomation Scientific Committee*, contractors, employees, members of the Judging Panel, family members, and/or those considered to be "insiders." Candidates companies affiliated with anyone on the Judging Panel are permitted to participate, but the Judge must recuse him or herself from evaluating that particular candidate.
- The LabAutomation Scientific Committee comprises a Chairman, Associate Chairman, Track Chairs and Associate Track Chairs. Session Chairs are not members of the LabAutomation Scientific Committee, and therefore are eligible to participate.
If your company meets the criteria above and wants to be considered for the LabAutomation2011 New Product Award Designation please send the following via email to slas@slas.org:
- Company Name
- Booth #
- Name of on-site contact
- Brief (<30 words) description of the product and why it deserves the award and certifying that the product is, indeed, "new"
Non-Discrimination Statement
Discrimination based on race, religion, gender, age, national origin, ethnicity, veterans status, or disability in regard to the SLAS NPA Designation is prohibited. Each candidate company shall be evaluated based on the award's criteria which are tied to SLAS's exempt purpose of advancing the science and education of technologies in the laboratory.
Reservation
SLAS reserves the right to select and deselect any company at any given time. All decisions are final.
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