SLAS is pleased to announce the introduction of…

SLAS New Product Award (NPA) Designation at SBS 2011 Annual Meeting

Award

The SLAS New Product Award (NPA) Designation will be conferred upon as many as three winning product entries in this first-ever 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 SBS 2011 Annual Meeting Web site
• Listing in SLAS News Section of March Edition of SBS Buzz
• Interview on The Lab Man Podcast Show at SBS 2011 Annual Meeting
• Live and Recorded in the SLAS Member Center on the Exhibit Floor
• Segment To Be Released with May 2011 Edition of SBS Buzz

Primary Judges

• Al Kolb, past SBS President, Lead Judge
• Thomas Chung, SBS Awards and Grants Committee Member
• Tina Garyantes, SBS Awards and Grants Committee Member
• Robyn Rourick, LAS Executive Council Member

Competition Guidelines/Process

1. Prior to the exhibition, exhibiting companies will be notified about the SLAS NPA Designation competition and given the opportunity to declare participation.
   • Additionally, on-site in Orlando at SBS 2011 entry forms will be placed in each booth during/after set-up (typically on Sunday, March 27) 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.
2. All product entries must be on the exhibit floor and have some supporting data indicating it works as advertised.
3. The product entry must be less than one year old in its current form (since the prior SBS conference) to be considered. Major product enhancements can be considered. Products CANNOT have been displayed at previous SBS conferences.
4. 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
Monday, March 28 — Phase 1 (if additional time is needed, primary judges will adapt)
Tuesday, March 29 — Phase 2
Wednesday, March 30 — Confirmation & Announcement

Phase 1 — Monday, March 28

1. The Lead Judge will divide the new product entries equally among the primary judges.
2. Commencing Tuesday when the floor opens, each primary judge will visit, review and rank the top three new products entries assigned.
   • Note — The team of judges may decide to identify themselves to the candidates or may choose to visit and judge each product anonymously.
3. Tuesday evening (and early Wednesday 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 — Tuesday, March 29

1. Each of the primary judges will visit, review and judge each of the Top 9 new product entries using the scoring criteria below.
2. Wednesday 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 at SBS 2011.
   • 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.

Wednesday, March 30 — Confirmation & Announcement

1. The top three product entries will be announced in the Exhibit Hall at least three hours before the close of the exhibition on the final day (Wednesday, March 30 @ 4PM). 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 and provides attendees time to visit the winner’s booths.

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 drug discovery
• 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 SBS 2011 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 SBS 2011 Scientific Committee comprises a Chairman, Associate Chairman, Track Chairs and Associate Track Chairs. Session Chairs are not members of the SBS 2011 Scientific Committee, and therefore are eligible to participate.

If your company meets the criteria above and wants to be considered for the SBS 2011 New Product Award Designation please send the following via email to Amy McGorry at amcgorry@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 the SLAS 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.