About DEFTECH

The North Carolina Technology Transition (DEFTECH) Team is a statewide technology transition entity of the State of North Carolina, embedded within the North Carolina Military Business Center (NCMBC) and headquartered at Fayetteville Technical Community College (FTCC). In an era where technological advancement is crucial for national security, DEFTECH plays a pivotal role in bridging the gap between innovation and defense needs.

Mission. The mission of DEFTECH is to assist companies to become aware of and submit applications for federal and Department of Defense (DoD) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR), Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) and Other Transaction Authority (OTA) funding opportunities.

Vision. The DEFTECH vision is to position North Carolina as the national leader in federal research and development (R&D) by capturing funding opportunities.

Primary Focus. DEFTECH’s primary focus is to grow the North Carolina-based business and academia research and development (R&D) ecosystem, grow federal and DoD engagement within the ecosystem, and to grow the community through opportunity identification, outreach, partnerships, and involvement with federal and DoD agencies.

DEFTECH serves these agencies and the innovation ecosystem by:

  • Scouting the state for breakthrough technologies 
  • Coaching industry to identify defense applications
  • Communicating federal technology needs
  • Positioning businesses to meet requirements
  • Representing North Carolina to federal customers 
  • Conducting emerging technology forums
  • Serving as the North Carolina liaison to DoD and federal innovation offices

Strategic Initiatives. In addition to tech scouting and R&D, the DEFTECH team conducts several strategic initiatives. These include:

  • Partnerships with industry and academia – growing the innovation (R&D) ecosystem
  • Market intelligence – tech scouting and identification of future opportunities
  • Training and resources – providing resources to support technology transition
  • Events and Networking – focused on target sectors including cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, big data, autonomous systems, energy, and power technologies

The NCMBC and DEFTECH are unique combat multipliers that leverage industrial capacity statewide and drive private sector innovation, research and development directly to DoD, federal agencies and major military commands worldwide.