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PRE-APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS 

for 2016-NIST-NNMI-01

This document addresses four important concerns for the submission of a PreApplication for the 2016 NIST NNMI Competition:

1) Required Forms and Documents;

2) Pre-Application Format; 

3) Pre-Application Replacement Pages; and 

4) Checking Pre-Application Status and Tracking a Submission. 

Required Forms and Documents

(1) SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance. The SF-424 must be 

signed by an authorized representative of the applicant organization.

SF-424, Item 12, should list the FFO number “2016-NIST-NNMI-01”.

SF-424, Item 18, should list the total budget information of the proposed 

Institute for the initial award period of up to five (5) years. (Please note: 

This corresponds to the Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) budget 

referenced within the subject FFO.)

The list of certifications and assurances referenced in Item 21 of the SF424 is contained in the SF-424B. The SF-424B is not submitted for the 

Pre-Application, but a copy of the form for reference to the certifications 

and assurances can be found by following these directions. Click on the 

Forms tab near the top of the home page at www.grants.gov . Under the 

Grant Form category, click on the SF-424 Mandatory Family, and select 

the second option on the page, which is the SF-424B. 

(2) SF-424A, Budget Information - Non-Construction Programs. A 

ROM budget that reflects the anticipated expenses for an Institute initial 

award period of up to five (5) years, considering all potential cost 

increases, including cost of living adjustments.

Refer to Instructions for Budget Information for Non-Construction 

Programs (SF-424A) found at: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/forminstructions/sf-424a-instructions.html .
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Remember that the following sections of the SF-424A should reflect 

funds for only the first year of the grant: Section A; Section B; 

Section C; and Section D.

Section E of the SF-424A should reflect fund for the remainder of the 5 

year grant:

• Field 16, column (b) should reflect funds for the second 

year of the grant,

• Field16, column (c) should reflect funds for the third year

of the grant,

• Field 16, column (d) should reflect funds for the fourth year

of the grant, and

• Field 16, column (e) should reflect funds for the fifth year of 

the grant.

(3) Executive Summary. (This does not contribute to the number of 

pages.) A concise summary/abstract of the proposed effort. The 

summary/abstract must contain a summary of the proposed activity 

suitable for possible dissemination to the public. It should be a selfcontained document that identifies the name of the applicant, the

director/principal investigator(s), the application title, the objectives of 

the proposed Institute, a description of the proposed Institute, methods 

to be employed, the potential impact of the proposed Institute (i.e.,

benefits, outcomes), and major participants (for collaborative Institute 

activities). This document must not include any proprietary or sensitive 

business information as NIST may make it available to the public after 

selection of Pre-Applications has been completed. The Executive

Summary must not exceed one (1) single-sided page.

(4) Abbreviated Application Narrative. A word-processed document, 

written by the applicant, of no more than twenty (20) pages. The 

Abbreviated Application Narrative should describe the relevance of the 

proposed Institute to the program as described in Section I. of the Full 

Announcement/FFO document and address the following: 

1. A description of the proposed NNMI Institute sufficient to permit 

evaluation of the Pre-Application in accordance with the Evaluation 

Criteria (see Section V.1.a of the Full Announcement/FFO document).

2. The degree of alignment of the Pre-Application and proposed Institute 

to U.S. advanced manufacturing needs, and/or research programs 

and goals of NIST and the Department of Commerce advanced 

manufacturing programs, as described at 

http://www.nist.gov/manufacturing-portal.cfm.
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Items (1) and (2) above are part of the standard application package in 

Grants.gov and can be completed through the download application 

process. 

Items (3) and (4) must be completed and attached by clicking on the 

“Add Attachments” button found in Item 15 of the SF-424. This will 

create a zip file that allows for transmittal of the documents 

electronically via Grants.gov. 

Applicants should carefully follow specific Grants.gov instructions at 

www.grants.gov to ensure the attachments will be accepted by the 

Grants.gov system. A receipt from Grants.gov does not provide details 

concerning whether all attachments (or how many attachments) 

transferred successfully. Applicants will receive a series of e-mail 

messages over a period of up to two business days before learning whether a 

Federal agency’s electronic system has received its application.

Pre-Application Format

(1) E-mail, Hard Copies, or Facsimile (fax) Submissions. Will not be 

accepted.

(2) Figures, Graphs, Images, and Pictures. Should be of a size that is 

easily readable or viewable and may be landscape orientation.

(3) Font. Easy to read font (10-point minimum). Smaller type may be 

used in figures and tables but must be clearly legible.

(4) Line Spacing. Single.

(5) Margins. One (1) inch top, bottom, left, and right.

(6) Page layout. Portrait orientation only except for figures, graphs, 

images, and pictures (see Section IV.2.b.(2) of the Full 

Announcement/FFO document).

(7) Page Limit. Twenty (20) pages, one-sided print for Pre-Applications.

(8) Page limit includes: Abbreviated Application Narrative, including 

Figures, Graphs, Images, and Pictures.

(9) Page limit excludes: Executive Summary; SF-424 Application for 

Federal Assistance; SF-424A Budget Information – Non-Construction 

Programs. 
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(10) Page numbering. Number all pages sequentially.

(11) Paper size. 21.6 cm by 27.9 cm (8 1⁄2 inches by 11 inches).

(12) Application language. English.

(13) Typed document. All applications, including forms, must be typed.

Pre-Application Replacement Pages

Applicants may not submit replacement pages and/or missing documents 

after a Pre-Application has been submitted. Any revisions must be made by 

submission of a new Pre-Application that must be received by NIST by the 

submission deadline. This does not apply to any additional documentation 

that may be requested by NIST as part of Pre-Application review or 

selection. 

Checking Pre-Application Status and Tracking a 

Submission

The Grants.gov Online Users Guide available at the Grants.gov site 

(http://go.usa.gov/cjaEh) provides vital information on checking the status 

of applications. See especially the “Check My Application Status” option, 

found by clicking first on Applicants, and then by clicking on Applicant 

Actions.

Applicants can track their submissions in the Grants.gov system by 

following the procedures at the Grants.gov site (http://go.usa.gov/cjamz). 

It can take up to two business days for an application to fully move through 

the Grants.gov system to NIST.

N.B. NIST uses the Tracking Number assigned by Grants.gov and the 

Program will assign unique Pre-Application and Full Application tracking 

numbers for its internal use.