MSD Solutions Lab 2026-2027 Research to Solutions Grant

Introduction

The National Safety Council (NSC) MSD Solutions Lab is pleased to announce the Research to Solutions (R2S) grant for the year 2026-2027. The goal of the R2S grant is to develop, evaluate and/or disseminate effective solutions for musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), focusing on occupational injury risk reduction. 

The MSD Solutions Lab will award up to $200,000 in total for its R2S Grant Program in 2026. Project budgets up to $50,000 in total costs will be considered. The indirect rate will be capped at 10%, and applications with less than the maximum budget of $50,000 are encouraged. Projects are limited to no more than one year.  

R2S grants are intended to inspire collaboration among academic institutions, businesses and industries to uncover promising, transferable solutions that mitigate injury risk across a range of other industry sectors.  

It should be noted that previous R2S grant recipients will not be considered for the 2026-2027 grant cycle.

For the 2026-2027 grant cycle, specific priority research areas are as follows: 

• Advancing non-physical risk assessment and mitigation: Examples include, but are not limited to, the development and cross-cultural validation of non-physical risk assessment tools/instruments applicable across various industries. A key focus should be on integrating psychosocial, organizational, and behavioral assessments into broader organizational safety systems for achieving comprehensive MSD risk mitigation. 
• Emerging technologies for risk assessment and mitigation: Examples include, but are not limited to, leveraging computer vision, machine learning, natural language processing, smart sensors, exoskeletons and exosuits, robotics (including collaborative and service), augmented/virtual and mixed reality, digital twins, and automation in addressing issues of musculoskeletal health and disorders. 
• Legacy MSD high-risk jobs or tasks: Examples include, but are not limited to, solutions to jobs or tasks known to have high MSD risk but for which there is insufficient evidence regarding methods to sufficiently mitigate the risk. These can come from any industry sector, including health care and social assistance; retail trade; manufacturing; transportation and warehousing; and construction. 
• Total worker wellbeing: Examples include, but are not limited to, integrating occupational safety and health interventions and worksite health promotion programs addressing musculoskeletal health and disorders.  
   

Full grant submission consists of the following stages: 

1. Submission of a completed and signed letter of intent (LOI) 
2. Submission of a full-length grant proposal – this stage is specific to successful applicants from the LOI process only 

Every prospective applicant must submit an LOI outlining the priority area(s) above for which project funding is requested. Only one grant application per organization in a single grant cycle is allowed. 

Prospective applicants are required to submit a letter of intent (LOI) before a full-length grant application. The 2026-2027 grant cycle LOI application will open on October 14, 2025, and LOIs are due by 11:59 p.m. CT, November 21, 2025. 

Eligibility
Prospective applicants should be the following: 

• A full-time faculty member at an academic institution (U.S. or international) who holds non-temporary positions at the rank of assistant professor or above  
• A full-time graduate student or post-doctoral fellow with a letter of support from a faculty advisor who should be listed as a co-investigator 
• An organization that is in need of a unique solution or already has a project that is pursuing a unique solution in one or more of the priority areas 

NOTE: Collaborations among academia, research institutions and business organizations are strongly encouraged as part of the grant proposal.  

Dissemination
The expected outcome is that each grant awardee will present their results at the 2027 NSC Safety Congress & Expo. At this event, grantees will have the opportunity to showcase their findings and potential to scale upward. Awardees may alternately or in addition be asked to present results at a future virtual or hybrid NSC event.  

LOI Application Format
The LOI should be in English, single-spaced with 0.5-inch margins (of U.S. standard page size of 8.5 x 11 inches), and not exceed three pages (excluding references). Acceptable fonts are Arial or Times New Roman with a font size of either 11 or 12 points. Figures and tables are allowed and can be included in the three-page limit. The LOI must consist of the following: 

1. Project title and summary 
2. Names of investigators (Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator and others) and their roles and responsibilities, including experience and expertise relevant to the proposal 
3. Priority area(s) of interest and responsiveness (e.g., explain how the proposal is responsive to the priority area(s) of interest) 
4. Research question(s) (e.g., state the question(s) you will answer regarding your proposed solution) 
5. Significance (e.g., include background, the rationale and need for the proposed work, as well as why the proposed work is innovative) 
6. Approach (e.g., research design, population of interest, high-risk industry and high risk task of interest) 
7. Plan for Institutional Review Board submission (see note) 
8. Expected results and impact(s) of the work (e.g., strategies for MSD prevention, solutions development, implementation, product development and best practice solutions) 
9. Detailed budget, including indirect costs and justification (see Appendix) 

NOTE: Funds may not be applied to: general operating expenses not related to the project; purchase of equipment, hardware or software, or other costs not pertinent to the project; personal expenses and accrued costs not attributable to the grant. 

LOI Submission
Prospective applicants must submit the LOI through Submittable by 11:59 p.m. CT on Friday, November 21, 2025.  

Please upload a single file containing all of your LOI submission materials. 

Review and Selection 

The review committee will evaluate each proposal and score based on the selected criteria shown below:  

• Scientific Importance/Relevance to Priority Area: Does the proposal address an important scientific, technical or practical question? Will the potential findings substantially add to understanding the priority area investigated?  
• Significance of Research/Field Knowledge: Is the project original and innovative? Will the proposal work develop, test and evaluate a new methodology or solutions? Will the proposed work demonstrate a strong understanding of the area of inquiry and the underlying scientific issues? Will the proposed work make a clear case for how the research fits into a larger context of the issue under consideration for the study? 
• Approach: Are the variables and controls clearly defined for the study design, if relevant? Are correct quantitative/qualitative measures utilized for evaluating potential research outcomes? Are proper data/statistical analyses described, if relevant?  
• Impact of Work: Does the proposal state the strategies for MSD prevention and solution development clearly so they can be easily implemented? Can claims of the uniqueness of the proposal or additions to the existing solutions be justified? Can this solution be transferrable to other similar industries?  
• Dissemination of Findings and Budget Logistics: Does the proposal document sharing findings through virtual MSD Solutions Lab symposium or presentations at NSC events, research papers and knowledge transfer documentation? Is the budget justified and itemized appropriately?  

Only selected applications from Stage 1 will be invited to submit a full-length proposal (Stage 2 - not to exceed six pages, excluding references). The details of the timeline for the R2S grant are given below: 

Timeline 

• Letter of Intent Opens: October 14, 2025 
• Letter of Intent Submission Deadline: November 21, 2025 
• Letter of Intent Outcome & Full Length Proposal Opens: December 15, 2025 
• Full-Length Proposal Due: January 15, 2026 
• Grant Recipients Notified: March 2, 2026 

NOTE: Research involving human subjects must receive an Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval following government regulations set forth by the applicant’s country. Businesses that do not have an IRB should submit and get approval from an external commercial IRB or partner with an institution that has an IRB willing to serve as the IRB of record for the study. It is important to note that grant funding can only be released after IRB approval. 

Some research proposals not involving “human subjects” might not require IRB review or an exempt determination (e.g., MSD data sets evaluating machine learning approaches, research including access to and/or use of identifiable “publicly available” datasets). However, note that the proposal must comply with the applicant country's applicable regulatory requirements, even if your study does not constitute human research. It is advisable to contact the MSD Solutions Lab for assistance if a project does not engage human subjects.

If the grant work results in a device or product, it may need to be licensed under a Creative Commons license appropriate for wide distribution to or access to the public. 

For more information, including eligibility and application requirements, please contact msdsolutionslab@nsc.org. 

Appendix
Budget Justification Example 

SALARY & WAGES [$XX,XXX] 

• Principal Investigator [$XX,XXX]: List the roles and responsibilities of the PI (include the amount of effort in calendar months).  
• Co-Investigators [$XX,XXX]: List the roles and responsibilities of each co-investigator (include the amount of effort in calendar months). 
• Other Personnel [$XX,XXX]: List the roles and responsibilities of other personnel including research associates and graduate and undergraduate students (include the amount of effort in calendar months).  

FRINGE BENEFITS [$XX,XXX]  
Fringe benefits can be requested at each institution’s DHHS approved pooled rates for 9-month faculty, 12-month employees, graduate students and undergraduate students. 

TRAVEL [$XX,XXX] (if any)
The budget should include the destination to collect data, estimates of airfare or other transportation costs (such as train or bus tickets); hotel accommodations or other lodging expenses; meals and incidentals; and rental car or other transportation costs while on-site.  

PARTICIPANT SUPPORT COSTS [$XX, XXX] (if any)
Participant support costs are direct costs for items such as stipends or subsistence allowances, travel allowances and registration fees paid to or on behalf of participants or trainees (in connection with meetings, conferences, symposia or training projects).  

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES [$XX, XXXX] (if any)
Funds requested for equipment, hardware and software must be clearly identified and well justified.  

OTHER COSTS (if any)
Funds can be requested to include the cost to cover the tuition remission for graduate students involved in this project.  

SUBCONTRACTS [$XX,XXX] (if any) 

List the roles and responsibilities of each subcontractor along with the budget justification.

TOTAL DIRECT COST: $XX,XXX 

INDIRECT RATE (less than or equal to 10%): $ 

TOTAL COST: $