by Raymond M. Wolfe[1]

Businesses spent $356 billion on research and development performance in the United States in 2015, a 4.4% increase over the $341 billion spent in 2014 (table 1). Funding from the companies' own sources was $297 billion in 2015, a 5.0% increase from the $283 billion spent in 2014. Funding from other sources was $59 billion in 2015 and $58 billion in 2014. Data for this InfoBrief are from the Business R&D and Innovation Survey (BRDIS), developed and cosponsored by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics within the National Science Foundation and by the U.S. Census Bureau.

TABLE 1. Funds spent for business R&D performed in the United States, by type of R&D, source of funds, and size of company: 2014–15
(Millions of U.S. dollars)

i = more than 50% of the estimate is a combination of imputation and reweighting to account for nonresponse.

a R&D is planned, creative work aimed at discovering new knowledge or developing new or significantly improved goods and services. This includes (1) activities aimed at acquiring new knowledge or understanding without specific immediate commercial applications or uses (basic research), (2) activities aimed at solving a specific problem or meeting a specific commercial objective (applied research), and (3) systematic use of research and practical experience to produce new or significantly improved goods, services, or processes (development).
b Includes foreign subsidiaries of U.S. companies.
c Includes companies located inside and outside the United States, U.S. state government agencies and laboratories, foreign government agencies and laboratories, and all other organizations located inside and outside the United States.
d The Business R&D and Innovation Survey does not include companies with fewer than five employees.

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Statistics are representative of companies located in the United States that performed or funded R&D. Excludes data for federally funded research and development centers.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, and U.S. Census Bureau, Business R&D and Innovation Survey.

Table 1 Source Data: Excel file

Selected characteristic and company size 2014 2015
Domestic R&D performance 340,728 355,821
Type of R&Da
Basic research 21,936 21,792
Applied research 53,415 56,472
Development 265,377 277,558
Paid for by the companyb 282,570 296,677
Basic research 16,107 16,306
Applied research 39,012 44,344
Development 227,451 236,027
Paid for by others 58,158 59,144
Basic research 5,829 5,486
Applied research 14,403 12,128
Development 37,927 i 41,530
Source of funds
Federal 26,554 i 26,990
Otherc 31,604 32,154
Size of company (number of domestic employees)
Micro companiesd
5–9 3,295 i 2,988 i
Small companies
10–19 5,063 i 5,680 i
20–49 10,542 i 10,249 i
Medium companies
50–99 10,178 i 11,509
100–249 13,492 13,602
Large companies
250–499 12,203 13,553
500–999 13,262 15,217
1,000–4,999 57,551 58,094
5,000–9,999 38,202 38,838
10,000–24,999 54,445 59,328
25,000 or more 122,495 126,763

R&D Performance, by Type of R&D, Industrial Sector, and Source of Funding

In 2015, of the $356 billion companies spent on R&D, $22 billion (6%) was spent on basic research, $56 billion (16%) on applied research, and $278 billion (78%) on development. The distribution was unchanged from 2014 (table 1). In 2015, companies in manufacturing industries performed $236 billion (66%) of domestic R&D, defined as R&D performed in the 50 states and Washington, D.C. (table 2). Most of the funding was from these companies' own funds (83%). Companies in nonmanufacturing industries performed $120 billion of domestic R&D (34% of total domestic R&D performance), 84% of which was paid for from companies' own funds.

TABLE 2. Funds spent for business R&D performed in the United States, by source of funds and selected industry: 2015
(Millions of U.S. dollars)

D = suppressed to avoid disclosure of confidential information; i = more than 50% of the estimate is a combination of imputation and reweighting to account for nonresponse.

NAICS = North American Industry Classification System; nec = not elsewhere classified.

a Includes foreign subsidiaries of U.S. companies ($6.8 billion).
b Includes foreign parent companies of U.S. subsidiaries ($12.6 billion) and unaffiliated companies ($3.7 billion).
c Includes U.S. state government agencies and laboratories ($0.1 billion), foreign government agencies and laboratories ($0.6 billion), and all other organizations located inside ($0.5 billion) and outside the United States ($0.1 billion).
d The Business R&D and Innovation Survey does not include companies with fewer than five employees.

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Statistics are representative of companies located in the United States that performed or funded R&D. Industry classification was based on dominant business code for domestic R&D performance, where available. For companies that did not report business codes, the classification used for sampling was assigned. Excludes data for federally funded research and development centers.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, and U.S. Census Bureau, Business R&D and Innovation Survey, 2015.

Table 2 Source Data: Excel file

Paid for by others
Companies
Industry, NAICS code, and company size All R&D Paid for by
the companya
Total Federal Domestic Foreignb All other
organizationsc
 
All industries, 21–33, 42–81 355,821 296,677 59,144 26,990 14,595 i 16,317 1,242  
Manufacturing industries, 31–33 236,132 195,792 40,340 21,552 i 5,008 12,907 873  
Chemicals, 325 68,196 58,769 9,427 410 1,546 7,413 58  
Pharmaceuticals and medicines, 3254 58,675 50,242 8,432 138 1,465 6,772 57  
Other 325 9,521 8,527 995 272 81 641 1  
Machinery, 333 13,426 12,544 881 i 222 203 i 438 i 18 i
Computer and electronic products, 334 72,110 63,765 8,345 4,213 1,474 2,459 199  
Electrical equipment, appliance, and components, 335 4,335 3,852 483 i 50 i 16 i 396 i 21 i
Transportation equipment, 336 49,274 29,224 20,050 i 16,515 i 1,304 i 1,690 541 i
Automobiles, bodies, trailers, and parts, 3361–63 19,078 16,636 2,441 200 i 547 i 1,602 i 92 i
Aerospace products and parts, 3364 27,464 11,138 16,326 i 15,064 i 738 i 76 i 448 i
Other 336 2,732 1,450 1,283 i 1,251 i 19 i 12 i 1 i
Manufacturing nec, other 31–33 28,791 27,638 1,154 i 142 i 465 i 511 i 36 i
Nonmanufacturing industries, 21–23, 42–81 119,690 100,885 18,804 5,438 9,587 i 3,411 i 368 i
Information, 51 65,513 64,578 935 51 D D D  
Software publishers, 5112 33,248 32,500 747 22 D D D  
Other 51 32,265 32,078 188 29 D D D  
Finance and insurance, 52 5,366 5,329 38 0 6 i 0 32 i
Professional, scientific, and technical services, 54 38,626 21,915 16,710 5,323 9,074 i 2,048 i 265 i
Computer systems design and related services, 5415 14,333 12,418 1,915 i 605 i 1,112 i 127 i 71 i
Scientific R&D services, 5417 16,329 3,896 12,433 2,939 7,669 i 1,684 i 141 i
Other 54 7,964 5,601 2,362 i 1,779 i 293 i 237 i 53 i
Nonmanufacturing nec, other 21–23, 42–81 10,185 9,063 1,121 64 D D D  
Size of company (number of domestic employees)
Micro companiesd
5–9 2,988 i 1,972 i 1,016 i 412 i 396 i 166 i 42 i
Small companies
10–19 5,680 i 4,434 i 1,246 i 317 i 452 i 445 i 32 i
20–49 10,249 i 7,933 i 2,316 i 1,024 767 i 477 i 48 i
Medium companies
50–99 11,509 8,803 2,706 532 1,279 i 855 i 40 i
100–249 13,602 11,037 2,566 1,006 723 740 97  
Large companies
250–499 13,553 11,368 2,185 723 449 934 79  
500–999 15,217 13,194 2,023 i 183 634 1,175 i 31 i
1,000–4,999 58,094 48,264 9,830 1,644 i 1,942 i 6,152 92 i
5,000–9,999 38,838 34,660 4,178 891 1,143 2,050 94  
10,000–24,999 59,328 48,450 10,878 4,244 3,519 i 2,936 179 i
25,000 or more 126,763 106,562 20,201 16,013 i 3,290 388 510 i

The U.S. federal government was the chief source of external funding for R&D (also referred to as R&D paid for by others) across all industries. Of the $59 billion paid for by others, the federal government accounted for $27 billion, most of which came from the Department of Defense ($18 billion) (data available in full set of data tables). Ninety-one percent of federal government funding went toward aerospace products and parts (North American Industry Classification System [NAICS] code 3364), professional, scientific, and technical services (NAICS 54), and computer and electronic products (NAICS 334). Next among external funders were foreign companies ($16 billion)—including foreign parent companies of U.S. subsidiaries—and other U.S. companies ($15 billion) (table 2). (See "Survey Information and Data Availability" for information on the availability of data tables with full industry detail.)

R&D Performance, by Company Size

Micro-, small-, and medium-sized companies (5 to 249 domestic employees) performed 12% of the nation's total business R&D in 2015 (table 1). In these companies, the R&D-to-sales ratio (or R&D intensity) was 5.8%, compared with 3.9% for all companies overall (tables 1 and 3). These companies accounted for 8% of sales, employed 12% of the 18.9 million who worked for R&D-performing or R&D-funding companies, and employed 23% of the 1.5 million employees engaged in business R&D in the United States.

TABLE 3. Sales, R&D intensity, and employment for companies that performed or funded business R&D, by selected industry and company size: 2015

NAICS = North American Industry Classification System; nec = not elsewhere classified.

a Includes values for goods or services rendered to customers outside the company, including the U.S. federal government, foreign customers, and the company's foreign subsidiaries. Included are revenues from a company's foreign operations and subsidiaries and from discontinued operations; excluded are intracompany transfers, returns, allowances, freight charges, and excise, sales, and other revenue-based taxes.
b R&D intensity is domestic R&D paid for by the company and others and performed by the company divided by domestic net sales of companies that performed or funded R&D.
c Data recorded on 12 March represent employment figures for the year.
d Includes researchers, R&D managers, technicians, clerical staff, and others assigned to R&D groups.
e The Business R&D and Innovation Survey does not include companies with fewer than five employees.

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Statistics are representative of companies located in the United States that performed or funded R&D. Industry classification was based on dominant business code for domestic R&D performance, where available. For companies that did not report business codes, the classification used for sampling was assigned. Excludes data for federally funded research and development centers.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, and U.S. Census Bureau, Business R&D and Innovation Survey, 2015.

Table 3 Source Data: Excel file

Domestic employment
(thousands)c
Industry, NAICS code, and company size Domestic net sales
(US$millions)a
R&D intensity
(%)b
Total R&Dd
All industries, 21–33, 42–81 9,049,901 3.9 18,915 1,543
Manufacturing industries, 31–33 5,358,542 4.4 10,151 916
Chemicals, 325 1,023,512 6.7 1,373 167
Pharmaceuticals and medicines, 3254 456,424 12.9 553 120
Other 325 567,088 1.7 820 47
Machinery, 333 360,719 3.7 989 82
Computer and electronic products, 334 734,610 9.8 1,355 263
Electrical equipment, appliance, and components, 335 150,020 2.9 330 28
Transportation equipment, 336 1,187,996 4.1 1,754 185
Automobiles, bodies, trailers, and parts, 3361–63 795,662 2.4 899 101
Aerospace products and parts, 3364 324,873 8.5 671 70
Other 336 67,461 4.0 184 14
Manufacturing nec, other 31–33 1,901,685 1.5 4,350 191
Nonmanufacturing industries, 21–23, 42–81 3,691,358 3.2 8,764 627
Information, 51 1,105,520 5.9 1,972 279
Software publishers, 5112 403,153 8.2 634 145
Other 51 702,367 4.6 1,338 134
Finance and insurance, 52 709,990 0.8 1,246 32
Professional, scientific, and technical services, 54 421,966 9.2 1,592 246
Computer systems design and related services, 5415 151,626 9.5 587 92
Scientific R&D services, 5417 60,922 26.8 264 82
Other 54 209,418 3.8 741 72
Nonmanufacturing nec, other 21–23, 42–81 1,453,882 0.7 3,954 70
Size of company (number of domestic employees)
Micro companiese
5–9 27,796 10.7 99 26
Small companies
10–19 65,205 8.7 220 50
20–49 180,807 5.7 534 91
Medium companies
50–99 172,345 6.7 575 83
100–249 317,168 4.3 855 100
Large companies
250–499 280,846 4.8 805 86
500–999 349,397 4.4 801 77
1,000–4,999 1,292,971 4.5 2,676 254
5,000–9,999 993,904 3.9 1,668 147
10,000–24,999 1,629,495 3.6 2,935 228
25,000 or more 3,739,967 3.4 7,745 402

By contrast, large companies with 250 to 24,999 domestic employees performed 52% of the nation's total business R&D in 2015, and their R&D intensity was 4.1%. They accounted for 50% of sales, employed 47% of those who worked for R&D-performing or R&D-funding companies, and employed 51% of R&D employees in the United States. The largest companies (25,000 or more domestic employees) performed 36% of the nation's total business R&D in 2015, and their R&D intensity was 3.4%. They accounted for 41% of sales, employed 41% of those who worked for R&D-performing or R&D-funding companies, and employed 26% of R&D employees in the United States.

R&D Performance, by State

Business R&D is concentrated in a relatively small number of states. In 2015, companies reported $297 billion of domestic R&D paid for by the company. Businesses in California alone accounted for 32% of this amount (table 4). Other states with large amounts of business R&D paid for by companies' own funds in 2015 were Massachusetts (6% of the national total), Washington (6%), Michigan (5%), Texas (5%), New York (4%), New Jersey (4%), Illinois (4%), and Pennsylvania (3%).

TABLE 4. Funds spent for business R&D performed in the United States, by state and source of funds: 2015
(Millions of U.S. dollars)

e = more than 50% of the cell value is imputed due to raking of state data; i = more than 50% of the estimate is a combination of imputation and reweighting to account for nonresponse.

a Includes data reported on Form BRDI-1 not allocated to a specific state, as well as data reported on Form BRDI-1(S) by multi-establishment companies. For single-establishment companies, data reported on Form BRDI-1(S) were allocated to the state in the address used to mail the survey form.

NOTES: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding. Statistics are representative of companies located in the United States that performed or funded R&D. Excludes data for federally funded research and development centers.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, and U.S. Census Bureau, Business R&D and Innovation Survey, 2015.

Table 4 Source Data: Excel file

State All R&D Paid for by
the company
Paid for by
others
United States 355,821 296,677 59,144
Alabama 1,561 875 686
Alaska 66 e 32 e 34
Arizona 5,515 4,450 1,065
Arkansas 302 271 32 e
California 107,982 95,020 12,962
Colorado 4,362 3,665 698
Connecticut 8,533 6,441 2,092
Delaware 2,681 2,049 632
District of Columbia 299 198 101
Florida 5,816 3,788 2,028 i
Georgia 4,614 3,821 793 i
Hawaii 186 123 i 63
Idaho 1,554 1,304 251
Illinois 12,710 11,467 1,242
Indiana 6,252 5,346 906
Iowa 2,539 1,916 623
Kansas 2,126 1,515 612
Kentucky 1,292 763 529
Louisiana 400 i 325 75 e
Maine 298 259 39
Maryland 5,136 2,825 2,310
Massachusetts 21,484 17,719 3,765
Michigan 17,136 15,620 1,516
Minnesota 6,820 6,290 530
Mississippi 216 186 30 e
Missouri 6,078 i 3,737 2,341 i
Montana 225 i 200 i 25
Nebraska 578 539 39 e
Nevada 381 329 52 e
New Hampshire 1,932 817 1,115
New Jersey 14,113 11,627 2,486
New Mexico 502 254 249
New York 15,329 11,897 3,432
North Carolina 8,572 6,428 2,144
North Dakota 211 191 19 e
Ohio 9,044 6,149 2,895
Oklahoma 661 605 57 e
Oregon 6,357 6,103 254
Pennsylvania 10,354 9,022 1,332 i
Rhode Island 751 679 72
South Carolina 1,289 1,129 160
South Dakota 139 115 24
Tennessee 1,570 1,345 225
Texas 17,350 14,790 2,561
Utah 3,274 2,685 589
Vermont 247 204 43 i
Virginia 4,486 2,719 1,768 i
Washington 16,940 16,313 627
West Virginia 201 158 42 i
Wisconsin 4,676 4,052 623
Wyoming 177 137 40
Undistributed fundsa 10,504 8,188 2,316

Sales, R&D Intensity, and Employment of Companies that Performed or Funded R&D

U.S. companies that performed or funded R&D reported domestic net sales of $9 trillion in 2015 (table 3).[2] For all industries, the R&D intensity was 3.9%; for manufacturers, 4.4%; and for nonmanufacturers, 3.2%. Manufacturing industries with high levels of R&D intensity in 2015 were pharmaceuticals and medicines (NAICS 3254) (12.9%), computer and electronic products (NAICS 334) (9.8%), and aerospace products and parts (NAICS 3364) (8.5%). Among the nonmanufacturing industries, industries with high levels of R&D intensity were scientific R&D services (NAICS 5417) (26.8%), computer systems design and related services (NAICS 5415) (9.5%), and software publishers (NAICS 5112) (8.2%).

Businesses that performed or funded R&D employed 18.9 million people in the United States in 2015. Approximately 1.5 million (8%) were R&D employees.[3] Not surprisingly, industries with high levels of R&D intensity also had high numbers of R&D employees in 2015: computer and electronic products (NAICS 334) (263,000 R&D employees), pharmaceuticals and medicines (NAICS 3254) (120,000), and aerospace products and parts (NAICS 3364) (70,000). Nonmanufacturing industry groups with high numbers of R&D employees were software publishers (NAICS 5112) (145,000), computer systems design and related services (NAICS 5415) (92,000), and scientific R&D services (NAICS 5417) (82,000) (table 3).

Capital Expenditures

Companies that performed R&D in the United States in 2015 spent $559 billion on assets with expected useful lives of more than 1 year (table 5). Of this amount, $28 billion (5%) was spent on structures, equipment, software, and other assets used for R&D: $17 billion by manufacturers and $12 billion by companies in nonmanufacturing industries. Manufacturing industry groups with high levels of capital expenditures on assets used for R&D in 2015 were semiconductor and other electronic products (NAICS 3344) ($2.9 billion), pharmaceuticals and medicines (NAICS 3254) ($2.9 billion), communication equipment (NAICS 3342) ($2.5 billion), automobiles, bodies, trailers, and parts (NAICS 3361–63) ($1.3 billion), and aerospace products and parts (NAICS 3364) ($0.6 billion). Among the nonmanufacturing industries with high levels of capital assets used for R&D were software publishers (NAICS 5112) ($1.4 billion), telecommunications services (NAICS 517) ($1.4 billion), and computer systems design and related services (NAICS 5415) ($2.2 billion).

TABLE 5. Capital expenditures in the United States and for domestic R&D paid for and performed by the company, by type of expenditure, industry, and company size: 2015
(Millions of U.S. dollars)

i = more than 50% of the estimate is a combination of imputation and reweighting to account for nonresponse.

NAICS = North American Industry Classification System; nec = not elsewhere classified.

a Capital expenditures are payments by a business for assets that usually have a useful life of more than 1 year. The value of assets acquired or improved through capital expenditures is recorded on a company's balance sheet. BRDIS statistics exclude the cost of purchased land and assets acquired through mergers and acquisitions.
b Capital expenditures for long-lived assets used in a company's R&D operations are not included in its R&D expense, but any depreciation recorded for those assets is included in its R&D expense. For 2015, depreciation associated with domestic R&D paid for and performed by the company was $11.3 billion and with domestic R&D performed by the company and paid for by others was $1.1 billion.
c Includes the cost of purchased or improved buildings and other facilities that are fixed to the land.
d Includes the cost of other capital expenditures, including purchased patents and other intangible assets, and expenditures not distributed among the categories shown.
e The Business R&D and Innovation Survey does not include companies with fewer than five employees.

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Statistics are representative of companies located in the United States that performed R&D. Industry classification was based on dominant business code for domestic R&D performance, where available. For companies that did not report business codes, the classification used for sampling was assigned. Excludes data for federally funded research and development centers.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, and U.S. Census Bureau, Business R&D and Innovation Survey, 2015.

Table 5 Source Data: Excel file

Used for domestic R&D
Selected industry, NAICS code, and company size Totala Totala,b Structuresc Equipment Capitalized
software
All other and
undistributedd
All industries, 21–33, 42–81 558,899 28,203 3,674 13,704 6,970 3,856
Manufacturing industries, 31–33 229,229 16,626 2,789 9,241 1,738 2,858
Chemicals, 325 52,704 3,839 849 2,116 457 417
Pharmaceuticals and medicines, 3254 15,931 2,949 771 1,546 398 234
Other 325 36,773 890 78 570 59 183
Machinery, 333 12,295 725 i 66 487 i 43 i 129 i
Computer and electronic products, 334 25,473 i 7,192 i 1,100 i 3,945 i 642 i 1,505 i
Communication equipment, 3342 8,944 i 2,469 i 644 i 1,475 i 228 i 122 i
Semiconductor and other electronic products, 3344 9,369 i 2,866 i 41 i 1,594 i 250 i 980 i
Other 334 7,160 i 1,857 i 415 i 876 i 164 i 403 i
Electrical equipment, appliance, and components, 335 4,414 351 i 16 i 157 i 46 i 131 i
Transportation equipment, 336 63,080 2,039 412 1,089 178 360
Automobiles, bodies, trailers, and parts, 3361–63 42,378 1,307 122 774 129 282
Aerospace products and parts, 3364 17,348 621 269 261 48 43
Other 336 3,354 111 21 54 1 35
Manufacturing nec, other 31–33 71,263 2,480 346 1,447 372 316
Nonmanufacturing industries, 21–23, 42–81 329,670 11,577 885 4,464 i 5,231 998
Information, 51 103,200 4,291 416 2,500 i 1,100 i 274
Software publishers, 5112 10,771 1,371 294 780 120 178
Telecommunications services, 517 74,818 1,402 2 952 i 434 i 14 i
Other 51 17,611 1,518 120 768 i 546 i 82
Finance and insurance, 52 12,950 2,394 24 201 1,958 211
Professional, scientific, and technical services, 54 18,456 3,389 219 1,116 1,747 306
Computer systems design and related services, 5415 6,997 2,183 145 579 1,407 52
Scientific R&D services, 5417 1,663 737 73 357 i 74 232 i
Other 54 9,796 469 1 180 266 22 i
Nonmanufacturing nec, other 21–23, 42–81 195,064 1,503 226 647 426 207
Size of company (number of domestic employees)
Micro companiese
5–9 1,235 i 213 i 10 i 63 i 47 i 94
Small companies
10–19 3,682 i 444 i 44 i 251 i 74 i 75 i
20–49 5,939 i 749 i 65 i 356 i 212 i 116
Medium companies
50–99 6,206 i 767 i 70 454 160 i 84 i
100–249 11,986 i 1,094 172 573 202 i 147 i
Large companies
250–499 10,363 i 1,022 108 523 233 158
500–999 22,997 i 1,119 93 637 253 135
1,000–4,999 61,319 4,197 602 2,191 872 533
5,000–9,999 70,879 3,630 640 1,714 637 639
10,000–24,999 113,859 4,304 535 1,544 1,340 884
25,000 or more 250,432 10,664 i 1,335 i 5,399 i 2,941 i 990 i

Survey Information and Data Availability

The sample for BRDIS was selected to represent all for-profit, nonfarm companies that are publicly or privately held and have five or more employees in the United States. Estimates produced from the survey and presented in this InfoBrief are restricted to companies that perform or fund R&D, either domestically or abroad. Because the statistics from the survey are based on a sample, they are subject to both sampling and nonsampling errors (see technical notes in the data table reports at https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/industry/).

In this InfoBrief, money amounts are expressed in current U.S. dollars and are not adjusted for inflation. A company is defined as a business organization located in the United States, either U.S. owned or a U.S. affiliate of a foreign parent, of one or more establishments under common ownership or control that performs or funds R&D.

For 2014, a total of 44,162 companies were sampled to represent the population of 1,998,858 companies; for 2015, a total of 44,824 companies were sampled, representing 2,029,436 companies. The actual numbers of reporting units in the sample that remained within the scope of the survey between sample selection and tabulation were 40,953 for 2014 and 40,806 for 2015. These lower counts represent the number of reporting units that were determined to be within the scope of the survey after all data collected were processed. Reasons for the reduced counts include mergers, acquisitions, and instances where companies had fewer than five paid employees in the United States or had gone out of business in the interim. Of these in-scope reporting units, 72.5% were considered to have met the criteria for a complete response to the 2014 survey; 79.6% met the 2015 survey response criteria. Industry classification was based on the dominant business activity for domestic R&D performance where available. For reporting units that did not report business activity codes for R&D, the classification used for sampling was assigned.

The full set of data tables from this survey will be available in the report Business R&D and Innovation: 2015 https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/industry/). Individual data tables and tables with relative standard errors and imputation rates from the 2015 survey are available in advance of the full report. For further information, contact Raymond M. Wolfe.

Notes

[1] Raymond M. Wolfe, Research and Development Statistics Program, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 965, Arlington, VA 22230.(rwolfe@nsf.gov; 703-292-7789).

[2] Determining the amount of domestic net sales and operating revenues was left to the reporting company. However, guidance was given to include revenues from foreign operations and subsidiaries and from discontinued operations and to exclude intracompany transfers, returns, allowances, freight charges, and excise, sales, and other revenue-based taxes.

[3] Employment statistics in this InfoBrief are head counts. Full-time equivalent statistics are available in the data tables. R&D employees include scientists and engineers, their managers, and the technicians, technologists, and support staff members who work on R&D or who provide direct support to R&D activities.