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In accordance with mandates from the Office of Management and Budget
and the Office of the Secretary of Transportation, the U.S.
Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration (PHMSA) Pipeline Safety Research and Development
(R&D) Program held annual peer reviews of 29 active Core Program
(Core) research projects October 14, 15, and 21, 2020. These peer
reviews—which have been conducted since 2006 and are designed
to maintain research data quality—frequently are held
virtually via teleconference and web-based communication platforms,
saving both time and resources by foregoing physical meeting spaces.
Additionally, virtual meetings facilitate attendance from Canada,
Europe, and all U.S. time zones, increasing participation for
panelists, researchers, project cosponsors, PHMSA Agreement Officer
Representatives, and PHMSA Technical Task Inspectors.
The annual peer review continues to build on an already strong,
systematic evaluation process developed by PHMSA's Pipeline Safety
R&D Program and certified by the Government Accountability Office.
The 2019 peer-review panel, which consisted of three academic
representatives, reviewed five projects using 11 evaluation criteria
grouped into the following four categories: The annual peer review
continues to build a systematic evaluation process that was
developed by PHMSA's Pipeline Safety R&D Program and reviewed by the
Government Accountability Office. The Calendar Year 2020 peer review
panel, which comprised seven academic and two federal agency
representatives, reviewed all 29 projects using the following six
evaluation criteria:
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Is progress being made toward project objectives and project
management for both the budget and the schedule?
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Is there a plan for technology/knowledge transfer or the
dissemination of results, including publications, reporting,
and/or patents?
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How much end-user involvement is incorporated into the scope of
work?
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Is the project work being communicated to other related research
efforts?The quality of project results.
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Are the intended results consistent with scientific knowledge
and/or engineering principles?
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Are the intended results presented in such a manner as to be
useful for identified end-users?
The rating categories assigned by the peer-review panel were
Ineffective, Effective, More Than Effective, and Very Effective. The
average rating for the 29 projects assessed during the October 2020
review was More Than Effective. The summary report provides a
ranking and rating of each individually reviewed research project
and provides additional details such as project descriptions and
panel review comments.
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