Integran Technologies USA Inc., a Pittsburgh, Pa., supplier of nanotechnology-enabled metallurgical products and processes, announced today it was recently awarded a Phase I SBIR (Small Business Innovation Research) contract by the US Air Force (Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio) for the development of a novel selective surface alloying and microstructural-optimization process for use in making jet engine components. Virgil Provenzano, a senior scientist with Integran, said the process -- intended for finished and partly finished jet engine components -- is expected to lower manufacturing and repair/overhaul costs compared to bulk alloying and processing methods.