In 1938, the Iowa State University Research Foundation, Inc. (ISURF) was established to manage the collection of intellectual property that grew from the work of Iowa State employees and students. The ISURF is a non-profit corporation, and is the second oldest university technology transfer program in the nation.

Today, the ISURF and the Office of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer (OIPTT) work in concert to facilitate and enhance the inventive and creative works of Iowa State University’s employees and students, and to transfer these works for the benefit of society.