Virginia Roberson is part of our INDUSTRIAL team on a fact-finding mission to surface the technologies and trends impacting manufacturers and to share what we discover along the way.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to push its way across the U.S., American manufacturers are pushing back, using innovation to transform their operations into lean, mean, PPE-production machines. From independent startups to universities to leading automakers, industrials are transforming their operations to create and improve face masks, ventilators and other vital healthcare equipment.
These innovators are using additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D printing (3DP) to revolutionize face mask and other PPE production, expediting the time it takes to get these supplies to essential workers. To support this 3DP innovation, the United States Department of Commerce’s National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) recently awarded America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, a $1.4 million grant.
America Makes, a member of the Manufacturing USA® network, is one of our nation’s leading and collaborative partners in AM and 3DP technology research, discovery, creation and innovation. They are a flagship Institute for Manufacturing USA, the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation, and they are managed and operated by the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM).
Here’s our disclaimer: Manufacturing USA is an INDUSTRIAL client. We also work with the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), which supports MEP Centers in all 50 states to promote their services that help small and medium-sized manufacturers (SMM) grow their businesses.
NIST also awarded $50 million in emergency funding to support these manufacturers in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These funds will:
Congratulations to the NIST funding recipients! You are an inspiration to every industrial working to design, make and move our world.
If you're looking for strategies to create opportunities in the "new industrial normal," we can help.
Contact Us