DOE launches manufacturing innovator challenge

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced two new manufacturing prizes as part of the Manufacturing Innovator Challenge, an effort to crowdsource solutions for next generation manufacturing, to increase energy productivity and strengthen America's industrial base. Both prizes focus on additive manufacturing: Additive Manufacturing for Disaster Response and Solid State Lighting Manufacturing. Participants will be asked to share designs that represent an innovation in each respective application of additive manufacturing. 

Additive Manufacturing for Disaster Response will award a $7,500 total prize purse, with three winners at $2,500 each. DOE is seeking design concepts that explore new applications for large-scale additive manufacturing for disaster response. Natural disasters can rapidly destroy critical large- and small-scale infrastructure. By producing critical infrastructure components on site, rather than shipping them from afar, additive manufacturing has the potential to accelerate disaster recovery times. This prize opportunity ends on Dec. 7, 2018. Learn more.

Solid State Lighting Manufacturing will award a $9,000 total prize purse, with three winners at $3,000 each. DOE is seeking applicants for a Solid State Lighting (SSL) manufacturing design concept that advances novel 3D printing for applications in luminaire applications, specifically 3D printing concepts of optical materials for SSL. This prize opportunity also ends on Dec. 7. Learn more.

The challenge is being launched in partnership with Freelancer.com, a crowdsourcing platform with over 30 million users.