REP. MILLER: FEDERAL, STATE, AND REGIONAL MANUFACTURING PARTNERSHIP CONTINUES TO GROW IN MICHIGAN'S 10TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
The following information was released by the office of Michigan Rep. Candice Miller:
Congresswoman Candice Miller (MI-10) today responded to the announcement by the U.S Department of Energy and the state of Michigan on the creation of a collaborative for research and development to be known as the U.S. Automotive Partnership for Advancing Research and Technologies - or USAutoPARTs. The collaborative will bring $14 million to Macomb County, with DOE committing $9 million and Michigan identifying $5 million. It expands on the federal funding Rep. Miller secured in Congress.
Rep. Miller secured $2 million in the Department of Defense Appropriations bill for FY08 for Automation Alley to assist TARDEC in alleviating the problem of parts obsolescence in Army ground vehicles. Both this program and USAutoPARTs will operate out of the Dephi research and development facility in Shelby Township that had been slated to close.
"Instead of being just another building with a 'For Lease' sign on it, this facility will now help grow our domestic auto industry by advancing technology," Miller said. "The facility will house collaborative research to help design the next generation of fuel efficient vehicles and also assist the Army in maintaining our readiness capabilities."
The facility could staff as many as 200 researchers and engineers on loan from auto suppliers and the Department of Energy. The agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Defense, the State of Michigan, and suppliers is the first open supplier partnership for pre-competitive research.