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As the U.S. manufacturing sector continues to grow, so does the challenge for regions to find “middle-skill” workers who can fill job vacancies in advanced manufacturing. The Council on Foreign Relations has released a new report, Building the American Workforce, that suggests policymakers can fill this need by narrowing the skills gap for underserved, low-skilled workers. To meet this need, the report's recommendations include overhauling the national workforce development system and establishing a broad vision for workforce training that focuses on low-skilled, underserved workers. Examples include advanced manufacturing training programs in New Hampshire and Washington to demonstrate how the vision can be operationalized at the regional level.

he Department of Defense (DOD) released funding announcements to help establish and sustain two new manufacturing innovation institutes in the areas of lightweight and modern metals manufacturing and digital manufacturing and design. DOD intends to commit up to $70 million for each institute, with at least a 1:1 cost share ($70 million over five years) of non-federal funds from the recipient organizations. Proposals for both awards are restricted to domestic nonprofit organizations, but applicants are encouraged to partner with local small businesses, institutions of higher education and government entities.

As developed nations slowly rebuild economies damaged by the Great Recession, many are looking to innovation and manufacturing to spur their economic revival. Similar to President Obama's proposed National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (See the March 14, 2011 issue of the Digest), several foreign government are developing networks of manufacturing research and development (R&D) centers to strengthen the ties between research and industrial needs. Recently, the European Union (EU) announced a €100 million ($131 million US) commitment to establish five pilot advanced manufacturing R&D centers within its member states. The EU joins Australia and the United Kingdom in the list of countries that have proposed focused, large-scale, national networks in recent years.

The Obama administration will commit $200 million from five federal agencies to create three new manufacturing innovation institutions in 2013. Building on the Additive Manufacturing pilot initiative launched in Youngstown, OH, last year, the Department of Defense will lead two new institutes focused on Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation and Lightweight and Modern Metals Manufacturing. A third institute, led by the Department of Energy, will focus on Next Generation Power Electronic Manufacturing. Competition for these new institutes is open immediately. Winners will be announced later this year. Read the announcement...

NASA, USAID, the State Department and Nike have partnered to issue an innovation challenge for inventors to develop new, sustainable materials and methods for manufacturing fabric. The winners will have their technology presented at NASA's 2013 LAUNCH System Challenge Forum in Pasadena, CA. The LAUNCH Forum is directed by a council of entrepreneurs, scientists, government, academia, and business leaders and is used by NASA to promote sustainability initiatives, including projects related to global health, renewable energy, and agriculture. Read the announcement...

Each year, SSTI provides Digest readers with a comprehensive review of technology-based economic development spending in the the president's federal budget request. The year's edition includes proposed FY14 spending on R&D, STEM education, manufacturing, broadband, small business support, technology transfer, entrepreneurship, innovation workforce initiatives and more.

Americans need to rethink their view of manufacturing and the role it plays in regional economies across the country, according to a new report issued by a special Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) commission on innovation. The MIT commission found that many U.S. policymakers and citizens still view manufacturing as a small group of traditional, shrinking industries. However, the commission contends manufacturing is a diverse, evolving group of industries in which new products and knowledge frequently emerge from firms of all sizes throughout the country.

Following up on President Obama's advocacy of American manufacturing in the State of the Union address, the White House has released a document detailing the administration's manufacturing strategy. The strategy includes the formation of a new national network of Manufacturing Technology Acceleration Centers (MTACs), which will focus on moving technology into the products and processes of small- and medium-sized manufacturers. The National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing Extension Partnership program would oversee the initiative. Read the White House release...

Following a year-long policy academy intended to help states prepare new strategies for economic growth by fostering collaboration and shared experiences, eight states have agreed to bring a renewed focus to advanced manufacturing. State leaders concur that the manufacturing sector is too important to lose and is rapidly evolving. With change, however, comes a unique opportunity to capture new leadership roles and address global issues that threaten public health and safety. A report from the National Governors Association (NGA) summarizes the work and findings from the group and provides guidance for other states.

The fifth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Connecticut, Illinois, Oklahoma, and Utah. Our first four installments were in the Jan. 9, Jan. 16, Jan. 23 and Jan. 30 issues of the Digest.

The Brookings Institute, in partnership with the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), released three bold policy proposals intended to bolster the competitiveness of the U.S. manufacturing and advanced industries sector by improving innovation, workforce, and higher education connections. Each proposal paper provides a compelling argument for the federal government to make a strategic investment that will help to renew the national, state and local manufacturing bases to address poor U.S. economic performance since the Great Recession including sagging gross domestic product (less than 2 percent annually growth), skyrocketing numbers of individuals living in/near poverty and wage stagnation. Proposals include 20 U.S. manufacturing universities, a network of advanced industries innovation HUBs and a competition for states and a Race to the Shop competition.