manufacturing

Pennsylvania is losing ground in expanding manufacturing opportunities in the state, according to the Pennsylvania Manufacturing Advisory Council, which has issued a playbook to help build the sector’s competitiveness and highlights recommendations for the state to increase its manufacturing opportunities. 

This week, Congress approved a new version of legislation to incentivize semiconductor manufacturing facilities, create a Regional Technology Hubs program, and reauthorize many science-related agencies. The Senate passed the bill on the 27th, and the House passed the legislation a day later.

Three states — Indiana, California and Arkansas — have recently participated in international diplomacy, creating strategic connections and developing agreements to address climate change and trade barriers with the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada. These recent agreements may suggest a shift toward innovation-focused diplomacy at the state level with nations across the globe.

A recent National Science Board’s Science and Engineering Indicators report on the knowledge- and technology-intensive (KTI) industries analyzed production, trade and enabling technologies of KTI industries and found that KTI industries contributed 11 percent to both U.S. GDP ($2.3 trillion) and global GDP ($9.2 trillion) in 2019. Even though overall U.S. GDP declined during the COVID-19 pandemic, the value added generated by domestic KTI industries increased by 2.2 percent in 2019–20 as industries responded to a surge in demand led by increases in output of industries supporting remote work transitions and supplying medical products, while manufacturing of chemicals, transportation equipment and machinery declined. 

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently awarded nearly $1.2 million to four institutions through its Advanced Manufacturing Technology Roadmap Program (MfgTech). Awards through this program will fund projects in industries and technologies such as microelectronics and biotechnology for up to 18 months to address national priorities for improving competitiveness and vaccine manufacturing capabilities. 

This month, President Joe Biden announced the final rule of his Buy American initiative, which includes increasing the mandated U.S.-made content for federal contractors from 55 percent to 75 percent over seven years and strengthening domestic supply chains for critical goods. This final rule follows Executive Order 14005, which Biden signed during his first week in office that launched a review of existing Buy American policies and created the first Made in America Office within the Office of Management and Budget.

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has awarded almost $54 million in grants to 13 projects to conduct research and develop testbeds in response to challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Rescue Act provided the funding for these awards, which will support projects at eight manufacturing institutes within the Manufacturing USA network. The awarded manufacturing institutions anticipate producing personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical equipment; creating sustainable domestic supply chains; increasing the resiliency of existing supply chains; producing novel COVID-19 tests; providing shared equipment and facilities; producing health alert systems; and, training a new generation of manufacturing workers.

To mark the anniversary of its executive order on supply chains, the White House released a fact sheet this morning outlining past and future actions to strengthen American competitiveness. The release includes several initiatives that have not been discussed widely before, including that: the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. will vote this spring on an initiative to finance exports of semiconductors, biotech and energy products; the 16 Manufacturing USA institutes will begin holding roundtables on scaling technology and promoting workforce initiatives; and, the Small Business Administration will institute a new committee of industry leaders to advise the agency on startups’ innovations and challenges, as well as host a new America’s Seed Fund (i.e. Small Business Innovation Research) Start-up Expo.

More than 40 percent of Indiana’s manufacturing companies successfully implemented Industry 4.0 technologies in 2021, more than doubling the number that had reported that a year earlier, according to a recent Conexus Indiana report. The advanced manufacturing and logistics (AML) industries are considered the backbone of Indiana’s economy. Indiana manufacturers account for more than $100 billion of the state’s economy and employ 17 percent of the state’s workforce. The industry is at a crossroads, the report holds — challenged to adopt smart technologies and methods to increase its competitiveness. In 2020, Conexus Indiana and the Indiana University Kelley School of Business Center for Excellence in Manufacturing launched an annual survey to measure Indiana industries’ readiness and early adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies. That study provided a baseline for the follow-up study in 2021, which found progress on several fronts. For instance:

As the manufacturing sector rebounds, it is expected to need over two million new workers over the next decade to meet supply shortages and increasing demand in sectors such as infrastructure, energy efficiency, and medical equipment. To help recruit and support a more diverse workforce, the Urban Manufacturing Alliance (UMA) and The Century Foundation (TCF) are seeking proposals to participate in the Industry and Inclusion Cohort 2.0, a national initiative focused on community colleges delivering impactful credentials and addressing barriers in manufacturing careers. Impactful credentialing includes credential programs (both non-degree and degree) that are well-aligned and developed in partnership with industry and situated within a broader ecosystem of support partners.