DETROIT, Mi. July 14, 2023

“It looks like Tony Stark’s basement” – An Operation Next Success Story

July 14, 2023 — “I just thought this was the coolest place. It looks like Tony Stark’s basement, so I said, ‘Let’s do this!’” That was New Jersey native turned Michigan resident Staff Sgt. Cameron Homburg’s reaction to his first visit to LIFT, the Detroit-based Department of Defense national manufacturing innovation institute, as he considered what his civilian career might look like as he retires after serving 20 years in the United States Marine Corps.

July 13, 2023

MxD Launches Learn Advisory Committee to Steer and Direct the Outcomes of Workforce Strategy

MxD has established the MxD Learn Advisory Committee. The committee will drive the execution of the MxD Learn Curriculum and Pathways Integrating Technology and Learning (CAPITAL) strategy and outcomes as well as overall MxD workforce strategy. The Learn Advisory Committee will be tasked with supporting role prioritization for course development and helping drive and refine metrics for the program’s success. 

July 12, 2023

San Jose Manufacturers Convene and Strategize

On June 20th, NextFlex hosted a group of North San Jose manufacturers for a networking event and roundtable discussion organized by Manufacture: San Jose. The event was free for manufacturing business owners located in San Jose.

July 11, 2023

DOD Small Business Training Week: Connect, Mentor, Collaborate

At this year's Small Business Training Week, more than 700 attendees representing 72 agencies and hailing from 45 states participated in skill-building workshops.

July 11, 2023

LIFT Opens 2023 LEAP Project Call

LIFT, the Detroit-based national manufacturing innovation institute, has announced its 2023 LEAP (LIFT Ecosystem Accelerator Program) Project Call and is accepting submissions through August 21, 2023.

July 10, 2023

America Makes Announces Open Project Call Worth $6.4M in Funding

YOUNGSTOWN, OH — The National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) and America Makes have announced a new open project call funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Research and Engineering Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD (R&E)), and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) worth a total of $6.4M. The number of anticipated awards and maximum funding will vary depending on the topic area being addressed.

July 10, 2023

The ARM Institute catalyzes critically needed robotics solutions for manufacturing through collaboration with industry, government, and academia

U.S. manufacturing is overdue for a resurgence, one that must be powered by Industry 4.0 technologies like robotics. However, critically needed robotics technologies often fall prey to the innovation valley of death, unable to advance from the research stage to implementation. Manufacturers of all sizes, but particularly small and medium-sized firms, find themselves ill-prepared to navigate the risks of automation—from the necessary capital investments and time needed for implementation to finding the trained workforce necessary to operate, maintain, and repair robotics after implementation. These issues combined with a historic labor skills gap that could see2.4 million jobs left unfilled in the coming years, have stagnated U.S. manufacturing growth.

July 7, 2023

The right conversations – TACOM at LIFT Technologies

DETROIT ARSENAL, Mich. — How do you modernize an industry? How do you take words on legislation and turn them into a lean and efficient supply chain that provides for the Army’s ever-present logistical needs? These are the questions that U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command’s leadership faces as modernization continues to top Army priorities. “Understanding how we get to where we want to be begins with experiences like this one,” said Dr. Valerie DeVries, TACOM’s deputy chief of staff for human capital. “It begins with fostering the right kind of ideas and conversations.”

July 6, 2023

Beloved former AFRL director honored posthumously for defense manufacturing advocacy

Former Air Force Research Laboratory, or AFRL, Director and Vice Commander Dr. David “Dave” E. Walker was honored posthumously by the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel, or JDMTP, at the Defense Manufacturing Conference in Tampa, Florida, in December 2022. The late Walker, a beloved former director of AFRL’s Materials and Manufacturing Directorate and passionate advocate for DOD-sponsored manufacturing technology programs, was named as a recipient of the JDMTP’s 2022 Defense Manufacturing Champion Award. Walker died unexpectedly in January 2020 at the age of 61, following a storied career spent in service to the nation’s defense.

July 6, 2023

Emerging Technology Horizons: Delivering New Capabilities To Warfighters at Speed, Scale

The rate of technology development is accelerating today, and the Defense Department is adapting to foster emerging technology. As stated in the recently released National Defense Science and Technology Strategy, accelerated technology advancement and innovation are key elements to achieving department priorities. The upcoming 2023 National Defense Industrial Association Emerging Technologies Conference is an event where we can focus on and discuss what we’re doing and what we need to do to accelerate technology advancement and innovation.