July 24, 2023

DOD Establishes Assistant Secretaries of Defense in the Office of the Under Secretary for Research and Engineering

WASHINGTON — On July 12, the Department of Defense announced the establishment of three new Assistant Secretary of Defense positions, along with eight Deputy Assistant Secretaries of Defense, in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. The ASDs will replace the role of Deputy Chief Technology Officer.

July 17, 2023

America Makes and ANSI Publish Standardization Roadmap for Additive Manufacturing Version 3.0

NEW YORK — Today, America Makes and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) announced the publication of the Standardization Roadmap for Additive Manufacturing, Version 3.0, developed by the America Makes and ANSI Additive Manufacturing Standardization Collaborative (AMSC). The roadmap describes the current and desired future standardization landscape for additive manufacturing (AM) and focuses on industrial market sectors using AM technologies. A total of 141 standardization gaps (including 60 new gaps) are identified with corresponding recommendations across the AM lifecycle areas of design; precursor materials; process control; post-processing; finished material properties; qualification and certification; nondestructive evaluation; maintenance and repair; and data. The hope is that the roadmap will be broadly adopted by the user community to facilitate a more coordinated approach to the future development of AM standards.

July 15, 2023

Tasha Miller Named Among 20 People to Know in Manufacturing

ARM Institute Program Manager Tasha Miller has been named to the Pittsburgh Business Times’ List of 20 People to Know in Pittsburgh Manufacturing! This list recognizes individuals who are pushing their own companies forward, helping other manufacturers be their best, imagining new ways to build and design things, and planning to meet the needs of a 21st-century industrial landscape.

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.