The Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI) will receive nearly $300 million in public-private investment from leading manufacturers, universities, non-profit organizations and the federal government to develop scalable manufacturing processes for engineered tissues and organs.
On a battlefield in the not-too-distant future, a soldier whose leg was shattered by a roadside bomb could have a brighter future. The injured soldier’s bone may ultimately be replaced with a biomanufactured version that could perform as well as the original and – most importantly – would not be rejected by the body.
This is one of the goals of the Department of Defense (DoD), which has tapped the University of Florida (UF) to lead efforts in the Southeastern United States in biofabrication – the manufacturing of tissues and living implants for numerous applications.
UF is the Southeastern node of a new public-private Manufacturing USA initiative, the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI). Headquartered in Manchester, New Hampshire, ARMI is the 12th Manufacturing USA Institute. It brings together nearly 100 partner organizations from industry, government, academia and the non-profit sector to develop next-generation biomanufacturing processes and biotechnologies.
Approximately $80 million from the federal government will be combined with more than $200 million in cost share to support the development of tissue and organ manufacturing capabilities. As a part of continuing efforts to help revitalize American manufacturing and incentivize companies to invest in new technology development in the United States, ARMI will lead the Advanced Tissue Biofabrication (ATB) Manufacturing USA Institute on behalf of the Department of Defense.