On May 23, 2017, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop to explore the role of the Manufacturing USA initiative and issued its summary of the proceedings.
The Manufacturing USA initiative seeks to reinforce U.S.-based advanced manufacturing through partnerships among industry, academia, and government. Begun in 2012 and established with bipartisan support by the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2014, the initiative envisages a nationwide network of research centers for manufacturing innovation. As of May 2017, 14 manufacturing innovation institutes had been established to facilitate the movement of early-stage research into proven capabilities ready for adoption by U.S. manufacturers.
Bringing industry, academia, and government partners together within a growing network of advanced manufacturing institutes, Manufacturing USA is designed to increase U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. Each institute is an applied research center focusing on "early-phase" technology development (i.e., a "proof-of-concept" or "technology platform" development). It provides a venue where industry, academia, and government partners conduct research and development on applied manufacturing technologies of a focused nature. The benefits of this research accrue to the institute members, participants in related supply chains, and in the long run, to the nation as a whole.
Several cross-cutting themes emerged from the workshop presentations and discussions:
- Importance of public–private partnerships in advanced manufacturing—Various speakers described the relationship between a robust manufacturing sector and national security, job creation, and economic growth. They also described the results of past disinvestments in domestic manufacturing and explained how market failures may impede progress in U.S.-based advanced manufacturing.
- Role of the Manufacturing USA institutes—Multiple presenters emphasized the role of the manufacturing institutes in connecting university research to manufacturers, drawing new manufacturing technologies and techniques into small and large firms, fostering regional innovation ecosystems, and developing the skilled technical workforce.
- Lessons from foreign programs—A number of workshop participants drew comparisons and contrasts with the nature and scale of efforts in China and Germany to accelerate the development and adoption of advanced manufacturing techniques.
