mission is to invest in applied research projects in technology readiness levels 4 to 7.
AmericaMakes, the initial pilot institute, is the furthest along and has worked through its start-up growing pains, such as intellectual property agreements with members, how to structure itself and deciding which projects to fund. At the mo- ment, America Makes has more than 140 mem- bers and has awarded funds to 47 projects in the area of additive manufacturing or 3D printing.
Each applied
research project matches public to private invest- ment on a 1:1 basis and involves several compa- nies and universi- ties collaborating. That means if a hub receives $70 million from the govern- ment, along with a co-investment from partners, at least $140 million will be available for investment in research. This structure is partly to ensure that the government isn’t in the business of picking winners, and also that it’s investing in projects for which there is a legitimate commercial interest in a valuable potential outcome. Dean Bartles, Executive Director of the Digital Manufactur- ing & Design Innovation Institute in Chicago, said the fact so many important companies have signed on to participate in the initiiative, putting up their own funds, “is a huge confi rma- tion” of the NNMI concept. At DMDII, that list now includes Procter & Gamble, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, GE, John Deere, Caterpillar, Dow Chemical, and Boeing, among others. “These are not contracts or grants – these are truly partner- ships,” Bartles said. “To me, the best measurement of that is the kind of companies that are joining.” This spring in Detroit, where the new lightweighting hub— Lightweight Innovations for Tomorrow, or LIFT—is based, the
leadership team was preparing to announce its fi rst round of research awards.
Its chief technical offi cer, Alan I. Taub, a professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Michigan, is similar in credentials to many other
UI Labs opened its headquarters and the home of the DMDII in early May. Dean Bartles (far left), Executive Director of the DMDII and SME Vice President, and Dan Hartman (foreground), Director of Manufacturing Research & Development for the Institute, provide a tour of the hub’s 24,000 square-foot manufacturing fl oor to community leaders, including Congressman Mike Quigley, Alderman Walter Burnett Jr., Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner, Senator Dick Durbin and Congresswoman Robin Kelly.
manufacturing hub leaders. He earned a bachelor’s degree in materials engineering from Brown University and holds a master’s and Ph.D. in applied physics from Harvard University. He worked in a variety of R&D jobs at Ford Motor, Co., General Electric and General Motors before retiring in 2012 and heading to academia. He holds 26 patents, and serves on the board for a number of technology companies. Taub told ME that the winners of LIFT’s first tranche of applied research funds represent a good mix of technologies, as well as risk levels. “If these were all low risk projects, we’d just let companies do them on their own,” he said. “We wanted to take some chances. That’s the point.”
The basic business model is simple, if a bit harsh. Some of these projects will inevitably fail. But a few should suc- ceed, and that’s where the magic is supposed to happen. Ideas are to be converted into valuable intellectual property, which can then be licensed for a fee.
June 2015 |
AdvancedManufacturing.org 15
Photo courtesy DMDII
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