UofL awarded $13 million to launch statewide manufacturing resource center
Summary
The University of Louisville has been awarded up to $13 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) to launch a new statewide manufacturing resource center.The center, known as the Kentucky Manufacturing Extension Partnership (KMEP), will sit in the UofL Office of Research and Innovation and leverage university expertise and capacity to provide research, business development, access to talent and other supports. The goal is to help manufacturers boost productivity, retain and create jobs and compete in new markets here and abroad.This competitively won grant illustrates the University of Louisvilles confidence in the research and development sphere, said UofL Interim President Lori Stewart Gonzalez. Business and industry leaders from CEOs at multinational corporations to entrepreneurs ramping up operations on their first viable idea know that UofL has the resources they can draw upon to take ideas from concept to reality.The Kentucky Manufacturing Extension Partnership will help small- and medium-sized businesses accelerate and strengthen growth and competitiveness in the global marketplace.KMEP is part of the MEP National Network, led by the DOCs National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The network is meant to strengthen and empower U.S. manufacturers and comprises 51 MEP centers in all 50 states and Puerto Rico. UofL also has previously received numerous grants aimed at programming to help manufacturers adopt additive manufacturing and the smart, connected technologies of .One of our driving goals is to build supports like these, to better connect with and serve our industrial partners, said Will Metcalf, associate vice president for research and innovation.