Since 2014 Manufacturing USA has established 14 manufacturing innovation institutes. Within each institute, manufacturers of all sizes partner with academia and government to share manufacturing technology and workforce challenges - and build a robust, sustainable R&D infrastructure.
The Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute (ARM) is one of the members. Set up in 2017, ARM is an independent non-profit that won an 80 USD million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to become the leading catalyst of robotics innovation and expertise to accelerate growth in US-based manufacturing. It is also supported by an additional 173 USD million in commitments from more than 100 members and partners in industry, academia, technology, government and economic development groups.
Currently located in Carnegie Mellon University’s National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC), ARM will be relocating to Pittsburgh’s neighbourhood.
Through industry and member feedback, ARM creates a roadmap for technology and workforce initiatives that are the most pressing and will return the greatest value to its members and its mission. The roadmap results in an issue for project calls.
The Manufacturing USA network is operated by the interagency Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office, headquartered at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the Department of Commerce.
The 14 Manufacturing USA Institutes are:
- Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA)
- The American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics (AIM Photonics)
- America Makes, specialised in addiditve manufacturing and 3D-printing
- Advanced Robotics Manufacturing (ARM)
- Advanced Regenerating Manufacturing Institute (ARMI)/BioFabUSA, specialised in biofacbrication
- Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII)
- Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII)
- Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI)
- Lightweight Innovations for Tomorrow (LIFT)
- NextFlex, specialised in Flexible Hybrid Electronics (FHE)
- The National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIMBL)
- Power America, specialised in the adoption of advanced semiconductor components
- Rapid Advancement in Process Intensification Deployment Institute (RAPID), specialised in energy-efficient technologies on the basis of molecular processes
- Reducing Embodied Energy and Decreasing Emissions (REMADE).
