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America Makes Cited by President in State of he Union Address
January 29, 2014 | Categories: America Makes News
Second Year in a Row the Institute is Referenced in SOTU
Youngstown, Ohio — January 29, 2014. America Makes, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, is honored by President Obama’s reference to America Makes as a compelling example of how our nation can seize the lead in the global, high-tech manufacturing sector in last night’s State of the Union Address.
“We are very appreciative of the President’s continued support of the innovative work that America Makes is leading right here in Youngstown and the ground-breaking role America Makes has played in the President’s vision for the creation of an expansive network of manufacturing innovation institutes,” said America Makes Director and NCDMM Vice President Ed Morris. “The success that America Makes has achieved attests that this public-private partnership and collaborative model is effective in positively impacting our nation’s status as a global manufacturing innovator and leader. To date, America Makes has awarded two calls for applied research and development projects and is engaged with 90 partners from across industry, academia, government, non-government agencies, and workforce/economic development resources with nearly $30 million of public and private funds invested in advancing the state-of-the-art in additive manufacturing (AM) and 3D printing (3DP) in the United States.”
The President’s speech focused on the need for the nation to take decisive action and build upon recently attained economic gains, stating that America is witnessing “A manufacturing sector that’s adding jobs for the first time since the 1990s…And for the first time in over a decade, business leaders around the world have declared that China is no longer the world’s number one place to invest; America is. That’s why I believe this can be a breakthrough year for America…We also have the chance, right now, to beat other countries in the race for the next wave of high-tech manufacturing jobs. My administration has launched two hubs for high-tech manufacturing in Raleigh and Youngstown, where we’ve connected businesses to research universities that can help America lead the world in advanced technologies.”
As the flagship institute for up to 45 manufacturing innovation institutes to follow, America Makes is a public-private membership organization that provides vision, leadership, and tools to its members. America Makes has a vibrant and active community comprising both members and non-members. All understand the limitless possibilities of 3DP and are willing to work together—even with competitors—to advance the technology. Currently, no single AM and 3DP organization has the resources or the partnerships to develop the standards, tools, education, and research required to accelerate the U.S. manufacturing industry into a dominant, global economic force.
“I speak for all of us at America Makes and NCDMM in acknowledging the great honor of once again being cited by President Obama in his State of the Union Address,” said Ralph Resnick, Founding Director of America Makes and President and Executive Director of NCDMM. “America Makes seeks to embrace innovation from whatever its source across our nation and challenges the perception of manufacturing as we collectively strive to accelerate the true realization of AM through 3DP. We are growing the inertia from our incredible 18 months of activities into a long overdue American manufacturing movement. America Makes is our call to action. Because again history has proven that ‘When America Makes, America Works.’”