SPRINGFIELD, MASS. – This week, over 300 students from across Massachusetts converged on the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame to participate in the MassMakes Innovation Challenge, a session, organized by the Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech (CAM), that combined hands-on manufacturing, engineering projects, and Q&A sessions with industry leaders. Many of the participants are currently enrolled in the state’s Innovation Career Pathways program that educates students in high demand technical fields. The event was headlined by Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, a co-chair of the statewide STEM Advisory Council, and Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler, who each stressed the importance of investing in our manufacturing future and the need to support the next generation of professionals in this critical sector.
BOSTON — The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that Massachusetts has been awarded $19.7 million in funding for fiscal year 2023 through the federal CHIPS and Science Act to establish the Northeast Microelectronics Coalition Hub (NEMC), a regional hub that will advance the microelectronics needs of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) while spurring new jobs, workforce training opportunities, and investment in the region’s advanced manufacturing and technology sectors.
WORCESTER, MASS. — Today, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced more than $2.2 million in grants through MassTech Collaborative’s Massachusetts Manufacturing Accelerate Program (MMAP) during the third annual Massachusetts Manufacturing Mash-Up at Polar Park in Worcester. The MMAP grant program is managed by the Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech (CAM) and helps small to medium-sized manufacturers in Massachusetts scale their businesses to compete in the modern manufacturing economy. The Mash-Up brings companies, students, and state officials together annually to foster innovation and strengthen partnerships in the manufacturing sector.
LOWELL – Today, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced a new $496,503 grant to Lowell-based production design firm RaGE Systems, an award from the Commonwealth’s Massachusetts Manufacturing Innovation Initiative (M2I2). The new grant will support the expansion of RaGE’s production of wireless solutions for the telecommunications, infrastructure, commercial, aerospace, and defense industries. UMass Lowell is the company’s academic partner on the project, creating a strong research and development collaboration in the region, which will help RaGE scale its manufacturing base and expand in both Lowell, and to a separate manufacturing facility in Newburyport, Mass.
The Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech (CAM) has launched a new online portal that creates a single ‘digital front door’ for Massachusetts companies that are preparing proposals to the federal CHIPS Act, a major $50 billion dollar federal initiative designed to “strengthen and revitalize the U.S. position in semiconductor research, development, and manufacturing.”
WESTBOROUGH — The Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech Collaborative (CAM) and more than 85 organizations from across the Northeast have submitted a proposal to the federal government to create the Northeast Microelectronics Coalition, a regional hub that will advance the microelectronics needs of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) while spurring new jobs, workforce training opportunities, and investment in the region’s advanced manufacturing and technology sectors. The Coalition submitted the proposal to the DoD’s Microelectronics Commons program, which is funded by the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act that aims to onshore the manufacturing of microelectronics and semiconductor technologies and support workforce training for these industries.
WESTBOROUGH — The Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech Collaborative has launched the third round of its Massachusetts Manufacturing Accelerate Program (MMAP), which aims to co-invest in small- to medium-sized manufacturers across the state. MMAP aims to help manufacturers that are looking to increase their competitiveness, upskill their workforce and meet the demands of ‘Industry 4.0’ by incorporating innovation-driven technologies such as automation, robotics, and connected devices into their production lines.
CAM Director Christine Nolan, participated in the MassRobotics Jumpstart Program which provides training and access to engineering and tech fields for high school girls.
MMAP grantee North Easton Machine (NEM), is a 60-year-old advanced manufacturer that contracts with a diverse customer base, producing custom-machined components for engineers and buyers in the defense, semiconductor, medical device, robotics, photonics, and battery industries.
On Friday, September 16th, the second Massachusetts Manufacturing Mash-Up attracted over 1,000 attendees to Polar Park, the home of the Worcester Red Sox, to celebrate the Commonwealth’s manufacturing sector. The day-long event featured hands-on STEM challenges for students, plus special sessions on robotics in manufacturing, award presentations, and a startup pitch competition.
