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MIT has today introduced its Initiative for New Manufacturing (INM), a comprehensive Institute-wide endeavor aimed at revitalizing U.S. industrial production with state-of-the-art technologies, enhancing vital U.S. economic sectors, and stimulating job creation.

This initiative will incorporate cutting-edge research, inventive educational programs, and collaborations with businesses across diverse sectors, aiming to revolutionize manufacturing and amplify its influence.

“We seek to collaborate with enterprises of all sizes, from urban centers to rural communities and everywhere in between, assisting them in adopting innovative strategies for heightened productivity,” MIT President Sally A. Kornbluth stated in a letter to the Institute community today. “Our aim is to intentionally craft high-quality, human-centered manufacturing roles that breathe new life into communities nationwide.”

Kornbluth further remarked: “Empowering America to establish a future of innovative manufacturing is a perfect undertaking for MIT — and I’m convinced that there is no more vital task we can undertake to respond to current challenges and serve the nation now.”

The Initiative for New Manufacturing also revealed its initial six founding members of the industry consortium: Amgen, Flextronics International USA, GE Vernova, PTC, Sanofi, and Siemens. Participants in the INM Industry Consortium will support preliminary projects proposed by MIT researchers, starting with artificial intelligence applications in manufacturing.

INM joins the cohort of MIT’s other presidential initiatives — including The Climate Project at MIT; MITHIC, which promotes human-centered fields; MIT HEALS, focused on life sciences and health; and MGAIC, the MIT Generative AI Impact Consortium.

“There is immense potential to unite a dynamic community working across all scales — from nanotechnology to large-scale manufacturing — and across a broad spectrum of applications including semiconductors, medical devices, automotive, energy systems, and biotechnology,” comments Anantha Chandrakasan, MIT’s chief innovation and strategy officer and dean of engineering, who is part of the initiative’s leadership team. “MIT is specially positioned to leverage the transformative potential of digital tools and AI to mold the future of manufacturing. I’m genuinely enthusiastic about what we can collectively build and the synergies this fosters with other interdisciplinary initiatives at the Institute.”

The initiative marks yet another MIT-centered effort in recent years to enhance American manufacturing. A faculty research group authored the 1989 bestseller “Made in America: Regaining the Productive Edge,” advocating for a renaissance in manufacturing; another MIT project, labeled Production in the Innovation Economy, called for increased manufacturing in the early 2010s. In 2016, MIT also inaugurated The Engine, a venture fund investing in hardware-focused “tough tech” startups, many of which have the potential to evolve into significant manufacturing entities.

The MIT Initiative for New Manufacturing is structured around four primary themes:

• Reimagining manufacturing technologies and systems: achieving breakthrough technologies and system-level strategies to enhance energy production, health care, computing, transportation, consumer goods, and more;
• Enhancing the productivity and experience of manufacturing: creating and deploying new digitally driven methods and tools to increase productivity and enhance the human experience within manufacturing;
• Scaling new manufacturing: promoting the rapid growth of manufacturing companies while transforming supply chains to optimize efficiency and resilience, encouraging product innovation and business expansion; and
• Transforming the manufacturing base: driving the adoption of a sustainable global manufacturing ecosystem that offers compelling opportunities to workers, with significant focus on the U.S.

The initiative has outlined numerous concrete activities and programs, which will encompass an Institute-wide research program on emerging technologies and other significant topics; workforce and educational programs; and industry collaboration and involvement. INM also plans to establish new laboratories for developing manufacturing tools and techniques; a “factory observatory” program that immerses students in manufacturing through visits to production facilities; and key “pillars” concentrating on areas ranging from semiconductors and biomanufacturing to defense and aviation.

The workforce and education aspect of INM will feature TechAMP, an MIT-created initiative that collaborates with community colleges to bridge the gap between technicians and engineers; AI-driven teaching resources; professional education; and an endeavor to enhance manufacturing education on campus in collaboration with MIT departments and degree programs.

INM’s leadership team consists of three faculty co-directors: John Hart, the Class of 1922 Professor and head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering; Suzanne Berger, Institute Professor at MIT and a political scientist who has conducted impactful empirical studies of manufacturing; and Chris Love, the Raymond A. and Helen E. St. Laurent Professor of Chemical Engineering. The initiative’s executive director is Julie Diop.

The initiative is in the process of setting up a faculty steering committee with representatives from across the Institute, alongside an external advisory board. INM originates partly from the efforts of the Manufacturing@MIT working group, established in 2022 to investigate many of these challenges.

The unveiling of the new initiative was foreshadowed at a daylong MIT symposium on May 7, titled “A Vision for New Manufacturing.” The event, conducted before a full audience in MIT’s Wong Auditorium, featured over 30 speakers from a diverse array of manufacturing sectors.

“The rationale for expanding and transforming U.S. manufacturing has never been more pressing than it is today,” Berger remarked at the event. “What we are striving to develop at MIT now is more than just another research endeavor. … Together, with individuals in this room and beyond, we’re working to alter the course of our country.”

“We must contemplate the significance of manufacturing again, since it is what brings product ideas to the public,” Love conveyed to MIT News. “For instance, in biotechnology, new life-saving treatments cannot reach patients without manufacturing. There is an urgent need for this issue, concerning both economic prosperity and job creation. We have witnessed the repercussions for our country when we’ve lost our dominance in manufacturing in certain sectors. Biotechnology, where the U.S. has been the global leader for over 40 years, offers potential for fostering robust economies here, yet we need to advance our capabilities in biomanufacturing to sustain our edge in this field.”

Hart notes: “While manufacturing seems highly relevant at this moment, it is of lasting significance. Manufactured items underpin our everyday lives, and manufacturing is crucial for advancing the frontiers of technology and society. Our endeavors leading up to the launch of the initiative showcased significant enthusiasm for manufacturing across MIT, particularly from students. Partnering with industry — from small to large firms, and from nascent startups to industrial behemoths — will be vital for creating impact and realizing the vision for new manufacturing.”

In her letter to the MIT community today, Kornbluth emphasized that the initiative’s aim is to catalyze transformation by enhancing manufacturing productivity, resilience, and sustainability.

“We aspire to reimagine manufacturing technologies and systems to elevate fields like energy production, health care, computing, transportation, consumer products, and more,” she articulated. “Moreover, we want to extend our reach beyond the shop floor to address challenges such as enhancing supply chain resilience and informing public policy to foster a broad, healthy manufacturing ecosystem that can drive decades of innovation and growth.”

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