Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnerships: A Resource for Work Centers
Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnerships or MEPs are a national network with local MEPs in each of the 50 states as well as in Puerto Rico. They are a part of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which is a U.S. Department of Commerce agency.
The MEP mission is to enhance the productivity and technological performance of of U.S. manufacturing. MEPs are a national network and the only public-private partnership dedicated to serving small and medium-sized manufacturers.
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Based on principles of partnership and collaboration on local, state, and federal levels, MEPs work directly with small manufacturing businesses with a goal to enhance manufacturing growth, diversity, and overall value. For additional information about the national MEP network, visit the Manufacturing Innovation Blog and download the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership: Delivering Measurable Results to Manufacturing Clients brochure.
"MEP’s state and regional centers facilitate and accelerate the transfer of manufacturing technology in partnership with industry, universities and educational institutions, state governments, and NIST and other federal and research laboratories and agencies."
— Carroll Thomas, Director MEP, VCAT Meeting Presentation, October 2016, Boulder, CO |
MEPs in New York State
In New York State, MEPs receive federal funding through the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and state funding through the New York State Foundation for Science , Technology, and Innovation (NYSTAR) and Empire State Development (ESD).
MEPs are organizations that support small manufacturing companies through partnership and collaboration that helps them improve/develop their products and fiscal viability. In the NYSRA Transformation Project, NYS MEPs have partnered with agencies operating work centers to change the way they do business. In the process, it has become clear that many work centers are actually small manufacturing companies with real potential for fiscal viability as small businesses. Moreover, the individuals working within these settings have valuable soft and hard work skills that make them valuable as potential employees of other manufacturing businesses.
MEPs are organizations that support small manufacturing companies through partnership and collaboration that helps them improve/develop their products and fiscal viability. In the NYSRA Transformation Project, NYS MEPs have partnered with agencies operating work centers to change the way they do business. In the process, it has become clear that many work centers are actually small manufacturing companies with real potential for fiscal viability as small businesses. Moreover, the individuals working within these settings have valuable soft and hard work skills that make them valuable as potential employees of other manufacturing businesses.
Additional Resources
In New York State, MEPs operate under an umbrella organization known as FuzeHub. For more information about FuzeHub and the ways that MEPs worked with NYS agencies to transform their approaches to manufacturing and employment, click on the websites listed below and the resources included in them:
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MEP Presentation
In this video, Everton Henriques, NYS FuzeHub Solutions Manager, describes the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) system in NYS and discusses how MEPs can be helpful to rehabilitation providers who would like to transform their work centers into sustainable businesses. |