AMES, Iowa – Iowa State University’s Center for Industrial Research and Service (CIRAS) is proud to announce that we have obtained several new contracts over the past month that will aid in our efforts to help Iowa manufacturers respond to a rapidly changing world.
CIRAS is receiving:
- COVID-19 assistance under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act totaling $595,000 from the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program. CIRAS will use this funding to help small- to medium-sized manufacturers assess, respond and recover from COVID-19.
- Industry 4.0 implementation funds totaling $200,000 as part of a $1 million joint project with Purdue University and the Illinois Manufacturing Extension Center (IMEC). This will be used to implement Small Manufacturer Assistance with Robotic Technologies (I-SMART), an innovative approach to providing technical assistance to small U.S. manufacturers via project-level engagements. CIRAS will work to increase the adoption of robotics, flexible automation, and related Industry 4.0 technologies that will help companies address the critical shortage of skilled manufacturing labor.
- MEP National Network assistance totaling $53,000 to create a regional service center supporting the network in food manufacturing. This is part of a larger effort by the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Partnership to create a Quality Safe and Efficient Food Industry Network.
For more information about CIRAS efforts to help companies respond and recover from COVID-19, visit www.ciras.iastate.edu/covid-19/.