Workforce Needs
National Academies on MIIs
Nine DoD-led institutes working together to drive innovation and build a stronger, more resilient industrial base.
America’s Manufacturing Innovation Institutes
The Department of Defense (DoD) established nine Manufacturing Innovation Institutes (MIIs) to facilitate bringing together innovative ecosystems in critical technology sectors. These institutes, launched between 2012 and 2020, focus on accelerating the development and adoption of advanced manufacturing technologies critical to national security, defense, and economic competitiveness.
Click here to learn more about Manufacturing Innovation Institutes.
DoD engaged the National Academies to conduct studies on the performance of the MIIs. The second study focused on best practices for MIIs’ education and workforce development programs.
Why this matters to local workforce development efforts
The National Academies second report emphasized Workforce Development best practices and provides a number of recommendations and best practices, emphasizing how MIIs can build a skilled manufacturing workforce to support DoD’s needs.
The following specific topics were examined in the report:
- Workforce education models that are relevant to MII workforce efforts,
- MII engagement with the Department of Defense (DoD) organic industrial base,
- The effectiveness of online education in scaling manufacturing education, and
- The role of MIIs in credentialing for EWD.
The report provides detailed results and recommendations for MIIs, much of which can be translated to the local level because of the emphasis on small and mid-sized manufacturers.
Click here to read the full report:
