On September 15, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2996, the Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation (RAMI) Act. Viewed as a critical piece of legislation in America's renewed effort to preserve and recapture manufacturing jobs, the RAMI Act focuses efforts to spur innovation and capitalize on emerging manufacturing technologies.
"On behalf of IPC and our 2,200 U.S. member companies, I applaud the House of Representatives for working in a bipartisan manner to pass this critical piece of legislation," said John Mitchell, president and CEO of IPC. "IPC urges the Senate to take similar action and pass its version of the bill before Congress adjourns for the year."
A top priority for IPC, growing advanced manufacturing in the U.S. through federal investment is critical, and IPC strongly supports the RAMI Act. If enacted into law, the RAMI Act will establish a National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI). This network will consist of multiple centers for manufacturing innovation operating as public-private partnerships focusing on different technology areas to accelerate, strengthen, and grow advanced manufacturing in the U.S.
The bill was introduced in the House of Representatives Tom Reed (R-NY) and Joseph Kennedy (D-MA) in August of last year and passed the House today with an impressive number of 100 co-sponsors, 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans.
"Lockheed Martin is proud to be a charter member at all four Institutes for Manufacturing Innovation established to date," said Steve Betza, Lockheed Martin's corporate director for Advanced Manufacturing & Development and a member of the IPC Board of Directors. "These centers represent an unprecedented collaboration between government, industry, and academia to accelerate manufacturing innovation. As such, we support the goal of the RAMI Act to expand the NNMI."
On September 18, Betza will participate in a Senate briefing to outline the benefits and impacts of the NNMI.
The U.S. Senate is considering its version of the RAMI Act (S. 1468), which was introduce during August 2013 by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Roy Blunt (R-MO).
