WESTBOROUGH — The Center for Advanced Manufacturing at MassTech Collaborative launched the third round of its Massachusetts Manufacturing Accelerate Program (MMAP), which aims to co-invest in small to medium-sized manufacturers across the state. MMAP aims to help manufacturers that are looking to increase their competitiveness, upskill their workforce, and meet the demands of ‘Industry 4.0’ by incorporating innovation-driven technologies such as automation, robotics, and connected devices into their production lines.
“The Healey-Driscoll administration is committed to supporting small businesses statewide, particularly the Massachusetts manufacturers that are critical to the Commonwealth’s economic success,” said Secretary Yvonne Hao of the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED). “Through MMAP, we’re helping these manufacturers upgrade their operations by incorporating 21st-century technologies that update old production lines. These new tools help these companies address customer demands, increase efficiency and sales, and hopefully grow their workforce.”
This is the third MMAP funding round launched by the Commonwealth, following the announcement of $2.1 million in grants to 13 Massachusetts companies in January 2022 and the awarding of $3.4 million to 15 companies during the statewide Manufacturing Mash-Up event last September.
“We’ve seen a strong interest in MMAP from every part of our state, which speaks to the geographic reach of this sector,” said Christine Nolan, director of the Commonwealth’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing. “Manufacturing is increasingly driven by innovation, but high-tech tools can be cost-prohibitive for smaller shops, which is the challenge the state is looking to solve through this program. With these new tools, our MMAP grantees will increase efficiencies, train and upskill their employees to more financially stable careers, and in turn be more competitive against global challengers.”
Massachusetts companies interested in applying to the program can find full details on the MMAP webpage at cam.masstech.org/mmap.
