US NIST Funding Manufacturing Institutes to Support Pandemic Response

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has opened a funding opportunity for rapid, high-impact projects that support the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Using funds appropriated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act signed by President Trump on March 27, 2020, NIST will award these grants through the NIST Manufacturing USA National Emergency Assistance Program with no requirements for cost matching.

Funding will be awarded to eligible Manufacturing USA institutes, a network of 14 public-private partnerships that work with academic and private sector manufacturing organizations on research and development and manufacturing skills training.  Each institute focuses on a particular advanced manufacturing specialty, such as biofabrication, 3D manufacturing or advanced functional fabrics.

Eligible institutes are invited to propose projects that may include (but are not limited to) medical or nonmedical countermeasures; grants to accelerate production of critical materials, equipment and supplies; additional production facilities; technology road-mapping for pandemic response and recovery; leveraging institute capabilities to strengthen state and community resilience; returning to the U.S. the manufacture of critical conventional drugs and ensuring supply chains for critical materials related to pandemic response; or workforce development and training for manufacturing workers. 

Complete award details, including eligibility requirements, are available on grants.gov.  Additional information on Manufacturing USA and the Manufacturing USA National Emergency Assistance Program, including informational webinars, may be found at www.ManufacturingUSA.com.