Advanced Manufacturing : Featured Stories

Providing funds to explore a cutting edge food processing technique, establish a national 3D printing innovation hub and attract a Global Technical Center are just some of the ways Ohio Third Frontier’s Industrial Research Development Center Program supports public-private collaboration in order to spawn innovation and create jobs.

Once a national punchline, Northeast Ohio's waterways are now wellsprings of a burgeoning water technology industry that advocates believe will be paramount to the region's economic future.

After ten straight years of decline, Ohio manufacturing employment increased for the second straight year in 2012. Part of the reason is the emerging trend to bring production back to the U.S. from overseas facilities.

From bio-based milk cartons to asphalt, the Ohio Bioproducts Innovation Center at the Ohio State University has helped companies across the state to develop products from bio-based materials. Now the Center is playing a role in its biggest project yet, a $300M biorefinery that could power over 30,000 homes.

Like most of the country, Northeast Ohio was slammed hard by the tidal wave of the most recent recession. But thanks to an increasingly diversified economic strategy -- one that saw a transition from traditional manufacturing (steel, tires) to modern forms of manufacturing (healthcare equipment, polymers) -- the region is emerging from those damaging waters stronger than it has in the past, say area advocates.

If Ohio is to the global aerospace industry what the Silicon Valley is to the computer industry, then that makes Cincinnati-based GE Aviation our state's version of Apple or Intel. The powerhouse company recently enjoyed one of its most successful years ever as orders for its new GE90 engine hit all-time highs. Yet even as Ohio's aerospace industry climbs to new heights, its leaders say that business and government must focus their resources to hold onto our coveted, top spot in engine manufacturing and propulsion technology.

For nearly 30 years, the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network, or MAGNET, has served as the state's Edison Center charged with providing resources and advocacy for manufacturers in the northeast Ohio region. It's also the designated Edison Center for the state's automotive industry. hiVelocity spoke with Daniel E. Berry, MAGNET's president and CEO, about how manufacturing is faring these days.

Think manufacturing is dead in Ohio? Think again. Nearly 20,000 manufacturing jobs have been added across the state during the last year, according to a report recently released by the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee. Companies are posting profits again in their quarterly reports. And all signs say the manufacturing uptick is likely to continue.