Michigan officials expect benefits from manufacturing hub

DETROIT (AP) - A new partnership that will research and create lighter and stronger manufacturing materials will be a boost to Michigan's economy and the auto industry, officials said Tuesday.

President Barack Obama last week announced that the $259 million Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation, which will be anchored by the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and will include 122 public and private partners, including some from Michigan. They'll team to make lighter and stronger manufacturing materials for things like fuel-efficient cars or wind turbine blades.

The effort is backed in part by a $70 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and Michigan has made a $15 million commitment to support the hub's activities in Michigan over the next five years. Other partners are providing the rest of the funding.

"This award has huge implications on the future of the industry and will help smaller companies who need access technology or a place to test innovative ideas," Calley told reporters at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

As part of the effort, lab space is expected to be used in Detroit. Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, Midland-based Dow Chemical Co. and Dearborn-based Ford Motor Co. are among those involved in the Advanced Composites hub.

It joins other manufacturing hubs designated for Detroit; Youngstown, Ohio; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Chicago.

On Thursday, a ribbon-cutting is planned at the earlier announced $148 million American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute in Detroit. The research program is expected to help move cutting-edge metals from research into vehicles, planes and ships used commercially and by the U.S. military.

Meanwhile, Calley on Tuesday also joined officials in announcing the creation of the Michigan Design Council, which is intended to help grow Michigan's pool of design professionals.

Details are in the works, but plans call for the creation of an annual statewide product design prize and a district in Detroit where design work would be encouraged. A similar design enterprise zone could be organized in Grand Rapids to promote the design industry.

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