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YBI leader speaks on Capitol Hill
By Kalea Hall
WASHINGTON
The Youngstown Business Incubator’s chief operating officer was one of several panelists to discuss the need for networks such as America Makes to support business ventures.
Barb Ewing was a part of the congressional briefing on the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation that took place Thursday in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker discussed the need to pass the Revitalize American Manufacturing Innovation Act, which would create up to 15 regional institutes across the country similar to the Youngstown-based America Makes, which focuses on additive manufacturing. The Senate bill, sponsored by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, passed out of the Senate Commerce Committee, and the House bill passed the full House of Representatives on Monday.
“This is something we need to do to make sure our manufacturers remain competitive,” Ewing said Friday.
Brown, U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy, D-Mass., and Rep. Tom Reed, R-N.Y., co-hosted the discussion Thursday. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., could not attend the discussion.
Ewing was a part of the Industry Speaks: The Network’s Private Sector Benefits panel with President and CEO Rebecca Bagley of NorTech, Corporate Director Steve Betza of Lockheed Martin Corp., President and CEO Nat Frampton of Real Time Development Corp., Technical Director Christine Furstoss of GE Global Research and President and CEO Matt Hlavin of rp +m.
“My message was really that for communities like Youngstown that America Makes and others can really be catalytic [and] can help companies,” Ewing said.
She discussed the support America Makes gives to small and medium-size businesses to be innovative, which can be a risky venture on their own.
“It is such an important initiative for Youngstown and for the state of Ohio,” Ewing said.
In addition to America Makes, three other innovation institutes like it have been established in North Carolina, Chicago and Detroit.
Pritzker mentioned that there are four other pilot institutes focused on the energy and defense sectors in the pipeline.
“I believe that the genius of this entire effort — and this legislation — is to encourage more dynamic collaboration,” Pritzker said Thursday. “And with the RAMI Act, we hope to be able to meet the real and growing demand for the development of more advanced-manufacturing technologies.”