Thursday, August 17, 2017
By KALEA HALL
khall@vindy.com
YOUNGSTOWN
Five years ago, the
decision was made to put the nation’s first additive manufacturing hub in Youngstown.
The city had a rich history in manufacturing that was in the midst of revitalization.
“We wanted to be a part of that,” said Ralph Resnick, founding director of America Makes.
America Makes members, leaders and others celebrated the additive manufacturing hub’s fifth birthday with cake, balloons and party hats. The crowd even sang “Happy Birthday.”
“We are the first, and there are now 14,” Resnick said. “We have been the flagship of this experiment of a public-private partnership.”
In summer 2012, a group of more than 60 private companies, nonprofit organizations and universities came together to form the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute now known as America Makes.
The institute, from the beginning, has been dedicated to further developing additive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing technologies build 3-D objects by adding material layer by layer.
When the announcement was made in 2012, community leaders came to the aid of America Makes. Specifically, the Youngstown Business Incubator offered America Makes its space to lease at 236 W. Boardman St.
Quickly, the former furniture warehouse was turned into a high-tech lab for additive manufacturing.
“We recognized right away that we were being given a tremendous opportunity,” said Barb Ewing, YBI chief executive officer. “It was never a given that it would have the impact it has. It was an opportunity to build something greater.”
With America Makes’ presence, YBI added additive manufacturing to its portfolio.
“We view ourselves and should view ourselves completely differently [from five years ago],” Ewing said. “We really are a player in this field.”
Today, there are more than 185 members in America Makes. These are world-class organizations looking to use additive manufacturing.
“We are having impact,” Resnick said at the event. “We would never have made five years, and we will never make the next five years without you.”
Earlier this year, Rob Gorham took over as America Makes executive director.
Gorham joined America Makes in February 2013 as deputy director for technology development and then served for the past 21⁄2 years as the America Makes director of operations.
Gorham explains what America Makes does by explaining its roles: convening, coordinating and catalyzing. The hub helps with networking, tells what’s going on in the industry and works on additive manufacturing research projects.
“For us to be effective, we have to continue to grow our community,” Gorham said. “We think there’s a huge opportunity in workforce and education.”