Michigan Business Beat | Joe Steele, LIFT - Where Manufacturing Technology and Talent Matter

Michigan Business Network

Originally uploaded August 15th, re-edited October 15th. On recommendation by Karl Klimek, MBN host of Education's Business – who has been working on some projects with Nigel Francis who among many other roles has served as inaugurator of the Automotive Industry Office in the State of Michigan. Detroit's LIFT, is the national manufacturing innovation institute where manufacturing technology and talent matter. Chris Holman welcomes Joe Steele, VP of Comm and Govt. Affairs, LIFT, Detroit, MI. What is LIFT? (We are a nonprofit, public-private partnership and DoD national manufacturing innovation institute whose mission is to Drive American Advanced Manufacturing Into the Future Though Technology and Talent Development in support of our national economy and national security) That sounds like a lot, how do you do that? (We work at the intersection of advanced materials, manufacturing processes, systems engineering, and talent development. Basically, we work with the DoD and industry to understand what they want to make in the future, then we work with them to understand how to make it and what to make it out of so it can fit their purpose) What are some of the examples of those: (Technology: Hypersonics materials development, HUMVEE ABS/ESC systems to save warfighters lives) (Talent: Operation Next, which provides advanced manufacturing certification opportunities, and IGNITE: Mastering Manufacturing, which is a high school curriculum to provide foundational education for advanced manufacturing) You are a national manufacturing institute, but working in Michigan? (Yes, Michigan is our headquarters, we are a true economic development success story having moved into a building which was vacant for a decade and now we have seen what’s happened in Corktown. And yes, we are expanding into other areas of the nation where we believe we can have an impact, but we want everything to happen in Michigan first) What is exciting that is happening in Michigan? (Hypersonics and Extreme Environment Testing facility at Selfridge, developing our own materials here in Corktown, etc…) How can people get in touch? www.lift.technology. » Visit MBN website: www.michiganbusinessnetwork.com/ » Subscribe to MBN’s YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCqNX… » Like MBN: www.facebook.com/mibiznetwork » Follow MBN: twitter.com/MIBizNetwork/ » MBN Instagram: www.instagram.com/mibiznetwork/