ALMMII Will Cut Ribbon to Open Detroit Innovation Acceleration Center Jan. 15

Center will speed development of new lightweight metal manufacturing processes from laboratories to factories

News provided by

American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute

Jan 09, 2015, 09:00 ET

DETROIT, Jan. 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- ALMMII, the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute will cut the ribbon to officially open its new innovation acceleration center in Detroit, Michigan on January 15, 2015. The 100,000 square-foot facility is part of a national network of research institutions and industrial companies geared toward advancing America's leadership in manufacturing technology.

The center's focus is to accelerate the transfer of new manufacturing technology from the research lab to the production floor for products using lightweight metals -- including aluminum, magnesium, titanium, and advanced high-strength steel alloys. An equally important mission of the center is to facilitate the training of the workers who will be using these new processes in factories and maintenance facilitates around the country.

ALMMII is funded by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, with strong support from industry partners and academic research institutions. It will be led by industry with input from the government. The lead partners in founding ALMMII are the University of Michigan, Ohio State University and EWI, an independent research and development organization based in Columbus, Ohio.

ALMMII has established its headquarters in Detroit, Michigan because it is the epicenter of the largest concentration of automotive research and development centers in the world. The location also places the center along I-75, an industrial corridor that connects states in which nearly half of America's manufacturing workforce is located. ALMMII will directly serve a five-state region, although its work is national in scope.

Reducing the weight of materials used in vehicles is imperative to save energy costs and extend military missions. Research institutions are creating breakthroughs in laboratories that offer great promise. ALMMII is an organization that will connect private companies to those laboratories to do the important work of developing the specific tools and skills to make research breakthroughs practical for production of parts primarily for vehicles, airplanes and other forms of transportation.

The January 15th event will coincide with industry day at the North American International Auto Show in downtown Detroit. It will feature 23 demonstrations and displays from industry and research partners, including a live demo of flash steel-making technology.

Partners exhibiting include: American Bureau of Shipping, Alcoa, American Foundry Society, Boeing, Comau, DNV, Eaton, Flash Bainite, GREDE, Johnson Controls, Materion, Metalsa, TARDEC, and Tenneco.

Event details

Date and Time
January 15, 2015

1:00 PM - Doors open
1:40 PM - Program begins
2:15 PM - (approx.) Ribbon cutting and opening of the Innovation Experience – temporary exhibits of lightweight technology research and manufacturing, and the focus of the work of ALMMII.
3:30 PM - Open house ends

Location
1400 Rosa Parks Blvd. in Detroit's Corktown district
Valet parking available from the entrance off Labrosse St. Limited street parking also available.

Speakers

Mike Duggan, Mayor of Detroit
Lawrence Brown, Executive Director of ALMMII
Mr. Andre Gudger, Director of the Office of Small Business Programs and advisor to the Secretary of Defense
Representatives of industry and education

The Story

America needs manufacturing leadership to generate jobs and support homeland security.
ALMMII and its companion national institutes will fill an important role to accelerate lightweight metal research from breakthrough to full commercial production.
ALMMII's location in Detroit, Michigan takes advantage of the concentration of automotive research and development in the region.
ALMMII will also facilitate advances in lightweight metal manufacturing technology across industries.
The Midwest is also home to half of America's metal manufacturing jobs.
Training the manufacturing workforce in the new technologies is critical to sustaining leadership, and is an important part of ALMMII's work.

Background
Facts about ALMMII: http://almmii.org/fact-sheet/

ALMMII home page: http://almmii.org/#home

SOURCE American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute