Manufacturing, Design, and Innovation

Areas of Interest:

Competitiveness

Project Type:

NAE Program

Latest Update: October 23, 2015

The National Academy of Engineering has started a new initiative to understand the role of manufacturing, design, and innovation in making value for America’s future. Launched by the October 2011 NAE Annual Meeting Forum entitled Making Things: 21st Century Manufacturing and Design, this initiative will consist of a multi-year portfolio of activities—including workshops, symposia, and consensus studies.

Primary Contact: Kenan Jarboe

202.334.2269

kjarboe@nae.edu

Transformational changes are occurring in US-based manufacturing, design, and innovation. US manufacturing employment has significantly changed due to increasing globalization, industry restructuring, and automation of the factory floor. At the same time, innovations in technologies and business models—such as additive manufacturing, robotics, biotechnology, and “servitization”—present important opportunities for new value creation in the United States. In 2011 NAE launched the Manufacturing, Design, and Innovation Initiative to understand the effects of these changes on US prosperity and employment and their implications for business practices, research, education, and public policy.

More on this

Making Value for America Study
Concerned about the challenges facing US manufacturing--and excited about the prospect of dramatic change in this sector--the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) undertook a study to identify best practices along the manufacturing value chain and to recommend public- and private-sector actions to make the United States an effective environment for value creation. The NAE was joined in supporting this study by Gordon E. Moore, Robert A. Pritzker and the Robert Pritzker Family Foundation, Jonathan J. Rubinstein, Edward Horton, and by a number of US companies--Boeing, Cummins, IBM, Qualcomm, Rockwell Collins, and Xerox.
Why I am optimistic about manufacturing
This is an expanded version of my welcoming address to the "Workshop on Building the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation," September 27, 2012, held at the western conference center of the National Academies, Irvine, California.
Jamie Bonini on manufacturing operations.
Jamie Bonini of Toyota discusses the improvement potential in manufacturing operations.
Paul McKenzie on drugs, apps, and the healthcare system.
Paul McKenzie of Johnson & Johnson speaking about integrating drugs, apps, and the healthcare system.
Jon Rubinstein on software development.
Jon Rubinstein, former CEO of Palm, talking about how software is eating the world.
Understanding and Reversing the Decline of Business Creation Panel video.
Panelists discuss the decline of business creation and how to reverse it.
Paul McKenzie on manufacturing skills.
Paul McKenzie discusses the skills needed for the future of manufacturing.
Jamie Bonini on manufacturing in the United States.
Jamie Bonini speaking to the advantages and disadvantages of manufacturing in the United States.
Jon Rubinstein on Foxconn’s interest in manufacturing in North America.
Jon Rubinstein explaining why Foxconn is interested in manufacturing in North America.
President’s Address
Transcript of NAE President Charles M. Vest's address at the 2012 National Academy of Engineering Annual Meeting in Washington DC on September 30 2012

Project Status

Featured Resources

Making Value for America

Making Value for America presents a roadmap to enhance the nation's capacity to pursue opportunities and adapt to transforming value chains.
Making Value for America: Report in Brief
Making Value for America: Summary Report
Making Value: Integrating Manufacturing, Design, and Innovation to Thrive in the Changing Global Economy

Manufacturing is in a period of dramatic transformation. But in the United States, public and political dialogue is simplistically focused almost entirely on the movement of certain manufacturing jobs overseas to low-wage countries.