Advanced Robotics

THIS EDA INVESTMENT SUPPORTS THE SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA (SWPA) NEW ECONOMY COLLABORATIVE, A COALITION OF THE REGION'S LEADING UNIVERSITY, PHILANTHROPIC, AND PRIVATE SECTOR LEADERS, WITH STRENGTHENING THE ROBOTICS AND AUTONOMY CLUSTER IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA BY ENSURING THAT ITS ECONOMIC BENEFITS EQUITABLY REACH RURAL AND COAL-IMPACTED COMMUNITIES IN THE 11-COUNTY REGION. THE FIVE PROJECTS FUNDED AS PART OF THIS AWARD INCLUDE SUPPORT FOR THE EXPANDED PATHWAYS TO NEW ECONOMY CAREERS TO GROW THE REGION'S EXISTING ROBOTICS AND AI-RELATED WORKFORCE TRAINING PORTFOLIO AND A SME ROBOTICS ADOPTION PROJECT TO SUPPORT TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION BY SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES. ONCE IMPLEMENTED, THE INVESTMENT WILL HELP DEVELOP AND STRENGTHEN REGIONAL INDUSTRY CLUSTERS - ALL WHILE EMBRACING ECONOMIC EQUITY, CREATING GOOD-PAYING JOBS, AND ENHANCING U.S. COMPETITIVENESS GLOBALLY.

THIS COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT SHALL BE PERFORMED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW) ENTITLED ADVANCED ROBOTICS & AUTOMATION FOR MANUFACTURING

TITLE: ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION DECISION FRAMEWORK FOR AGILITY AND RESILIENCE (RADAR)PURPOSE: THIS PROJECT WILL DEVELOP A DECISION FRAMEWORK FOR DETERMINING THE IMPACT OF DEPLOYING ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION INTO MANUFACTURING PROCESSES IN PREPARATION FOR GREATER SITUATIONAL AWARENESS AND PREPARATION FOR CRISIS RESPONSE TO SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTIONS. ACTIVITIES TO BE PERFORMED: THE PROJECT TEAM WILL DEVELOP A FRAMEWORK WITH A REPRESENTATIVE DATASET OF EASILY INTERPRETABLE COVID-19 SUPPLY CHAIN DATA, AN INTELLIGENCE DASHBOARD, MACRO- AND MICRO-SCALE MODELING TOOLS, AND A MANUFACTURING PILOT LINE THAT INTEGRATES THESE TOOLS WITH PHYSICAL ROBOTS AND SENSORS TO TEST DIFFERENT SCENARIOS.EXPECTED OUTCOMES: THE DECISION FRAMEWORK PRODUCED WILL IDENTIFY CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH APPROPRIATE INTEGRATIVE HUMAN-MACHINE INTERFACES OFFER VALUE FOR MANUFACTURING FLEXIBILITY AND COMPETITIVENESS IN U.S. SUPPLY CHAINS RELATED TO COVID-19 RESPONSE. THE FRAMEWORK WILL GUIDE INVESTMENTS THROUGH ASSESSMENTS OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ROBOTICS TECHNOLOGIES TO IMPROVE SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE AND FLEXIBILITY. INTENDED BENEFICIARIES: U.S. MANUFACTURERS, ESPECIALLY SMALL BUSINESSES, WILL SEE THE GREATEST BENEFIT FROM THE DECISION FRAMEWORK TOOL TO HELP DETERMINE THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR IMPLEMENTING ROBOTICS AND AUTOMATION. BUSINESSES CAN ASSESS THE IMPACT OF AUTOMATION AND/OR ROBOTS TO REDUCE PRODUCT ASSEMBLY COSTS, TIME TO FIRST PRODUCT AFTER A CHANGEOVER IN PRODUCTION LINE, TIME TO STEADY-STATE PRODUCTION, AND IMPROVED YIELD RATES. SUBRECIPIENT ACTIVITIES: THE RECIPIENT PLANS TO SUBAWARD FUNDS TO MANAGE THE PARTNERS IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ANALYSIS, MODELING, AND EXPERIMENTAL FRAMEWORK FOR THIS RESEARCH PROJECT.

DISLOCATED WORKER GRANTS

ADVANCED ROBOTICS FOR MANUFACTURING PROGRAM FOR COVID-19 RECOVERY

MARINE ADVANCED ROBOTICS (MAR) HAS DEVELOPED A FAMILY OF UNCREWED SURFACE VEHICLES (USVS) BASED ON OUR PATENTED WAM-V TECHNOLOGY. WAM-V STANDS FOR WAVE ADAPTIVE MODULAR VESSEL A HIGHLY STABLE, PORTABLE, FOLDABLE, AND ENERGY-EFFICIENT CLASS OF WATERCRAFT. THESE STURDY, SCALABLE USVS CAN BE PRE-STAGED PRIOR TO A HURRICANE, STORED IN STANDARD SHIPPING CONTAINERS, AND DEPLOYED WITHOUT EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE; THEY CAN BE QUICKLY ASSEMBLED AND LAUNCHED FROM THE BEACH BY A SMALL TEAM OF PEOPLE. MARINE ADVANCED ROBOTICS AND OUR CUSTOMERS USE THIS VERSATILE USV FOR MULTIPLE HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEY APPLICATIONS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, FORCE MULTIPLIER APPLICATIONS WITH CREWED SURVEY VESSELS. MAR PROPOSES TO FURTHER DEVELOP THE COLLABORATIVE ALGORITHMS USED IN THE AUTONOMOUS TEAMING OF THE WAM-VS SUCH THAT A SURVEY AREA CAN BE PREDEFINED, AND THE SWARM OF WAM-VS WILL AUTONOMOUSLY MAP AND MAKE LINE PLAN ADJUSTMENTS BASED ON REAL-TIME WATER DEPTH FROM THE SONAR, THE NUMBER OF USVS IN THE SWA

(9.6.03) AUTONOMOUS LARS FOR SUBSEA VEHICLES

PURPOSE: FUND A PILOT PROJECT THAT EXPLORES A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LIBRARY SYSTEM TO BRING HANDS-ON MANUFACTURING BOOTCAMPS TO LOW INCOME, UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES. BRING MANUFACTURING EDUCATION AND TRAINING TO RESIDENTS, EDUCATING THEM ABOUT MANUFACTURING CAREER OPPORTUNITIES, AND PROVIDING THEM WITH HANDS-ON TRAINING WORKSHOPS. ACTIVITIES TO BE PERFORMED: A ONE-DAY WORKSHOP FOLLOWED BY A TWO-WEEK MANUFACTURING CAREER DISCOVERY BOOTCAMP. THE TWO-WEEK BOOTCAMP INCLUDES A VARIETY OF HANDS-ON PROJECTS, CAREER COACHING, RESUME PREPARATION, OSHA10 TRAINING AND MOCK INTERVIEWS, AND GUARANTEED JOB INTERVIEWS WITH MULTIPLE EMPLOYERS ON THE FINAL DAY. AT THE END OF EACH BOOTCAMP, CANDIDATES RETAKE THE INITIAL ASSESSMENT TO TEST THEIR PROGRESS AND ARE ASSESSED BY BOOTCAMP INSTRUCTORS. THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED TO EMPLOYERS PRIOR TO THE FINAL DAY INTERVIEWS.EXPECTED OUTCOMES: BY 2030, THERE IS EXPECTED TO BE 2.1 MILLION ADVANCED MANUFACTURING JOBS GOING UNFILLED BY THE LACK OF SKILLED WORKERS. IT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE MANUFACTURING COMMUNITY TO START LOOKING BEYOND THE TRADITIONAL GROUPS TO RECRUIT NEW WORKERS. THIS PILOT PROJECT WILL EXPLORE A PARTNERSHIP WITH A PUBLIC LIBRARY AS A NEW LOCATION FOR HANDS-ON MANUFACTURING BOOTCAMPS. BY DELIVERING THE WORKSHOP AND THE BOOTCAMP AT A COMMUNITY-BASED LIBRARY LOCATION, PARTICIPANTS ARE NOT LIMITED BY TRANSPORTATION, HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET, AND COMMUNITY RESOURCES SUCH AS HELP FINDING NEW JOBS AND CAREERS. IF SUCCESSFUL, THE PILOT PROGRAM COULD BE SCALED AND OFFERED AT OTHER LOCATIONS TO CREATE A PIPELINE OF PEOPLE READY TO LAUNCH A CAREER AND HELP STRUGGLING MANUFACTURERS TO HIRE ENTRY-LEVEL AND SKILLED CANDIDATES. INTENDED BENEFICIARIES: THE MANUFACTURING CAREER DISCOVERY BOOTCAMP WILL HELP ADULTS WHO ARE UNEMPLOYED, UNDER-EMPLOYED, ECONOMICALLY DISTRESSED OR HAVE CRIMINAL BACKGROUNDS ACQUIRE THE SKILLS NEEDED TO LAUNCH A SUCCESSFUL CAREER IN MANUFACTURING. THE PILOT PROJECT WILL BE LOCATED IN HIGH-NEED, LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY IN THE GREATER TAMPA BAY AREA.SUBRECIPIENT ACTIVITIES: AMSKILLS, THE SUBRECIPIENT, WILL WORK WITH THE TAMPA BAY LIBRARY SYSTEM TO IDENTIFY THE SPECIFIC LOCATION FOR THE TWO-WEEK BOOT CAMP. THEY WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATION OF THE BOOTCAMP, OUTREACH TO RECRUIT NEW CANDIDATES FOR THE PROGRAM, AND SETUP OF THE DIGITAL RECRUITMENT TRAILER.