SSTI Digest

The Department of Defense commissioned a pilot study by TechLink of the economic impact of cooperative R&D agreements (CRADAs) at three Defense labs — U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center, the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane Division, and the Air Force Research Laboratory 711^th Human Performance Wing. The study received information on 628 of 645 completed CRADAs from 1996-2018, 168 of which resulted in sales for the lab’s industry partner. Related sales were $8.7 billion, of which $4.9 billion went to the U.S. military, and TechLink’s IMPLAN analysis estimates $3 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues as part of a $23 billion economic impact. CRADAs are a partnership mechanism available across the U.S. federal lab system: learn about this, and other tools, from the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer.

Addressing common misperceptions about the industry, Manufacturing Day — held tomorrow, Oct. 4 — strives to address skilled labor shortages manufacturers face by opening the doors of different manufacturers to the public and showing what manufacturing is, and isn’t. The day was created in 2012 with the support of many organizations educating the public on modern manufacturing, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). With more than 2,600 events planned across the U.S., there is still time to check one out in your area. You can also celebrate the day by catching up on the latest trends in manufacturing, such as these stories from the Weekly Digest:

Expanding and diversifying the nation’s Skilled Technical Workforce (STW) is vital to the nation’s future, according to a new report from the policymaking board of the National Science Foundation (NSF) that predicts a shortfall of 3.4 million skilled technical workers by 2022 unless changes are made.

The Skilled Technical Workforce: Crafting America’s Science and Engineering Enterprise report found that there are currently about 17 million workers without college degrees who use science and engineering skills in jobs such as health care technicians, computer systems analysts and administrators, and operators of “smart” infrastructure.

For years, there have been arguments back and forth on which companies are the greatest job creators. The argument began with advocates for small businesses saying that small businesses were the engine of job creation. In recent years, others have argued that it’s not the size of the business that’s significant so much as the age of the business and that it’s young businesses that create most of the jobs.

Analysis by SSTI of Census Bureau’s Business Employment Dynamics (BDM) data finds a more nuanced picture when examining states’ shares of net job creation by firm age.

In the maps below, green indicates high net job creation, with darker shades indicating stronger levels. Yellow and orange indicate low and near-zero net job creation, with orange indicating lower rates than yellow. Red indicates zero job creation and job losses. Black dots indicate each state’s share of total nationwide job creation.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham became the latest governor to propose a plan for free tuition, with what has been called the “one of the most ambitious attempts to make higher education more accessible.” If approved, the plan would allow in-state students to attend any of the 29 state public colleges or universities, regardless of income. It is designed as a “last-dollar” program. If approved, it would be just the second state to offer full tuition coverage to its residents (New York offers the Excelsior scholarship, which will be fully phased in in 2020), according to New Mexico’s governor.

Manufacturing USA recently released its 2018 annual report highlighting the progress its 14 associated institutes have made in growing the Manufacturing USA network, increasing manufacturing technology development and technology transfer, and promoting workforce development.

Ensuring the participation of industry in the program is essential to strengthening supply chains and promoting innovation in manufacturing. According to the report, the network grew its membership by 50 percent to 1,937 organizations, of which 63 percent are industrial groups. Of these industry members, 70 percent are small and medium-sized manufacturing companies. The report also notes that in an effort to accelerate the adoption of innovative manufacturing technologies, institute-led research and development projects increased by 74 percent to 476 projects.

The U.S. Senate advanced multiple FY 2020 bills through the appropriations committee in the past week, including the budgets for EDA, NIST, SBA, and NSF. Among the highlights include $31 million for the Regional Innovation program at EDA, a robust increase over FY 2019’s $23.5 million. While the Senate continues to work through this appropriations process, the chamber is also considering a resolution to continue funding the government from the end of the current fiscal year, Sept. 30, through Nov. 21.

Additional details on the bills passed today are forthcoming. In the meantime, the following appropriations are available publicly:

SBA’s 2019 Growth Accelerators Fund Competition winners were announced yesterday, awarding $50,000 to each of 60 organizations across the country. Special congratulations to the SSTI members, including BioSTL (BioGenerator), TechTown Detroit, Startup Junkie Foundation (Fuel), Invest Nebraska, Launch Tennessee, Innovation Works, Arrowhead Center (Sprints), and University of Illinois (EnterpriseWorks). The competition is for programs with 60 percent of funded work dedicated to supporting women, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and entrepreneurs in states with relatively few SBIR/STTR awards or in Opportunity Zones. SSTI held a webinar when the 2019 competition launched and will announce the 2020 round, when available, through the member-exclusive Funding Supplement.

SSTI’s Annual Conference in Providence, Rhode Island, held September 9-11, showcased successful programs, addressed challenges and examined trends and new developments across the innovation economy. We always like to welcome back old friends and are encouraged to see new faces. Said one long-time attendee, “I used to say this is the place to network with the most experienced and sophisticated practitioners. I’m pleased to see the blend of young people coming now, so I would say that SSTI brings together the young and seasoned for very effective conversation and exchange of ideas.”

We’d like to thank all those who attended, spoke, headlined and sponsored the conference. Stay tuned in the coming weeks as we highlight some of those issues that were raised during discussions and sessions while we continue to bring you news and analysis of factors affecting technology-based economic development.