Advanced materials industry to get help from federal grant to U of U

The University of Utah has received a $4 million federal grant to assess and improve the supply chain for Utah’s carbon composites and advanced materials industry.

The grant from the Department of Defense’s Office of Economic Adjustment is aimed at making Utah’s advanced materials industry more globally competitive and capable of diversifying into new markets in which industry contracts can be secured and the number of state jobs increased.

Utah has been at the forefront of the advanced materials industry since the advent of space exploration in the 1950s. That’s when two Utah-based explosives companies — Hercules (now Hexcel) and Thiokol (now Orbital ATK) — developed the expertise that significantly improved space rockets by using carbon fiber. Now the state boasts more than 100 businesses in the industry.

“Utah has moved well beyond the early applications of carbon composites to now using these advanced materials in aerospace/defense, outdoor products, transportation equipment and medical products,” said Greg Jones, associate director of the Scientific Computing and Imaging (SCI) Institute at the University of Utah and the grant director. “Advanced composites are key to sustaining the military’s air fleet, improving medical products, creating innovative recreational products and contributing to widespread innovation across a range of industries and markets.”

Advanced materials range from composites such as carbon and glass fibers, to ceramics and polymers that are made using advanced manufacturing techniques, including filament winding, automated fiber placement and automated tape laying, he said.

Despite Utah’s history in advanced materials, improvements in the supply chain and ecosystem are needed for the local industry to expand and remain competitive, officials say.

“The supply chain consists of all those companies, large and small, that contribute in some way to the final advanced materials produced,” said Kevin Jessing, SCI Institute project manager. “The key components of an integrated supply chain include the manufacturers, raw material suppliers, service-based companies and, of course, the trained workforce. And when they all come together, they produce the real magic that is found in today’s advanced materials industry.”

The $4 million grant will fund an analysis to map Utah’s entire carbon composites supply chain. The mapping will extend to the personal-relationship level among professionals who work at various positions within the industry. The mapping tool will enable manufacturers to find local Utah companies with the expertise and equipment to supply their most demanding materials and manufacturing requirements.

“This is a unique effort to map the entire supply chain, which will yield worthwhile results not only for Utah but the entire industry,” Jones said. “Along with identifying all the companies engaged in the supply chain, we will also be able to track how they partner with each other. We want carbon fiber lay-up specialists in a company to be able to connect with their peers doing similar work somewhere else and share best practices.”

Expected outcomes from the project include mapping the entire Utah advanced materials and composites industry supply chain to know which companies provide what services and their relationships to one another; identifying gaps in the supply chain that need to be addressed; determining how to access future workforce and workforce development efforts; increasing contract opportunities for Utah manufacturers in both the defense and commercial sectors; and training supply chain members to promote more robust participation within the regional supply chain.

Project organizers will involve as many advanced composite companies and professionals as possible. Among ways for the industry to participate are registering for the industry newsletter at www.UAMMI.org, participating in supply chain mapping discussions, and attending project events.

A team of specialists has been organized to manage the grant under the direction of the University of Utah. The team includes Layton-based Logistic Specialties Inc., a leader in consulting, logistics and engineering support that provides both government and commercial entities with creative solutions; Redirect, a Salt Lake City-based digital marketing agency; Grow Utah, a Kaysville-based nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship and the expansion of emerging economic clusters across the state; and Quatere, a nonprofit engaged in online platform development across a range of areas, including a peer-to-peer entrepreneurship education model and an ecosystem map for entrepreneurs in Utah.

Several recent developments also have aimed at strengthening the state’s advanced materials industry:

• The U.S. Department of Commerce’s recent designation of Utah, among only a few communities across the country, as a manufacturing leader in its Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP) program. This program facilitates collaboration among advanced material and manufacturing communities across the country that are working together to solve common challenges in workforce, recycling, materials science and new markets.

• The October $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to determine the feasibility of using Utah coal to produce low-cost carbon fiber. If successful, this program will help create new jobs in rural communities in Utah that have been hard hit by the decline of the coal industry and provide a low-cost material to help open new markets for Utah composite manufacturers.

• The formation of the Utah Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Initiative (UAMMI). Supported by the state legislature. UAMMI is the joint effort of industry, government, military and academic leaders who are committed to strengthening the supply chain and ecosystem that supports the industry.