From Research Lab to the Assembly Line: Walmart, the Walmart Foundation & the U.S. Conference of Mayors Award $4 Million to H...
August 14 2014 - 4:34PM
Business Wire
Walmart U.S. Manufacturing Innovation Fund will
award $10 Million in grants over next five years; Grants latest
milestone in Walmart’s unprecedented $250 billion domestic
manufacturing commitment
Walmart, the Walmart Foundation and the U.S. Conference of
Mayors (USCM), kicked off a new chapter in the modern American
manufacturing story today as the global retailer announced the
first grant recipients of the Walmart U.S. Manufacturing Innovation
Fund’s $10 million commitment at the 2nd U.S. Manufacturing Summit
in Denver. The summit is bringing together manufacturers suppliers,
governors and mayors from across 42 states.
Seven leading research and development institutions were awarded
a total of $4 million in grants to create new processes, ideas, and
job creation that will foster America’s growing manufacturing
footprint. The fund, which focuses on the development of domestic
manufacturing with a specific goal of advancing the production or
assembly of consumer products in the U.S., will provide a total of
$10 million in grants over the next five years.
“Innovation is part of the heart and soul of Walmart,” said
Michelle Gloeckler, Walmart’s executive president of consumables
and U.S. manufacturing. “By investing in American ingenuity
originating everywhere from the research lab to the assembly line,
we can transform our approach to manufacturing to be more
cost-effective and efficient. We can bring more jobs and more
production back into American communities.”
The grant recipients were selected for their ability to address
two key areas that currently present barriers to increased domestic
manufacturing:
- Reducing the cost of textiles
manufacturing, including home textiles and apparel, in the U.S. by
addressing obstacles throughout production.
- Improving common manufacturing
processes with broad application to many types of consumer
products.
“It’s only fitting to work with the nation’s largest retailer on
this initiative, a company that is committed to U.S. manufacturing
and creating more jobs to help boost the U.S. economy,” said Kevin
Johnson, President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and mayor of
Sacramento. “The projects recognized today are some of the best
ways we’ve seen to bring American manufacturing into the Cities 3.0
era, helping to create hubs of innovation, entrepreneurship, and
technology. Cities 3.0 is the next era of the American city,
where cities are becoming the laboratories and incubators of change
by supporting projects like the ones recognized today."
The 2014 Walmart U.S. Manufacturing Innovation Fund grant
winners are:
- Georgia Tech Research
Corporation for innovation of thread-count-based fabric motion
control, a critical enabling technology for the automated
production of sewn goods.
- Indiana University-Purdue University
at Indianapolis (IUPUI) to advance and accelerate the
industrial implementation of metal 3-D printing for the
manufacturing of plastic injection tooling as an alternative to
current metal-shaping practices.
- North Carolina State University
College of Textiles to address challenges to manufacturing of
furniture cushions in the U.S. by implementing new technologies in
both fabric printing and cut-and-sew automation.
- Oregon State University to
develop two novel alternative mold fabricating approaches, and
evaluate for functionality, precision and cost reduction
potential.
- Texas Tech University to support
collaborative research on cotton breeding and biotechnology, cotton
production, and various aspects of textile manufacturing, dyeing
efficiency and specialty finishes.
- University of Texas at Arlington
to develop a novel manufacturing system that will autonomously
prepare small motor sub-systems and assemble the motor
components.
- University of Georgia Research
Foundation to develop an innovative approach to fabric dyeing
that will greatly reduce, and perhaps eliminate, the need for water
in dyeing cotton and cotton/polyester fabrics and yarns.
The Innovation Fund is another milestone in Walmart’s broader
commitment to help revitalize U.S.-based manufacturing. In January
2013, Walmart announced the retailer would buy an additional $250
billion in products supporting American manufacturing and American
jobs by 2023.
Together, these commitments represent a significant investment
that will help accelerate the pace of U.S. manufacturing. By making
production in the U.S. more cost effective and efficient, the
global retailer believes it can bring American consumers an
increasing number of American-made products and ultimately create
more jobs in communities across the country.
For more information on Walmart’s commitment to U.S.
manufacturing, please visit
http://corporate.walmart.com/global-responsibility/us-manufacturing.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world
save money and live better – anytime and anywhere -- in retail
stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, more
than 245 million customers and members visit our almost 11,000
stores under 71 banners in 27 countries and ecommerce websites in
10 countries. With fiscal year 2014 sales of over $473 billion,
Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. Walmart
continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy
and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart
can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com on Facebook
at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/walmart. Online merchandise sales are available
at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.
About Philanthropy at Walmart
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are committed to helping
people live better through philanthropic efforts. By operating
globally and giving back locally, Walmart is uniquely positioned to
address the needs of the communities it serves and make a
significant social impact within its core areas of giving: Hunger
Relief & Healthy Eating, Sustainability, Career Opportunity and
Women’s Economic Empowerment. Walmart and the Walmart Foundation
are leading the fight against hunger in the United States with a $2
billion commitment through 2015. Walmart has donated more than 1
billion meals to those in need across the country. To learn more
about Walmart’s giving, visit foundation.walmart.com.
About The U.S. Conference of Mayors
The United States Conference of Mayors is the official
non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or
more. There are nearly 1,400 such cities in the country today. Each
city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected
official, the mayor. The primary roles of the Conference are to
promote the development of effective national urban/suburban
policy; strengthen federal-city relationships; ensure that federal
policy meets urban needs; provide mayors with leadership and
management tools; and create a forum in which mayors can share
ideas and information. www.usmayors.org
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Walmart Media RelationsKayla Whaling, 800-331-0085
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