America Makes: The National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute (NAMII) Status Report and Future Opportunities (Postprint)

Manufacturing remains the essential core of the U.S. economys innovation infrastructure and is critical to national defense. However, a gap exists between RD activities and the deployment of technological innovations in the domestic production of goods and this gap could have long-term negative consequences for the defense industrial base. As global competition to manufacture advanced products intensifies, the performance of these innovation ecosystems must improve. Accelerating innovation and implementation of advanced manufacturing capabilities requires bridging a number of these gaps in the present U.S. innovation system. What is needed is for industry, academia, and government partners to leverage existing resources, collaborate, and co-invest to nurture manufacturing innovation and accelerate commercialization and defense production.