Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Rick Siger said the state had invested $3.1 million in grants to support manufacturing projects.
Part of the Manufacturing PA Innovation program, the grants will support 47 student research projects across the state partnering with businesses to advance manufacturing innovation. The projects are part of the state’s Manufacturing PA’s fellowship program and involve 21 Pennsylvania universities in 19 counties and will embed some of the state’s graduate and undergraduate students with local manufacturers to develop new technologies and advance innovation statewide.
“Innovation has long been a critical part of Pennsylvania’s rich manufacturing and industrial history,“ Siger said. “The Shapiro Administration recognizes that Pennsylvania is a hub for innovation, and the Manufacturing PA Innovation Program will make sure we remain competitive and position the Commonwealth to address future needs.”
Among the projects funded during this round of awards are Carnegie Mellon University which will receive $70,000 to partner with HexSpline3D LLC in Allegheny County to assemble digital twins of biological neurosphere networks for computation and disease modeling; Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia which will also receive $70,000 to partner with Vytrina LLC in Philadelphia County to develop a gel patch to treat acute wounds with minimal scarring; and Drexel University which will also receive $70,000 to partner with Vitro Architectural Glass in Allegheny, Cumberland, and Crawford counties to enable large-scale manufacturing of flat glass for solar panels.
Since its inception in 2018, the Manufacturing PA fellowship program has granted over $21 million to 851 students across the Commonwealth for 323 total projects, and 237 Pennsylvania companies have benefited from these partnerships. The program is administered by DCED and Carnegie Mellon University.