More Than Meets The Eye – From the desk of LIFT CEO and Executive Director Nigel Francis

Last month I wrote to you about all the work that I saw going on at LIFT that was “beneath the surface.” In fact, I told my staff that coming here and seeing all the people and work going on here and across the network was much like an iceberg – most people only see the top, but there is a mountain underneath.

To help better showcase all the work being done at LIFT and by our members and partners, we are branching out with two more webinar series.

Most of you are aware of the “LIFT Off” series we present each month with the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center to showcase the technologies being developed by our small- and medium-sized members.

Starting this month, we are set to launch a new education and workforce development series – “Bringing Mind To Market” – to highlight how the institute and its partners are working to ensure the American advanced manufacturing workforce has the knowledge, skills and abilities to succeed in today’s technology-infused manufacturing workplace.

We are also going to be launching a technology-focused series – Manufacturing the LIGHT Way – which will highlight our technology projects, as well as the equipment we have in our high bay to help find solutions to your lightweighting needs.

Meanwhile, as I have been interviewed by reporters and met with a number of our members and other people in industry, they have asked me about tariffs and emission standards as it relates to our business. In the end, the business of lightweighting is all about saving people money – that includes using less material to manufacture parts, using less fuel to move a vehicle or developing more efficient processes. NO matter what the issue of the day is, at the end of the day, our mission is to reduce costs.

As always, I look forward to hearing from you and how we can help you achieve your lightweighting goals.