The US Department of Defense affiliated MxD has made $1.5 million in funding available for projects seeking to further ongoing modernization efforts in manufacturing. The funding will be split across three projects focused on enhancing dynamic scheduling and optimization, cybersecurity, and digital twin technology within distributed manufacturing setups. “These projects reflect the diversity of tactical approaches and technical advancement needed for a digital manufacturing and cybersecurity revolution,” said Chandra Brown, CEO of MxD. “By combining the support of the Department of Defense with the ingenuity of MxD’s industry and academic partners, we’ll make significant leaps forward in addressing the challenges manufacturers face today when making the jump to digital.” MxD works in partnership with the DoD to equip US factories with the digital tools, cybersecurity, and workforce expertise they need to improve their manufacturing operations. The organization has helped more than 300 partners to increase their productivity and has been designated the National Center for Cybersecurity in Manufacturing by the DoD. MxD has increased its focus on facilitating the adoption of additive manufacturing over the past year, having received funding from the FDA’s Office of Counterterrorism and Emerging Threats last December for medical 3D printing research projects. Participants in the project will help to advance manufacturing domain knowledge concerning real-time scheduling tools, and gain an understanding of the benefits of implementing them for their manufacturing processes. The aim of the project is to ramp up the availability and adoption of cybersecurity tools within digital manufacturing environments in order to protect both new and legacy factory equipment.

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