RIT’s Center for Integrated Manufacturing Studies Receives $170,000 Federal Grant - Providing Needed Resources for Regional Manufacturers

With losses in the manufacturing sector statewide, the ability to compete in the local and global marketplace is more important than ever for regional manufacturers.

The Center Integrated Manufacturing Studies (CIMS), has received a $170,000 federal grant to assist them in helping regional manufacturers become more competitive.

The grant money, from the Economic Development Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce, will allow CIMS to offer manufacturing technologies services at reduced cost to local and regional businesses in the nine counties surrounding Rochester. The grant will pay up to 50 percent of the project cost and is targeted to small- and medium-sized manufacturing businesses with fewer than 500 employees.

"Small- and medium-sized businesses, taken collectively, are a significant part of the region’s manufacturing base," said Bill Sheeran, director of CIMS. "The strength of that sector depends on each individual business. We’re excited that this grant extends our reach to the nine-county area around Rochester."

The nine-county area includes Monroe, Genesee, Livingston, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates.

CIMS’s focus is to help manufacturers become more competitive locally and globally, while increasing their workforce, by bringing them the latest in applied technology and training.

CIMS offers a variety of manufacturing technologies services to help businesses identify their barriers to growth and develop solutions to address them including:

Ergonomics, safety and health analysis—Using resources at CIMS and RIT’s Industrial and Systems Engineering department, CIMS evaluates factories and offices to see if workers are at a high risk for operator or repetitive motion injuries. They then recommend improved safety measures, resulting in higher worker productivity due to less down time from injury and a more efficient and ergonomic office work area.

Information Technologies—With its own experts and resources from RIT’s IT Laboratory, CIMS also provides support for the critical information technology needs of the small manufacturer including creating disaster recovery plans, data backup systems, and computer equipment and software assessment for continued IT growth.

Manufacturing process improvement / plant layout—Finding more efficient ways to do things using newer technologies results in less waste and reduced cost. Through their own resources and those available at RIT, CIMS brings the powerful tools of lean enterprise and Six Sigma to bear on such improvements.

Engineering and design support—CIMS offers help with design for low cost and high quality. For example, this means that the parts of a product are designed to be easily assembled with the least amount of tools and time necessary.