Industry Specialists Sought to Meet Evolving Needs of RI Manufacturers

May 1, 2018 – PROVIDENCE, RI – Polaris MEP, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership for Rhode Island, is recruiting professional business consultants with a goal to help the state’s manufacturing companies thrive and grow. The application period runs from May 1 through June 15. Applications will be vetted by staff at Polaris MEP and approved partners will be offered opportunities to work with manufacturers on projects related to their area of expertise.

 “Through the Manufacturing Innovation Challenge and the Rhode Island Manufacturing B2B, we’ve learned that manufacturers need help accelerating growth,” said Polaris MEP Program Manager, Mary Johnson, “We’ve also learned that this need is often broader than our traditional cost-reduction and compliance offerings.”

Polaris MEP expects to line up a roster of trusted professionals with whom manufacturers can contract when they need help with a special project, like developing a strategic plan, designing a new website or creating a system security plan as required by NIST 800-171, among other areas.

“The benefit to the manufacturer is that they’ll save time locating, screening and interviewing professionals who can help with short term projects.” said Johnson. “For the consultants, it’s a great opportunity to be part of the manufacturing ecosystem in Rhode Island and meet potential new clients.”

For several years, Polaris MEP has worked with a small number of consultants to provide marketing and planning services to companies, and the results of those engagements, along with the recent success of the Manufacturing Innovation Challenge, led Polaris MEP to expand the program to include a larger pool of area experts.

The Manufacturing Innovation Challenge, funded by the Office of Economic Adjustment through the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation and managed by Polaris MEP, offered manufacturers in the Department of Defense supply chain the opportunity to work alongside a team of industry experts from a variety of professional disciplines to accurately frame challenges they face, define priorities, and bring clarity to their strategic focus.

“The findings of both the Manufacturing Innovation Challenge and surveys conducted during the Rhode Island Manufacturing B2B indicate that manufacturers want access to a range of professional services. “ said Johnson. “Polaris MEP hopes to expand our network within the consulting community to meet the needs of local manufacturers.”

For more information and to apply to be a Polaris resource, visit https://polarismep.org/contact/polaris-mep-resource-application/

About Polaris MEP
Polaris MEP is a statewide non-profit organization that provides competitive manufacturing business improvement programs to grow Rhode Island’s manufacturing industry. Polaris is an affiliate of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Program (NIST MEP) and a business unit of the University of Rhode Island Research Foundation. Since 1996 Polaris has delivered improvement solutions to more than 750 Rhode Island manufacturers to help them achieve sustainable and profitable growth.