Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – The Manufacturing Leadership Council, a division of the National Association of Manufacturers, has announced the election of Dan Dwight, president, CEO and director of Cooley Group, to the MLC’s Board of Governors. The MLC’s mission is to help senior manufacturing executives and emerging leaders define and shape a better future for themselves, their organizations and the industry at large by focusing on the intersection of critical business and technology issues that will drive growth today and in the future.

The MLC Board approved Dwight’s nomination in a unanimous vote. With his appointment, the MLC Board of Governors consists of 21 industry thought leaders who represent the full ecosystem of the manufacturing industry. As an advisory body, the MLC Board of Governors provides guidance to the MLC on its “Critical Issues” agenda, research studies and programs and services for the MLC membership.

“I am delighted to welcome Dan to the Board,” said John Fleming, chairman of the MLC Board of Governors. “He has truly established himself as a thought leader who is implementing Manufacturing 4.0. into his business. His hands-on experience will add to the value of the MLC for all of our members.”

“For the past four years, I experienced the value the Council brings to its constituent members by connecting global manufacturers with industry experts who share global best practices and the latest in academic research,” said Dwight. “Joining the Council as a board member is an exciting opportunity to collaborate with other executives and academic leaders in setting the Council’s strategic and operational objectives around Manufacturing 4.0 and beyond.”

Since his appointment as president, CEO and director of Cooley Group in 2011, Dwight successfully repositioned the 90-year-old company around three pillars of sustainable growth (economic prosperity, environmental stewardship and social responsibility) while improving the health, well-being, engagement and ultimately the capacity for innovation of the entire Cooley team. Under his leadership, Cooley has sustained revenue and profitability growth for seven consecutive years. During this time, Cooley generated more than 40 percent of its revenue from new products, won PBN Awards, including “Healthiest Employer of Rhode Island” and “Product Innovation & Design,” and cultivated collaborative partnerships such that more than 70 percent of Cooley’s revenue is managed under long-term customer supply agreements.

The Manufacturing Leadership Board of Governors comprises senior executives and industry experts at leading manufacturing, academic and research organizations around the world, including Lockheed Martin, Procter & Gamble, Ford Motor Company, Dow Chemical, Merck, Cisco Systems, IBM, Germany’s SmartFactory Technology Initiative, Lexmark International, Protolabs, Premio Foods, Virtex Enterprises, S&S Hinge, Graphicast, MIT, UCLA, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Manufacturing in the UK, the U.S. National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining and consultants Frost & Sullivan. For more information and MLC membership details, visit www.manufacturingleadershipcouncil.com.

-MLC/NAM-

Founded in 2008, and now a division of the National Association of Manufacturers, the Manufacturing Leadership Council’s mission is to inspire and support manufacturing executives to achieve transformational growth for themselves, their companies and the industry at large through enlightened leadership. With more than 1,500 senior-level members from many of the world’s leading manufacturing companies, the MLC focuses on the intersection of advanced digital technologies and the business, identifying growth and improvement opportunities in the operation, organization and leadership of manufacturing enterprises as they pursue their journeys to Manufacturing 4.0.

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.8 million men and women, contributes $2.35 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than two-thirds of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

733 10th St. NW, Suite 700 • Washington, DC 20001 • (202) 637-3000

Nominations Open for Program Honoring Companies Leading the Industry into the Manufacturing 4.0 Era

Washington, D.C. – Reflecting significant industry trends, the 2019 Manufacturing Leadership (ML) Awards will add a new emphasis on recognizing emerging individual leaders under 30 years of age and manufacturers that are excelling in the use of artificial intelligence.

Nominations are now open for the 2019 ML Awards. Through December 14, manufacturers and their partners may create and submit nominations online at https://manufacturingleadership.awardsplatform.com/.

In its 15th year, the ML Awards program, presented by the National Association of Manufacturers’ (NAM) Manufacturing Leadership Council (MLC), honors large and small companies and individual leaders shaping the future of manufacturing. Nominations are accepted from manufacturing companies from across the globe. The program also honors partners that have assisted ML Award–winning manufacturers in achieving transformational breakthroughs.

By winning an ML Award, companies and individuals are able to demonstrate that they are world-class when it comes to driving innovation, operational efficiency, customer value, the use of advanced digital technologies and employee engagement.

The ML Awards program includes categories for manufacturers that are transforming their businesses to succeed in the Manufacturing 4.0 (M4.0) era. The program recognizes outstanding projects as well as outstanding achievements by individual leaders.

For 2019, new and updated categories will raise the profile of outstanding young leaders and manufacturers using artificial intelligence to transform their operations.

“On their journeys to Manufacturing 4.0, companies are recognizing the opportunity of using artificial intelligence and machine learning to increase agility and responsiveness. They are also more keenly aware of the critical need to develop a bench of outstanding next-generation leaders for the M4.0 era,” said MLC Co-Founder and Executive Director and NAM Vice President David R. Brousell. “We are pleased to add categories to the ML Awards for 2019 that recognize these trends.”

Manufacturers and their partners may submit 2019 ML Award nominations in the following project categories.
2019 Project/Company Awards:

• Artificial Intelligence and Analytics Leadership
• Collaborative Innovation Leadership
• Engineering and Production Technology Leadership
• Enterprise Integration and Technology Leadership
• Industrial Internet of Things Leadership
• Operational Excellence Leadership
• Smart Products and Services Leadership
• Supply Chain Leadership
• Sustainability Leadership
• Talent Management Leadership

Manufacturers may also nominate individual leaders in the following categories:

• Visionary Leadership Award
• Next-Generation Leadership

Full descriptions of these categories as well as complete information about submitting a nomination are available at MLAwards.manufacturingleadershipcouncil.com.

Recipients of the ML Awards receive global recognition as manufacturing industry leaders and will be honored at the ML Awards Gala on June 12, 2019, at the Manufacturing Leadership Summit in Huntington Beach, California. Partners may also facilitate nominations for their outstanding manufacturing customers. Winners are those companies that receive the highest scores from the ML Awards judges. Partners facilitating winning nominations are also honored publicly.

Past ML Awards project winners have included the following companies:

• Airbus Operations GmbH
• Boeing Co.
• Ford Motor Co.
• General Electric Co.
• General Motors Co.
• IBM
• Lockheed Martin
• Merck & Company, Inc.
• Pixelligent Technologies LLC
• Raytheon
• The Dow Chemical Company
• Under Armour, Inc.

Top individual ML Award winners have included Richard E. Morley, father of the programmable logic controller, industry 4.0 pioneer Dr. Detlef Zühlke, National Council for Advanced Manufacturing Founder Leo Reddy, 3D printing inventor and 3D Systems Chief Technology Officer Charles W. Hull, Ford Executive Vice President for Global Manufacturing and Labor Affairs John Fleming and Sir James Dyson, inventor and founder of the Dyson Company.

Submissions may be made through December 14, 2018. ML Award winners will be notified in February 2019, prior to a public announcement. Discounted early-bird nominations will be accepted through October 31.

For more information on the ML Awards, including past recipients, deadline details, examples of completed nomination forms and to create and submit a nomination, visit https://manufacturingleadership.awardsplatform.com/.

-NAM-
The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12 million men and women, contributes $2.25 trillion to the U.S. economy annually, has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for more than three-quarters of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the Manufacturers or to follow us on Shopfloor, Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

733 10th St. NW, Suite 700 • Washington, DC 20001 • (202) 637-3000

Washington, D.C. – National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) President and CEO Jay Timmons today announced plans to continue the NAM’s ambitious organizational growth with the acquisition of the Manufacturing Leadership Council (MLC). The MLC is a leader in providing best practices, data and insights to manufacturing companies of all sizes on Manufacturing 4.0, the next wave of technological breakthroughs driving innovation in the industry. In keeping with the NAM’s 2020 Vision, the long-term growth plan developed under Timmons’ leadership, this acquisition will expand the association’s reach, operational expertise and diverse array of services available to NAM members.

“We are continuing to implement a vision we laid out more than three years ago when we made a commitment to provide programming that exceeds our members’ expectations and demonstrates what the modern business association should be,” said Timmons. “This acquisition is a milestone for the NAM and enhances the value proposition for our members at a time when trade associations are being asked to deliver an ever-growing array of services in addition to exceptional government relations leadership. The MLC will give the NAM access to unparalleled expertise and knowledge, while expanding our reach in the industry and diversifying our revenue streams—all in service to our mission of building a more successful and competitive manufacturing industry in the United States.”

The MLC provides its membership access to real-world insights from other manufacturing professionals on topics such as artificial intelligence, predictive maintenance, augmented and virtual reality, robotics, additive manufacturing, current workforce digital readiness and cybersecurity. MLC co-founder David R. Brousell will continue to lead the MLC’s day-to-day operations as vice president and executive director, reporting to NAM Chief Operating Officer Todd Boppell, who successfully negotiated and executed the deal on behalf of the NAM.

“The NAM is a natural home for the MLC. It’s a win–win for our current members, and we look forward to sharing our resources and programming with a growing number of manufacturing leaders,” said Brousell.

“Thanks in part to the NAM’s leadership, manufacturing in America is seeing incredibly strong growth, and the MLC is committed to providing the cutting-edge insights on the advanced technology, organization and leadership requirements of Manufacturing 4.0, a pivotal trend that is redefining industry competitiveness in the global market.”

As part of the acquisition, the MLC’s staff will join the NAM team.