Crain's Detroit Business: Sen. Peters to propose National Institute of Manufacturing to bring programs under one agency

Michigan Sen. Gary Peters wants the U.S. to reimagine its manufacturing policy. The Democratic congressman plans to introduce a bipartisan bill to create the National Institute of Manufacturing to house the federal government's manufacturing programs under one agency.

"It's really a way to focus the activities at the government level for manufacturing," Peters told Crain's in a phone call following the announcement at the MForesight Manufacturing Summit in Washington, D.C. "There are 58 programs within the federal government, but spread across 11 agencies. Basically, there's no coordination and has led to silos and red tape."

The institute is designed to promote existing federal manufacturing programs and work to develop a national manufacturing policy. A national chief manufacturing officer would be hired to lead the institute, Peters said.

Peters said the institute could serve as a hub to help the industry fill in the gaps on advanced research and development and retraining efforts.

"We're not looking to create new programs, but to coordinate existing manufacturing programs," he said. "When that one voice comes to Congress it will be a clarion call."

Peters said the institute will create efficiencies that will save tax dollars, which can be recycled into the institute's programs.

The senator pointed to the manufacturing efforts of China, Japan and South Korea and their strategic policy vision for manufacturing. The U.S. has fallen behind in manufacturing due to a lack of a cohesive agency amid increased competition, he said.

While Peters said the need for technical education is key to improving the manufacturing sector, don't expect the institute to forge worker protections and other labor demands.

"The cost of labor is a 20th century phenomena," he said. "When we look at advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning, the ability for these tools to process vast amounts of data, that's the future of manufacturing. It's not an army of low-cost workers putting together widgets. I do believe we can bring jobs back from China, but that doesn't mean we have to think about (those jobs) the old paradigms."

Peters plans to introduce legislation in the Senate soon, but is looking for bipartisan support among his colleagues. He also hopes to have a companion bill introduced in the House of Representatives.

When asked about any potential pushback, Peters said he doesn't expect any from Republicans but the individual agencies currently housing manufacturing may not like "losing turf."

"To start focusing on manufacturing in this country, we have to move beyond turf," Peters said. "This will make the government effective and efficient."

• Manufacturing USA Program
• Manufacturing Engineering Education Program
• Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program
• Manufacturing Extension Partnership Advisory Board
• Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership
• Office of Manufacturing
• United States Manufacturing Council
• Materials Processing Equipment Technical Advisory Committee