The purpose of the Manufacturing Innovation Institutes Coordination is to create a place, or "industrial commons" led by U.S. industry to close the gap between early-stage research and development and the deployment of technology innovations by U.S. manufacturers. With these resources NIST will provide coordination among the evolving network of institutes, enabling sharing of best practices, reduction of the development of redundant start-up operations, and strengthening cross-institute collaborations.
The funds would coordinate the four institutes already launched and the five institutes that the Administration has committed to funding, led by the Department of Energy, Department of Defense, and Department of Agriculture.