Several regional manufacturing executives – Jay Schmidt from Silicon Forest Electronics, Carlos Veliz from Commercial Aircraft Interiors, Jennifer Porter from Satsuma Designs, Allison Budvarson from Out of the Box Manufacturing, Drew Dalgetty from Crunch Pak, Jan Schmidlkofer from K & N Electronic Motors, Inc. Steve Wittenberg from Toolcraft, Inc. and Sarah Lee 李姗姗, Governor’s Sector Lead and Director of Advanced Manufacturing– participated with Impact Washington staff during the month of March to advocate in support of Impact Washington and the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program funding during the annual Hill Day Initiative.
Annual Hill Day events intend to raise awareness of the importance of small and medium-sized manufacturers’ effect on the economy. By showcasing the achievements of this sector to elected officials, participating members can demonstrate a return on investment of the federal funding generated through the MEP program.
Hill Day consisted of meetings with each of the Washington congressional delegates and our two state Senators via virtual sessions to discuss manufacturing and the critical role that Impact Washington and the NIST MEP National Network play in assisting manufacturers. The event(s) were coordinated with the help of the American Small Manufacturers Coalition (ASMC), a trade association that advocates for legislative and programmatic resources that allow small and medium-sized manufacturers to better compete in the global marketplace.
Many conversations focused on how companies are enduring the pandemic, how their innovation and resilience have helped them pivot in the ‘what’ and ‘how’ they manufacture, and discuss workforce and supply chain opportunities. Additionally, companies were able to share the COVID-19 resources and support provided by Impact Washington. More specifically, attending manufacturing leaders shared their experiences and benefits received by working with Impact Washington and our extended manufacturing experts.
Impact Washington discussed how we’d been a powerful economic driver in supporting Washington manufacturing since 1997. Over the past five years, Impact Washington has been a catalyst for the following impacts*:
- The creation and retention of more than 8,649 jobs
- $927.5 million in increased/retained sales
- $333.6 million in capital investments
- $104.4 million in process improvement savings
Impact Washington continues to work closely with congressional delegates, their staff, and the manufacturing community, focusing on improving the manufacturing industry’s competitiveness through innovative solutions to products and processes.
View Impact Washington Impact Reports By Congressional District
*Client reported impact (2017-2021) comes from surveys conducted by a NIST MEP third-party
About ASMC
The American Small Manufacturers Coalition (ASMC) is a trade association of manufacturing extension centers that work to improve the innovation and productivity of America’s manufacturing community. ASMC advocates for legislative and programmatic resources that allow our small manufacturing clients to better compete in the global marketplace. The Coalition and its members do this by increasing awareness of the importance of American small manufacturers, the challenges which they face, and the federal legislation and programs that affect them.