Manufacturing Day Open House

Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) and the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) will host an open house event from noon to 1 PM on Manufacturing Day, Friday, October 3, at SwRI's headquarters in San Antonio.

"SwRI is pleased to participate in Manufacturing Day, providing tours of our facilities to showcase flexible robotics solutions for unstructured and high-mix low-volume applications," said Paul Evans, director of SwRI's Manufacturing Systems Department. "Manufacturing uses innovation, precision and reliability to help solve interesting problems. Our staff will be available providing high-level education regarding new technologies we are leveraging to help make manufacturers become more competitive in this global market."

SwRI and TMAC will provide a presentation and tour that will focus on the importance of manufacturing to the U.S., showcase new robotics capabilities and highlight the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center. SwRI assists manufacturers in developing and achieving strategic goals and improvement plans. The Institute helps develop and implement automation, robotics and sensing solutions for advanced manufacturing. Manufacturing accounts for 14 percent of the U.S. GDP (gross domestic product) and 11 percent of U.S. employment, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.

TMAC, an affiliate of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership program of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, works to increase global competitiveness by helping Texas businesses gain technical manufacturing expertise. TMAC, headquartered in Austin, works through seven institutions across Texas including Southwest Research Institute where the TMAC South Central office is located.

"The Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center is an important Texas resource supporting broad needs in areas such as business transformation assistance, lean, ISO, workforce training, leadership training, product development, automation solutions and more," said Bill Rafferty, manager of TMAC's South Central Office. "TMAC can address the needs of small, medium and large manufacturers in Texas."

Manufacturing Day encourages industry and educational institutions to open their doors to invite manufacturers, business owners and others to learn more about manufacturing and how it can help address their business needs. This is the third year for the free nationwide event open to manufacturers, small business owners and university students who are interested in learning more about manufacturing.

Registration is required and space is limited. Register online or, for more information, contact Barbara Harding at (210) 522-3923 or e-mailbharding@swri.org.

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