About Us
The Montana Manufacturing Extension Center is a statewide manufacturing
outreach & assistance center staffed by full-time professionals with
degrees in engineering and extensive experience in manufacturing and business
in a variety of industries. MMEC can assess your business operations today and help you innovate - grow - profit for tomorrow. Our field staff are knowledgeable, unbiased, and forthright in their observations as we work with you to improve your business.
With a proven record of positive impact for client firms and the economy, we can tap not only our expertise but also a power-packed team of resources to assist you with your business success.
Our results are derived from an independent survey of client initially surveyed six months after a project closes. That data is analyzed by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Montana.for overall satisfaction, trends and the economic impact of MMEC services in an annual report:
Our home office is in the College
of Engineering at Montana State University, Bozeman, with field
offices at the MSU and in Missoula, Kalispell, and Helena. MMEC
has provided worthwhile assistance to improve top-line and bottom-line
growth to over 1,000 clients across Montana from Alzada to Eureka and
Corvallis to Opheim (in 54 of Montana's 56 counties!).
A showcase Lean Pull System at Timberline Tool eliminated overstock with a 65 percent reduction in finished goods without delaying deliveries and cut inventory carrying costs by more than $135,000 on two high-volume tools. "We can operate in less space because our new layout is designed for flow."
-- Ken Green, President, Timberline Tool, Whitefish
Hear more from manufacturers in the video clips below, including Pat Miller Sr. and Patrick Miller Jr. from PFM Manufacturing and Don Profota from Lattice Materials.
Heroes of American Manufacturing
From Montana to NYC -- Hear what manufacturing firms PFM, Townsend MT, & Lee Spring, NYC, have in common. With special remarks by MMEC's Todd Daniels!
Montana and New York's clients are featured in this brief video, an inspiring Made in America success story that debuted at the national MEP conference, Manufacturing Innovation May 2012.
How MEPs Help Strengthen Manufacturing
A video featuring MMEC Board Member Don Profota about 2 min. in.
"The fact that we started looking at things systematically with the help of MMEC early in the process (of moving from development into production with a promising technology) means we incorporated best practices and streamlined production to maximize our capabilities and capacity." Since working with MMEC, the company has seen exponential growth in outside sales for 2010, representing more than 25 percent of the company income with forecasts of continued increases.
-- Elizabeth Noonan, AdvR contract coordinator, Bozeman
We can help small companies (20 or fewer
employees) with workforce training grant applications
made available by the Montana Department of Labor. Contact your
local MMEC Field Engineer,
BEAR Team or SBDC Center to learn more. The Montana Department of
Commerce also has workforce training grants.
MMEC - Making a Difference
|
From MMEC founding in 1996 through Q4 2013 |
|
| Increased/Retained Sales | $951.7 million |
| Cost Savings | $95.7 million |
| Capital & Workforce investments | $174.9 million |
| Manufacturing Jobs Created/Retained | 3,411 |
* From independent survey & analysis process approved by the National Institute of Standards &Technology (NIST)
NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)
MMEC is part of a nationwide network, the NIST Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), to assist small and mid-size manufacturers in becoming more competitive and profitable. NIST MEP is celebrating 25 YEARS in 2014. Because we don't pretend to know everything, we have cultivated extensive resources and partnerships in Montana and elsewhere to find the answers or additional services you need. Our smart 800-number 800-MEP-4MFG connects Montana callers to MMEC; from other states, the connection is to the MEP center in that area. MMEC receives financial and program support from MSU, the State of Montana, the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST), MEP and other private/ public partners.
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