Commerce RI awards $750K in industry cluster grants

THE R.I. COMMERCE Corp. awarded nearly $750,000 in industry cluster grants to seven organizations this week.
THE R.I. COMMERCE Corp. awarded nearly $750,000 in industry cluster grants to seven organizations this week.

PROVIDENCE – Approximately $750,000 in industry cluster grants to encourage innovation were awarded to seven organizations Monday night by Gov. Gina M. Raimondo and the R.I. Commerce Corp.’s board of directors.

“These grants will make it easier for industries with some of the highest potential for growth to come together to collaborate, innovate and overcome barriers to success,” Raimondo said in a statement.

Grant awards announced include:

  • DesignXRI: Awarded a technical assistance grant of $100,000 to make Rhode Island design expertise visible through marketing materials and promote design as an important investment for Rhode Island businesses.
  • Highlander Institute: Awarded a technical assistance grant of $149,750 to leverage existing education networks as a unique platform for testing new Education Technology (“EdTech”) products to enhance Rhode Island as an Edtech Hub that can retain and recruit Edtech talent and businesses.
  • International Yacht Restoration School Inc.: Awarded a technical assistance grant of $75,290 to develop plans for a “Mobile Maker Lab,” a traveling trailer equipped with 21st century manufacturing technologies in order to incorporate advanced manufacturing and design into high school curriculum to enhance workforce development and innovation.
  • Polaris MEP & RI Composites: Awarded a technical assistance grant of $99,600 to promote adoption of composites as a new material for manufactured products.
  • Partnership for a Greater Future Providence & Southside Community Land Trust: Awarded a technical assistance grant of $115,000 to grow urban food cluster businesses by bringing in new outside investors and business partners, collaborating with and building on scalable local food cluster organizations, and prioritizing projects with job creation and/or neighborhood redevelopment impacts.
  • Southeastern New England Defense Industry Alliance: Awarded an implementation grant of $109,000 to provide small firms with information on Department of Defense and Homeland Security budgets, programs and points of contact so they have similar business development intelligence enjoyed by larger companies.
  • Rhode Island Manufacturers Association: Awarded an implementation grant of $100,000 to increase access to advanced manufacturing facilities and expand local supply chains.

The Industry Cluster Grants program encourages companies in an industry sector to work together to solve problems, exchange ideas and develop talent. Grants of $75,000 to $250,000 are available to fund planning and organization building for the cluster, and grants of $100,000 to $500,000 are available to implement programs that strengthen their cluster, according to Commerce RI.

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The program was created with an initial allocation of $750,000 in the fiscal 2016 budget. Commerce RI said it received 26 applications seeking more than $5.7 million in funding.

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