

Jarman, a former Eastman Kodak Co. executive and co-author of the book “Collaborative R&D: Manufacturing’s New Tool,” is a believer in the power of collaborative alliances. At NCMS, he heads the largest cross-industry collaborative manufacturing research consortium in the United States devoted exclusively to manufacturing technologies, process and practices. Its mission is to develop strategic initiatives and programs aimed at sustaining and enhancing the global competitiveness of North American manufacturing.
While Michigan and other states are enacting laws to stimulate alternative energy production, consensus among business leaders appears to be building for the creation of a national energy policy.
The panel, which focused on the intersection of alternative energy and manufacturing, featured two utility officials, a venture capitalist, a business executive and a carbon trading proponent. Quite the mixture.
The National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) held an Executive Roundtable on the topic of Energy and Environmental Sustainability with special guest, The Honorable Debbie Stabenow, United States Senate at its headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
NCMS is nearing completion on new corporate training workshops for industry, including Lean Product Design and Sustainability, that will soon be offered to industry nationwide. These workshops will provide companies with an understanding of how to apply Lean principles to product design, and will provide an in-depth understanding of sustainability.
NCMS is a supporting organization for Management Roundtable’s fall conference, Profiting from Lean Product Development: Toyota Methods and Beyond, to be held October 14 – 15, 2008 in Chicago, IL. This brand new event will bring together leading thought leaders and advanced practitioners to discuss multiple approaches for incorporating lean concepts into product development to achieve breakthrough improvements and a competitive advantage in product development performance.

