U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Manufacturing Innovation Blog

Powered by the Manufacturing Extension Partnership

Dave Cranmer

Dave Cranmer

Dave Cranmer is the former Deputy Director of the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). With MEP since 1993, he has overseen extension centers, conducted research on innovation, new product and service development and deployment, supply chains, technology roadmapping, eBusiness and exporting, built a business-to-business marketing consulting practice for smaller manufacturers, established specialty consulting practices in financial access, eBusiness, technology scouting and technology-driven market intelligence (TDMI). He has also worked on the formation of technology collaboratives using TDMI and a set of business-to-business network pilot projects for the MEP System. He was previoulsy the government representative on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Devices Good Manufacturing Practice Advisory Committee.

woman with a digital device pointing to a hologram of a network of people

The Evolution from System to Network

As manufacturers wrestle with increasing demands for advanced technology and integration of it within their facilities and across their supply chains, the
A Manufacturing Tour of America's Craft Breweries

Craft Beer is Everywhere, Man

“...Pittsburgh, Parkersburg, Gravelbourg, Colorado, Ellensburg, Rexburg, Vicksburg, Eldorado, Larimore, Atmore, Haverstraw, Chatanika, Chaska, Nebraska
Cheers to the Holidays

Cheers to the Holidays

Greetings of the season to you and yours! It’s time to offer a toast — and wish you good health, good fortune, and prosperity in the year to come. Perhaps

From Makers to Manufacturers

Make (n) – to bring into existence by shaping or changing material, combining parts, etc. Manufacture (n) – the making of goods or wares by manual labor or by

Being a Standard Reference Human

Some things are just meant to be, apparently. September 23, 2014 marked an interesting waypoint in the career of someone concerned about standards of

Reflections – Part 4

"A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." —Margaret Mead A Salute to MEP Center staff

Reflections – Part 3

“People have been known to achieve more as a result of working with others than against them.” – Dr. Allan Fromme Reflections on MEP at 25 –