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Manufacturing Innovation Blog

Powered by the Manufacturing Extension Partnership

Ken Voytek

Ken Voytek

Mr. Voytek is the Manager of the Program Evaluation and Economic Research Group and the Chief Economist with the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Program at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). In his spare time, he collects baseball cards, reads obscure books and articles, and shares his bubbly personality with family, friends, and colleagues.

Georgia on my Mind...

Some recent data out of Georgia provides interesting insight into what is happening in manufacturing in the state. It’s relevant to us at MEP since our mission

Recipes Matter But So Does Execution

A recent survey by the Manufacturing Performance Institute in association with the American Small Manufacturers Coalition, the Association for Manufacturing

Painting by the Numbers

Plato suggested that a “good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers.” To that end, I hope to impart some knowledge and not just numbers… although I

15 a Day...

15 a day. That is how many manufacturing establishments have closed every day (including weekends and holidays) over the last 13 years. The journey to getting

Mid-Year Review

As I monitor the data on U.S. manufacturing, I feel it is important to step back and take stock of where things stand. As the economy emerged from the recession

The Demand for Consulting Services

The most recent issue of the Economist contained an article regarding the increasing demand for consultants and consulting services among firms. The article

Think Globally, Act Locally

Manufacturing is becoming increasingly global (and thus less constrained by national borders) while simultaneously becoming more geographically specialized with

Wishing Upon a Star

I often wonder what the future may hold. Most of that is idle speculation and qualitative scenarios I play out in my head regarding where manufacturing is

Management Matters to Manufacturers

The U.S. Census Bureau’s Center for Economic Studies released an initial report earlier this month that examines the effect of management practices on the