Apr 7 -- The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Commerce, invites comments by June 6, 2023 regarding the extension of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Client Impact Survey.
Sponsored by NIST, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is a national network of locally-based manufacturing extension centers working with small manufacturers to assist them improve their productivity, improve profitability and enhance their economic competitiveness. The MEP National Network, whose mission is to strengthen and empower U.S. manufacturers, comprises the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST MEP), the 51 MEP Centers located in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, the MEP Advisory Board, MEP Center boards, and the Foundation for Manufacturing Excellence, as well as over 1,450 trusted advisors and experts at approximately 430 MEP service locations, providing any U.S. manufacturer with access to resources they need to succeed.
The information collected will provide the MEP with information regarding MEP Center performance regarding the delivery of technology and business solutions to U.S.-based manufacturers. The collected information will assist in determining the performance of the MEP Centers at both local and national levels, provide information critical to monitoring and reporting on MEP programmatic performance, and assist management in policy decisions. Responses to the collection of information are mandatory per the regulations governing the operation of the MEP Program (15 CFR parts 290, 291, 292, and H.R. 1274—section 2). The information collected will include MEP Customer inputs regarding their sales, costs, investments, and employment. Customers will take the survey online. Customers will only be surveyed once per year under this collection. Data collected in this survey is confidential. Estimated Number of Respondents: 14,500.
The data will be collected for internal review purposes and to monitor the Centers, as well as for reporting to Congress. Reports dealing with the characteristics and performance of the Centers will include trends, benchmarks, statistical tables and charts generated from the database.
MEP:
https://www.nist.gov/mep
2017 report on MEP Client Impact:
https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2017/03/new-report-released-national-level-economic-impact-manufacturing-extension
Current survey form:
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/DownloadDocument?objectID=103608301
Draft survey instrument and technical documentation requested from NIST by AEAStat.
FRN:
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2023-07363