Attention Dreamers and Doers

Under the auspices of The National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining and the MT Connect Institute, today begins the first of two phases of a challenge to manufacturers. A total of $250,000 in cash prizes is up for grabs for winners of the two phases of the MT Connect Challenge.

The challenge is looking for ideas and applications that enable a more efficient and competitive domestic manufacturing infrastructure for the defense industry. Additionally, these ideas and applications should create valuable, low-cost tools that are adaptable by discrete parts manufacturers.

Challenge 1, for the dreamers out there, is open from April 12 through May 31, 2013, and is seeking ambitious yet achievable ideas that harness innovation and manufacturing intelligence breakthroughs using MT Connect. MT Connect is an open source, royalty-free communications standard intended to foster greater interoperability between manufacturing equipment, devices and software applications.

Challenge 2 looks to the doers among us in search of software developments that address the objectives of this challenge. Phase 2 competition begins July 1 and runs until January 31, 2014.

If this appeals to the dreamer or doer in you, check out MTConnect.challenge.gov for more information.