ARM Institute: Fellowship Application

The ARM Institute has opened applications for our Fellowship Program in support of the AIM Higher Consortium. AIM Higher is led by Catalyst Connection with over 30 academic, economic development, technology institute, and manufacturing partners from around the region. The Program is funded by the Department of Defense Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (DoD-OLDCC). The AIM Higher Consortium will directly support DoD-OLDCC’s mission to enhance the readiness, resiliency, and innovation of the national defense manufacturing supply chain. This is a regional effort and the Fellow’s organization must have a physical presence within the Pittsburgh-West Virginia OEA. Learn more in the RFP linked further down in this post.

The ARM Institute will award up to $60,000 per fellow. The fellowship is an individual award. The winning fellow must be an individual employed by a legal entity. There is a project component to this Fellowship, which is further detailed in the RFP.

This application is for our second round of fellow selections. In May, the ARM Institute named Dr. Jared Glover from CapSen Robotics has our first Fellow.

Applications are due December 3, 2021 5:00 EST. All information must be submitted via the email to the [email protected]. Learn more and download the templates to apply below.

OVERVIEW

ARM Institute Fellows are experts in robotics for manufacturing and have a passion for addressing the challenges that hinder the adoption of robotics for manufacturers, large and small. ARM Institute Fellows apply innovative solutions to make a tangible impact on manufacturing activities during their designated project period.

The ARM Institute fellowship program is hands-on and requires a project submission piece. As an ARM Institute fellow, you will work closely with ARM’s project management office to execute a robotics and AI focused project funded by this award. You will have the opportunity to brief your progress and your results to the ARM Membership, AIM Consortium, Department of Defense partners, and other industry leaders.

The selected fellows will aid in executing the goals of the AIM consortium, described below.

About the AIM Consortium
ARM has partnered with the Department of Defense Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) (previously called the Office of Economic Adjustment) through the Artificial Intelligence in in Metals and Manufacturing (AIM) Higher Defense Industry Consortium led by ARM Member, Catalyst Connection. The members of the AIM Consortium are from 30 leading organizations at the cutting edge of defense technologies and manufacturing. The group will build upon its partnership network to boost the regional and national defense industries sector to support meaningful outcomes in several ways over the five-year project period. This strategy includes:

establishing anchor sites for defense manufacturing collaboration and assistance,
conducting a research and innovation alliance,
filling gaps and boosting connections in the defense industries supply chain,
enhancing and integrating workforce training and education, providing technical assistance and support to small defense industry manufacturers, and
building the defense manufacturing ecosystem with convenings and communications.

The AIM Consortium will ensure that the United States is unrivaled in military readiness and defense manufacturing capabilities through an industrial production ecosystem that melds advanced metals & materials with 4th Industrial Revolution technologies of artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing & robotics. This is being built in the Greater Pittsburgh-West Virginia-Youngstown region that forged the arsenal of democracy.

As a member of the AIM Higher Consortium, the ARM Institute is looking to award honorary fellowships to execute projects aligned with both ARM and the AIM Higher Consortium’s goals.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The ARM Institute is soliciting fellowship proposals that respond to specific needs of the AIM Higher Consortium and the Department of Defense. This includes advanced manufacturing projects tied to the DoD that are aligned with ARM’s goals of advancing robotics and AI in manufacturing in industries such as aerospace, automotive, space, general manufacturing, and more. The project call complements the strategic goals and mission of the ARM Institute.

The ARM Institute will fund multiple fellows throughout the course of the AIM Higher Consortium agreement that ends in September of 2023. This RFP is for the second round of fellow selections.
More specifically and as an aid to the proposing community, ARM has identified the following criteria and guidelines for submission:

Winning fellows will be expected to propose full-time projects for periods of up to 1 year.
ARM will award up to $60,000 per fellow. Funds CANNOT be used to purchase equipment.
In-kind cost-share is not required but may be contributed and is encouraged.
The fellowship is an individual award. The winning fellow must be an individual employed by a legal entity. All contracting will be between ARM and the fellow’s organization. Teaming is not permitted.
The RFP is open to both ARM Members and Non-ARM Members. If the winning fellow is from an organization that is not an ARM Member, a 1-year Silver Membership will also be awarded to the fellow’s organization. Membership credit WILL NOT be issued if the fellow’s organization is currently an ARM Member.
The fellow’s organization must have a physical presence located within the Pittsburgh-West Virginia OEA. The output of the fellow’s project must make an impact in this area. See footnote1 for further clarification.
The proposal topic should be focused on advancing manufacturing technology through the application of robotics and AI.
The proposal topic must be one that bolsters the needs of the DoD industrial supply base. This could be accomplished, for example, through a fellow employed by a DoD partner, or by working on a project with clear DoD Industrial base applications.
Further development of ARM-funded Consortium Developed Intellectual Property (CDIP) is highly encouraged. Please see the ARM projects funded through the ARM Community projects page (ARM Members) or the ARM Webpage (non-members) for existing CDIP information.
ALL CDIP developed by the winning fellow will be subject to the same CDIP terms as typical ARM technology projects and as outlined in the ARM membership agreement.
The winning Fellow will be encouraged to perform project development in the Mill19 ecosystem space. High bay floor space will be available for the winning Fellow to bring in their own robotics and equipment. The possibility exists for ARM to obtain robotics equipment for the Fellow, however, due to the logistics of this request, it should not be relied on. Requested robotics equipment should not be considered available any earlier than June 2022 for purposes of proposal submission and planning.
The winning fellows will be awarded:
a. Up to $60,000
b. Fellows will have access to a robotic work cell and administrative space at Mill19A.
i. 12’ x 12’ minimum floor space
ii. 120v/208v/480v service
iii. Service air
iv. Service water
v. Potential robotic arms – see bullet #11 above
c. A 1 year Silver-Level ARM Membership (if not already a member)
d. Access to all ARM Project CDIP as an ARM Member
e. Access to manufacturing, robotics, & AI expertise through the ARM Membership network (if not already a member)
f. Opportunities to brief their project progress and goals to a wide audience of ARM Membership, AIM Higher Consortium Partners, and DoD partners.