To better support the need for timely, effective manufacturing technology development and transition, the Department of Defense (DoD) has established nine Manufacturing Innovation Institutes (MIIs) through its Defense-wide Manufacturing Science and Technology program element within the DoD Manufacturing Technology program. The Institutes are considered by DoD to be important facilitators that bring together innovative ecosystems in key technology and market sectors in the United States. The DoD MIIs are industry-led, with dual, public-private benefit, providing large commercial market potential while also meeting key U.S. defense industrial needs. The mission of the nine DoD-established Institutes addresses both defense and commercial manufacturing needs within specific, defense-relevant technology areas.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine was asked to perform a follow-on study to its 2019 report Strategic Long-Term Participation by DoD in Its Manufacturing USA Institutes, which examined DoD's strategic relationship with the DoD Manufacturing Innovation Institutes. The Committee on DOD Engagement with Its Manufacturing USA MIIs Phase 2 Study was formed to provide strategic guidance in the following topics that were identified in the 2019 report for further exploration: protocols for conducting long term engagement assessments of the MIIs including evaluation metrics, best practices for MII education and workforce development programs, and development of strategies for better connecting MIIs to the broader DoD community. This interim report focuses on the protocol assessment topic in a timeframe that would allow its perspectives to be used in the execution of the first DoD 5-year MII evaluations planned for 2021.

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