Elmet Technologies in Lewiston was recognized with the Governor’s Heritage Industry Award for business excellence in 2023. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

AUBURN — The Trump administration is sending mixed signals to Maine’s manufacturing base regarding funding cuts, according to the president of the Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

“Our mission is to make every Maine manufacturer the best business it can be,” Jim Fay said.

And that would seem to fit into President Donald Trump’s desires to bring manufacturing back in this country, ostensibly through the imposition of tariffs. Yet, without warning or notice, MEP centers in 10 states — including Maine — lost all federal funding from the Commerce Department on April 1. For Maine, that amounts to $1.16 million a year. There are 51 resource centers across the country and Puerto Rico.

“It kind of sent shockwaves through the organization as we’re trying to figure out what to do,” Fay explained Tuesday. “And then, as we were reaching out with some of our advocacy and awareness efforts, two weeks later there was an announcement that we would receive funding for a period of six months.”

That was after more than 80 House Democrats signed a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Acting Under Secretary Craig Burkhardt in support of continuing the funding for the manufacturing resource centers. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine and Rep. Sarah McBride of Delaware co-wrote the letter.

“Given the Trump administration’s goals to revive and advance American manufacturing, we believe funding MEP centers remains essential,” the letter states. “If we want to build at home, we must equip American manufacturers of all sizes with the tools, funding and technology to compete and thrive.”

A spokesperson for Pingree, a Democrat who represents Maine’s 1st District, provided an update Wednesday. Referring to the temporary extension of funding, she said, “while that’s a positive step, it’s not a resolution. Congress intended to provide a full year of funding to these important programs. This six-month stopgap falls massively short. Congresswoman Pingree will continue fighting to hold NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) accountable and ensure MEP centers receive the full support they’ve been promised.”

A similar effort was mounted in the Senate and some governors and manufacturers have spoken out in support of the program.

Kathie Leonard, president and CEO of Auburn Manufacturing Inc., sent a letter to Maine’s congressional delegation urging the lawmakers to support the restoration of full federal funding for the resource centers. “This funding is used to help deliver the services that directly support our Maine manufacturing sector. This announcement came unexpectedly given the recent focus on strengthening domestic manufacturing.”

Kathie Leonard, president and CEO of Auburn Manufacturing, in October 2020 at the facility where the company produces amorphous silica fiber. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Portland Press Herald

Auburn Manufacturing is considered a small- to medium-sized manufacturer, making textiles for extreme temperature protection. AMI makes fabrics and finished products like welding blankets and insulation kits that meet or exceed strict industry and military safety standards with some of the fabric rated to withstand temperatures up to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.

Leonard noted her 25-year relationship with the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, stating the public-private partnership has always been there to help them.

The Maine program was established in 1989 as part of the national network of manufacturing partnerships. The first center opened in Maine in 1995 and has worked with nearly 1,000 companies including coffee roasters, fabrication shops, injection molding manufacturers, seafood businesses and medical product makers.

Fay describes the program’s work with manufacturers in Maine in four categories — classroom training, experiential learning, technical services and transformational or business coaching.

“We are fee-for-service, and part of our cooperative agreement with the federal government … the funding does not come for free. It requires a one-to-one cost share,” he said. Some of that cost share can come from partnerships with the Maine International Trade Center and the Maine Technology Institute.

“There are often times where a company needs help with something, and they don’t have the skill on their staff to do it. So, they may engage with us to provide assistance on writing a quality technical manual, or coming up with a quality plan. They may engage with us on cybersecurity, they may engage with a food safety program or something like that, where in those cases they are paying us to provide a service to them.”

Maine MEP has a network of experts in various aspects of manufacturing and technology who have all worked in the industry.

HEARING TWO DIFFERENT MESSAGES

“The most impactful work that we have done has been with small manufacturers that have grown into large manufacturers that work in aerospace defense, automotive, you name it we’ve got it,” Fay said.

“The thing that’s confusing to us is that we’re hearing two different messages. One is that we need to grow manufacturing within the U.S. But then the second message is at the same time we’re going to defund the program that has the best success rate in making that happen,” Fay added.

If federal funding is not renewed, Fay said he is unsure of what comes next. “I don’t have an answer, because now that we have a little bit of extra time, we’re using this time to redefine our business model without funding, and we are still working on that.”

As a a 501(c)(3) organization, Fay said the one thing he is sure about is that he doesn’t want it to become a consulting organization, because it would not allow the program to continue the work it’s been doing for going on 30 years.

“We believe in the mission. We believe in what we do,” Fay said. “And we’re using this time period now to try to figure out what the future may look like without that federal dollar.”