Bentonville, Ark.- based Walmart and The Walmart Foundation have announced the recipients of the third and final round of U.S. Manufacturing Innovation Fund grants. Six universities — Washington State, North Carolina State University, Clemson University, Oregon State University, Texas Tech University and the University of Massachusetts — were awarded grants totaling almost $3 million during the recent 85th Winter Meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington. The grants will assist man-made and natural fiber research projects as well as research in dyeing, printing and finishing.
Since 2014, the Innovation Fund has awarded a total of $10 million in grants to help develop the U.S. domestic manufacturing industry in a feasible, sustainable and competitive way.
“Advancing the production or assembly of consumer products in the U.S. is the number one goal of the Innovation Fund,” said Kathleen McLaughlin, president of the Walmart Foundation and chief sustainability officer for Walmart. “As these projects come to fruition over the next few years, we hope the research not only enables cost-effective solutions for manufacturers, but also improves the sustainability of the U.S. textile industry.”
January/February 2017
