Manufacturing Connection January Newsletter

Happy New Year! As I look into 2018 with 9 months under my belt as the Director for the MEP of Louisiana, I am very optimistic about manufacturing in Louisiana. As I travel around the state, I am amazed to see the incredible technology and processes used by our manufacturers to address and solve the needs we face in our communities and throughout our country.

To meet the needs of the manufacturing ecosystem in our state, our organization has reflected on how we can best support the strong drive for excellence. To best represent the passion for manufacturing within Louisiana, we have moved away from MEPOL and launched a new name for our organization: The MEP of Louisiana! This new name better connects us directly with the MEP network and immediately conveys that we proudly operate in the great State of Louisiana. With this name change, we have also evaluated our logo and other brand items. As we finalize these items in February, we plan to share these details with you in the coming months.

Along with a strong image and message, the MEP of Louisiana must have a quality product to support and address the varied needs of small, medium and large manufacturers. Over the past several months, our team has expanded with the addition of Scott Uffman as the Business Development Director and Dr. Ali Ahmad as the Operations Director (https://mepol.org/about-mepol). Their passion, leadership and experience with business and manufacturers provide a valuable complement to our existing team and organization.

This past fall, the MEP of Louisiana applied for and received a $1 million federal grant through the U. S. Department of Commerce to support manufacturers impacted by Hurricane Harvey. Manufacturers in the 12 declared disaster parishes in Southwest and West Louisiana from Cameron/Calcasieu to Natchitoches/Sabine parishes are eligible to apply. There will be a community forum in each of these parishes in January. Review this link for more details and to see which forum you are able to attend to discuss your needs: mepol.org/events.

Thank you for your passion and drive to manufacture the many diverse and vast products that are produced in Louisiana. To learn more about the MEP of Louisiana, please visit https://mepol.org. If you have a need and would like to visit with our MEP of Louisiana team, please connect here or call us at 337-482-6767.

Mike Wolff, Director