Iowa has significant organizational and infrastructure assets for the manufacturing industry to draw from for Manufacturing 4.0 development. Collaboration and partnership with Iowa's resource providers is imperative to overcoming the hurdles that manufacturers might face, including technology implementation, integration planning, digital workforce skills training and interoperability requirements.

Iowa's Research Universities

• Iowa State University (ISU)
  • Center for Multiphase Flow Research and Education (CoMFRE) - Studies and simulates fluid systems and dynamics.
  • Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE) - A collaboration that brings expertise and capabilities across national security applications and civil infrastructure.
  • Virtual Reality Applications Center (VRAC) - Supports research focused on how humans and technology interact and how to enhance the productivity and creativity of people.
  • Information Assurance Center (IAC) - Enhances cybersecurity awareness and capabilities.
  • The Bioeconomy Institute - Advances the use of biorenewable resources for the production of fuels, energy, chemicals and materials.
  • Ames Laboratory - The U.S. Department of Energy established the Critical Materials Institute (CMI) at the lab to develop resilient and secure supply chains for rare-earth metals and other materials vital to U.S. electronics and energy manufacturing.
• University of Iowa (UI)
  • Center for Biocatalysis and Bioprocessing (CBB) - Manufactures recombinant proteins and specialty chemicals.
  • University of Iowa Pharmaceuticals (UIP) - Manufactures and tests clinical and commercial products and contracts pharmaceutical services.
  • Protostudios - Helps entrepreneurs, inventors and business owners develop full-functioning prototypes of their ideas, allowing them to test, redesign, determine manufacturing paths or demonstrate usability.
  • Iowa MADE - Features products that are developed by UI, prototyped and manufactured locally, then sold through a web platform. 
• University of Northern Iowa (UNI)
  • Industrial Technology Center (ITC) - Provides education and hands-on training for students in manufacturing, technology and construction fields.

Iowa's Community Colleges - Iowa's 15 community colleges represent an important state and regional asset in education and applied workforce training. They play a key role in working with local manufacturers to translate their direct workforce needs into training courses and degree programs through two delivery streams: traditional classroom instruction and customized on-site training.

CIRAS (Center for Industrial Research and Service) at ISU - CIRAS works with companies to fashion solutions specific to their individual needs and help them get started with Industry 4.0. They provide education and training, Manufacturing 4.0 assessments, proof-of-concept work, technology implementation assistance and connections to relevant providers.

UNI Metal Casting Center (MCC) - The Metal Casting Center is a leader in foundry research, applied technology and technical business assistance. It is one of the best equipped and most versatile foundry research centers in the world.

• UNI Additive Manufacturing Center - UNI operates the center on TechWorks Campus to provide services targeted toward demonstration, education and consultation in advanced manufacturing with the capability to use special materials and/or processes that aren't yet commercially available. The center's knowledge, expertise and direct industry outreach specializes in Manufacturing 4.0 technologies that include additive manufacturing, automation and robotics, and process data acquisition for smart manufacturing decisions.

TechWorks - TechWorks Campus is an advanced manufacturing, research and development, innovation, and education center. It is aligned with regional industry-academic collaborations to provide skilled training in applied advanced manufacturing. The campus is home to UNI's Additive Manufacturing Center and Additive Manufacturing Design Lab, Hawkeye Community College's IGNITE Workforce Teaching Lab, the Cedar Valley Makerspace, the Supplier Integration Lab, and Productive Resources, an engineering services firm.

Quad Cities Manufacturing Hub - The Quad Cities created a Department of Defense (DOD) supply chain database to facilitate sourcing; technology playbooks to use as a teaching tool and share the emerging technologies that will transform the industry; and a DOD supply chain mapping tool to help businesses identify government contracting opportunities.