Release Date:
Georgia Tech's Southeastern Trade Adjustment Assistance Center is inviting U.S. manufacturing and service firms that have experienced declines in sales and employment due to import competition to apply for TAAF. TAAF is a government program that can provide up to $75,000 of U.S. government funds on a cost-share basis for manufacturing firms hurt by cheap imports and import competition.
In order to qualify for TAAF funding, any manufacturing firm headquartered in the U.S. must show a 5 percent decline in both sales and employment for a current period (most recent 12 months) versus the same months for the prior year, and the product they manufacture must also be import impacted.
The program is divided into three phases. In the first phase, the firm is certified into the program at no cost to the firm. The second phase is the Diagnostic Analysis and Adjustment Plan, in which recommendations are laid out for turn-around projects, while phase three is the project implementation phase, in which funds are applied in contracted projects.
The program funds strategically sound projects that improve the firm’s competitive positions, such as:
• Strategic planning and target market identification/planning
• Identification and development of new products and new markets/prototyping
• Website design/e-commerce implementation/sales literature/marketing
• Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma
• Production system innovation and re-engineering
• ERP and production software installation and integration
• Export feasibility assistance
Funding is available on a first-come, first-serve basis. More detailed information on the the TAAF program can be found at www.setaac.org.