A new grant could help Arlington-based manufacturers looking for training and resources to improve business approaches.
The Strategic Solutions Fund, launched by the Arlington Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) and the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC), will fund training or services TMAC offers to improve business aspects including productivity, sustainability, facilities and technology for eligible companies.
Businesses with 51-250 employees can receive up to $10,000, and businesses with 50 or fewer employees could receive up to $5,000.
The grant program, which received $100,000 from the AEDC, will run for up to one year, according to TMAC Regional Director Charaee Tropp. The center, which is based out of UT Arlington, has received a few applications so far, and expects to receive 50-100.
The TMAC works with Texas businesses to develop and improve aspects of their companies, and is a representative of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership National Network.
Manufacturers can learn how to handle challenges including supply chain issues, making businesses more competitive and contending with overseas manufacturing options.
“We can help in a holistic-type way in these manufacturing facilities for them to become more competitive, stay in business, grow – all the things that they initially had set out to do,” Tropp said.
The grant provides a way for the AEDC to support businesses that build the city’s economic base, according to Alex Fitzgerald, an AEDC economic development consultant.
“Manufacturing businesses are the lifeblood of our local economy,” Fitzgerald said. “They bring dollars from outside our community, outside of the region into the region, which is then used to support all the other types of businesses in the area as well.”
Interested business owners can attend TMAC’s webinar on the grant Aug. 1.
Eligible companies that receive funding would be required to obtain a free TMAC facility and organizational assessment, submit a program application to the AEDC and agree to programmatic and performance criteria the organization requires.
Arlington City Council created the Economic Development Corporation in 2015, and voters approved funding for the body in 2020 through a quarter-cent sales tax. The board recommends projects to create higher-end jobs, support existing businesses and attract new ones to town.
Since its launch, the city through the AEDC has approved agreements for projects including the redevelopment of Arlington’s Town North Shopping Center and a $2.5 million for Bell Textron to build a house systems integration lab.
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