Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced plans to issue a spring 2020 solicitation for high performance computing projects that improve manufacturing processes, address products’ lifecycle energy consumption, and increase the efficiency of energy conversion and storage technologies.

 

The Trump Administration has prioritized the use of high performance computing to solve critical national challenges. In March 2020, President Donald J. Trump announced the launch of the COVID-19 High Performance Computing Consortium to provide COVID-19 researchers worldwide with access to the world’s most powerful high performance computing resources that can significantly advance the pace of scientific discovery in the fight to stop the virus. This unique public-private consortium - spearheaded by the White House, DOE, and IBM - includes government, industry, and academic leaders.

 

“Strengthening the competitiveness of the U.S. manufacturing sector is a top priority for the Trump Administration and will be critical to America’s economic recovery,” said Alex Fitzsimmons, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency. “DOE’s High Performance Computing for Manufacturing program allows industry to access advanced computing resources within the DOE National Laboratories to address key manufacturing challenges.”

 

This manufacturing program is one component of the High Performance Computing for Energy Innovation (HPC4EI) initiative, which is led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

 

HPC4EI conducts two regular solicitations annually, one in the fall and one in the spring. The spring solicitation will target qualified industry partners to participate in short-term, collaborative projects with DOE National Laboratories that address key manufacturing challenges by applying modeling, simulation, and data analysis. The solicitation will encourage applicants to partner with universities and non-profit organizations located within federally designated Opportunity Zones and/or Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

 

Eligibility for the program is limited to entities that manufacture products or operate systems in the U.S. for commercial applications and organizations that support them. Selected projects will be awarded up to $300,000 to support computing cycles and work performed by DOE National Laboratories, universities, and non-profit partners. All DOE National Laboratories are eligible to participate. The industry partner must provide a participant contribution of at least 20% of the total project funding.

 

DOE’s Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO), within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, is the primary sponsor of the High Performance Computing for Manufacturing program. AMO partners with private and public stakeholders to advance innovation in U.S. manufacturing and promote American economic growth and energy security.

 

Learn more about the HPC4EI initiative.