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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1021
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 4355
Referred to Committee on COMMERCE
Introduced by:
(CE)
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A MANUFACTURING TECH NOLOGY
WORKING GROUP.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective July 1, 2021) (a) As used in this section: (1) 1
"Industry 4.0 technology", means the hardware, software and related 2
innovations associated with the digitization of the manufacturing 3
sector, allowing for the collection and analysis of all aspects of the 4
manufacturing operations leading to increased quality, efficiency, 5
productivity and security; and (2) "small and mid-sized manufacturers" 6
means businesses engaged in manufacturing having fewer than one 7
hundred fifty employees at any individual facility owned or operated 8
by the business. 9
(b) The chairpersons of the joint standing committee of the General 10
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to commerce shall 11
appoint and convene a manufacturing technology working group to 12
develop a strategic plan to ensure that manufacturers in the state have a 13
clear road map for the lean application and integration of Industry 4.0 14
technology into their product development and production processes. 15 Raised Bill No. 1021
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(c) The working group shall: 16
(1) Compile comprehensive profiles, including mission statements 17
and lists of services, for all entities that receive state funding for the 18
purpose of researching, developing, training, marketing, consulting or 19
deploying Industry 4.0 technology or associated services directly to, or 20
for the benefit of, manufacturing startups, small and mid-sized 21
manufacturers or other businesses primarily engaged in manufacturing; 22
and 23
(2) Conduct value-stream mapping and other analyses, as needed, to 24
assess the flow of services from the entities identified in subdivision (1) 25
of this subsection, to manufacturers in the state. Such analyses shall 26
include, but need not be limited to, (A) identifying the extent to which 27
such services complement, conflict with or duplicate each other, (B) 28
assessing the relative impacts of such services on the manufacturers 29
served, (C) identifying gaps in services provided relative to the Industry 30
4.0 technology needs of manufacturers, and (D) identifying barriers and 31
recommendations for achieving the goals of the working group 32
described in subsection (b) of this section. 33
(d) The chairpersons of the joint standing committee of the General 34
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to commerce shall 35
appoint members to the working group. Appointments to the working 36
group shall include, but need not be limited to, representatives from the 37
joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of 38
matters relating to commerce, the chief manufacturing officers or 39
representatives of entities described in subdivision (1) of subsection (c) 40
of this section, a representative of the Connecticut Center for Advanced 41
Technology, a representative of CONNSTEP, representatives of at least 42
two manufacturers having fewer than seventy -five employees, 43
representatives of at least two manufacturers having not less than 44
seventy-five employees and not more than one hundred fifty 45
employees, a representative of CTNext, a representative of the 46
Connecticut Manufacturers' Collaborative, a representative of the 47
Connecticut State Colleges and Universities, a representative of the 48 Raised Bill No. 1021
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Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges, a representative of 49
The University of Connecticut and a representative of Central 50
Connecticut State University. The members of the working group 51
representing small and mid-sized manufacturers shall comprise not less 52
than thirty-three per cent of the working group and manufacturers shall 53
comprise not less than fifty per cent of the working group. 54
(e) The members appointed to represent the Connecticut Center for 55
Advanced Technology and CONNSTEP shall co -chair the working 56
group. The co-chairs shall schedule the first meeting of the working 57
group not later than August 31, 2021. 58
(f) (1) The working group may solicit state or federal funds, or 59
funding from nongovernmental foundations, private organizations, 60
individuals, corporations or governmental entities for the 61
administration of the working group. 62
(2) The working group shall not implement the provisions of this 63
section if the funds solicited pursuant to subdivision (1) of this 64
subsection are insufficient to pay the initial and ongoing expenses of the 65
working group. 66
(g) Not later than March 15, 2022, the working group shall submit a 67
report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general 68
statutes, on its progress in accomplishing the goals set forth in 69
subsection (b) of this section to the joint standing committee of the 70
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to commerce. 71
Such report shall identify any barriers to accomplishing the goals set 72
forth in subsection (b) of this section. 73
(h) Not later than October 1, 2022, the working group shall submit a 74
strategic plan, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the 75
general statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General 76
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to commerce that 77
includes data, findings and legislative proposals to accomplish the goals 78
set forth in subsection (b) of this section. The working group shall 79
terminate on the date it submits such report or October 1, 2022, 80 Raised Bill No. 1021
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whichever is later. 81
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2021 New section
Statement of Purpose:
To establish a manufacturing technology working group to ensure that
manufacturers in the state have a clear road map for the lean application
and integration of Industry 4.0 technology into their product
development and production processes.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]