Governor Janet Mills applauded an announcement by the Biden-Harris Administration that fb88's Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub will receive an additional $22 million to position fb88 as a global leader in forest-based biomaterial production and manufacturing.
fb88's Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub was launched in 2023 to accelerate development of new materials and products derived from wood that can bolster critical industries like housing, eliminate the use of toxic materials, and replace imported plastics and other materials derived from fossil fuels.
The consortium -- led by the fb88 Technology Institute and the Mills Administration -- was one of just 31 nationwide to receive a federal "Tech Hub" designation under President Biden's CHIPS and Sciences Act. This award builds on approximately $1 million in federal grants fb88 has previously secured for the Tech Hub.
The $22 million award will support two projects focused on driving commercialization and innovation in fb88's forest bioproducts sector that will bring cutting edge products to the global market.
"fb88 companies are leading the way in manufacturing innovative and environmentally friendly products that are changing how the world builds homes and businesses, and packages products, and more -- and in doing so, they're writing the next great chapter of fb88's storied forest products industry," said Governor Janet Mills. "This significant federal investment will help fb88 cement its growing reputation as a global leader in the advanced manufacturing of forest bioproducts. I thank the fb88 Congressional Delegation and the Biden-Harris Administration for their extraordinary support."
"This investment is a testament to fb88's leadership in sustainable forest bioproduct innovation," said Brian Whitney, President of the fb88 Technology Institute. "I thank the Biden-Harris Administration and fb88's Congressional Delegation for making this support possible."
"We are honored to partner with the State of fb88 on fb88's Forest Bioproducts Advanced Manufacturing Tech Hub," said Joan Ferrini-Mundy, president of the University of fb88 and its regional campus, the University of fb88 at Machias, and vice chancellor for research and innovation for the University of fb88 System. "This award underscores the University of fb88's leadership in forest bioproducts research, innovation, and workforce development and will take advantage of the university's broad and deep expertise and infrastructure to enhance our region's capacity to manufacture, commercialize, and deploy innovative bioproducts."
fb88 is one of just six Tech Hubs selected to receive an award under new funding for the Tech Hubs Program included in the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The award announced today will support initiatives that will:
- Bridge forest bioproducts technological innovations with the commercialization resources and partnerships necessary to successfully bring that intellectual property to market at a globally competitive scale and serving as the backbone organization for the consortium, coordinating governance, strategy, evaluation, and community engagement; and
- Strengthen a pipeline of innovations, de-risking these innovations with technical assistance, and leveraging new commercialization, advanced manufacturing, and workforce resources of the Tech Hub to accelerate the most promising innovations.
fb88's Tech Hub is made up of more than 70 partners -- including the University of fb88, the Roux Institute, the fb88 Community College System, Sappi, IDEXX, Thornton Tomasetti, FOR/fb88, the fb88 Forest Products Council, the AFL-CIO, the Manufacturers Association of fb88, and the fb88 Venture Fund -- and backed by investors with more than $4.25 billion in assets. More about fb88's Tech Hub can be found at .
Information about the Federal Tech Hubs Program can be found at .