Leading Edge R&D Resources at Your Fingertips
Whether you need help integrating new technology or are interested in locating or developing new technology to move your business forward, Polaris MEP can help.
Polaris MEP provides hands-on technical and business assistance and functions as an extension of your staff, helping you to maximize your capabilities.
Through our partnership with URI and a variety of academic, public and private resources, we help you grow your business by injecting technological advances, product innovations, and process improvements that deliver high value and keep you globally competitive.
Innovation has been the driving force for many of the fantastic products made in Rhode Island. Composites heading for space, textiles catching aircraft, military pins for those protecting our country, defibrillators and superfoods to name just a few.
Christian Cowan
URI Research Foundation
Your Biggest Challenges Solved
Grow Sales
Market Competitiveness
Standards Compliance
How We Help
UPGRADE READINESS
Frustrated by the lack of connectivity or communication with your business systems? Polaris MEP can help you
- evaluate your current processes and practices,
- choose systems (ERP, CRM, automation) for data collection and analysis, and
- improve inventory management and process flow.
DRIVING ACTION
R&D can make the difference between dominating your industry and getting left behind. We can assist you in creating a strategic plan to focus on R&D while minimizing risk.
This includes improving systems to review testing data, to detect and develop promising technology faster.
IDEA DISCOVERY & COMMERCIALIZATION
Leverage the expertise that can transform your business.
Polaris MEP can connect you to regional universities / federal labs that may have research to position your company for success in the global Manufacturing 4.0 environment. We also can evaluate your industrial processes to identify areas for innovation, and connect you with state programs to bring ideas to reality.
INNOVATOR CONNECTIONS
Polaris MEP partners with university and government labs to match early stage developers with local supply chain partners (particularly manufacturers) who specialize in prototyping and low volume production runs.
Polaris MEP’s parent (URI Research Foundation) and sister (401 Tech Bridge) organizations offer additional connections.
Connecting Manufacturers with World Class Researchers
- Connect to resources and inventors to develop next-generation products for your customers
- Collaborate on innovative concepts and stay ahead of your competition
- Diversify your product line to serve broader markets
Related
The Importance of Apprenticeships
The Importance of Apprenticeships In today’s rapidly evolving manufacturing landscape, one challenge continues to rise above the rest: the growing skills gap. As experienced workers retire and technology reshapes production floors, manufacturers are searching for...
The Warehouse Safety Audit: 5 Common Fire Risks You’re Probably Missing
The Warehouse Safety Audit: 5 Common Fire Risks You’re Probably Missing Materials Handling & Logistics’ article “The Warehouse Safety Audit: 5 Common Fire Risks You’re Probably Missing” warns that even well-run facilities often overlook critical fire hazards that...
NIST Researchers Develop Photonic Chip Packaging That Can Withstand Extreme Environments
NIST Researchers Develop Photonic Chip Packaging That Can Withstand Extreme Environments Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new way to package photonic integrated circuits — chips that transmit information with...
I’m bullish on Rhode Island manufacturing, but even more on the innovative manufacturers behind it.
Christian Cowan
Center Director, Polaris MEP
Category: Technology Acceleration
How Do Recycling Facilities Sort Different Kinds of Plastic?
When scientists need even more details about the composition of a plastic, they can use lab techniques that involve dissolving the plastic in a solvent, sometimes while heating. After dissolving a sample, the scientist might examine it using a technique called size exclusion chromatography, which takes advantage of the fact that smaller molecules move more slowly than bigger ones through a column or tube packed with porous beads.
Pawtucket Manufacturer’s Forum Provides Lively Conversation and Insights
On Tuesday, December 9, 2025, various manufacturers gathered at the Cooley Group’s Pawtucket headquarters for a stimulating conversation on the current state of Rhode Island manufacturing.
How Can Companies Improve Sustainability Efforts?
In a feature for Material Handling & Logistics, Indrani de Silva of Sphera explains that although many companies now publish ESG commitments, a surprising number still lack the systems and supplier engagement needed to deliver meaningful improvements.
The Toll of Tariffs
Rhode Island’s manufacturing sector remains a major contributor to the state’s economy. And many of those companies are under tremendous stress, according to a survey conducted in June by R.I. Commerce Corp., the Rhode Island Manufacturers Association and Polaris MEP.
AI in Manufacturing: What’s Now—and What’s Next?
IndustryWeek’s coverage by MIT Professor Wojciech Matusik spotlights artificial intelligence as a transformative force in manufacturing, pushing adoption beyond experimentation to everyday business impact.
Overconfidence in Cybersecurity Strategy Puts Supply Chains at Risk
New research from NCC Group [link: https://www.nccgroup.com/] highlighted in Material Handling & Logistics News reveals a troubling gap between perception and reality in supply chain cybersecurity preparedness.
Nuclear in Your Backyard? Tiny Reactors Could One Day Power Towns
In her Manufacturing.net article, “Nuclear in Your Backyard? Tiny Reactors Could One Day Power Towns,” Aditi Verma, Assistant Professor at the University of Michigan, explores how the next wave of microreactors could reshape the nuclear energy landscape.
Shedding Light on the Future of Metal 3D Printing
NIST researcher Brian Gutierrez is illuminating a breakthrough approach that uses laser light reflections—called caustics—to reveal defects in metal 3D printing in real time.
Companies seek ‘next-generation’ makers at Manufacturing Day 2025
A shortage of qualified workers remains a familiar concern for Rhode Island’s manufacturing leaders in attendance at RI’s Future in the Making 2025. PBN’s Jacquelyn Voghel spoke with Doug Travers of Herrick & White and Rose Wood of Neocorp.
Hundreds of Rhode Island Students Explore Local Manufacturing Careers at Manufacturing Day 2025
Despite the gloomy weather, Rhode Island’s next generation of makers gathered at Farm Fresh Rhode Island on October 8th for the fourth annual Manufacturing Day Career Exploration Experience, hosted by Polaris MEP.




