NIST MEP Competitive Awards Program (CAP)

NIST MEP Competitive Awards Program (CAP)

Supports manufacturing modernization by funding MEP Center competitive awards in workforce training, advanced production, and resilience planning.

⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.

The NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership Competitive Awards Program (CAP) is a supplemental cooperative-agreement vehicle operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology under the U.S. Department of Commerce. CAP funds project-based expansions of capability at existing MEP Centers — the nationwide network of nonprofit and university-hosted centers that deliver hands-on manufacturing modernization services to small and medium-sized manufacturers. Eligible projects address technology adoption and Industry 4.0 integration, workforce development services, and supply-chain resilience — areas that fall outside the scope of a center's base cooperative agreement.

CAP awards are structured as cooperative agreements with a project period of up to three years. Single-center proposals may receive up to $1,000,000; multi-center collaborations where one MEP Center leads with subawards to other centers or partner organizations may receive up to $5,000,000. Critically, CAP requires no non-federal cost share, which distinguishes it from the base MEP state competition (which mandates a minimum 50 percent non-federal match). Each active MEP Center may appear as applicant on only one CAP proposal at a time. The current NOFO (2021-NIST-MEP-CAP-01, CFDA 11.611, amended March 2022) accepted rolling submissions through May 8, 2026, when the window closed.

Organizations seeking CAP funding must already hold an active NIST MEP cooperative agreement — this is not an entry-level mechanism for new entrants. The absence of a cost-share requirement and the multi-center collaboration structure make CAP well suited for MEP Centers pursuing cross-state or regionally coordinated Industry 4.0 and workforce projects. A successor NOFO is expected but has not been posted as of June 2026; applicants should monitor grants.gov and the NIST MEP website for re-opening under CFDA 11.611.