42 U.S.C. § 17115a (THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE)
§ 17115a. Development of national smart manufacturing plan
(a) In general
Not later than 3 years after December 27, 2020, the Secretary of Energy (in this section referred to as the “Secretary”), in consultation with the National Academies, shall develop and complete a national plan for smart manufacturing technology development and deployment to improve the productivity and energy efficiency of the manufacturing sector of the United States.
(b) Content
(1) In general
The plan developed under subsection (a) shall identify areas in which agency actions by the Secretary and other heads of relevant Federal agencies would—
(A) facilitate quicker development, deployment, and adoption of smart manufacturing technologies and processes;
(B) result in greater energy efficiency and lower environmental impacts for all American manufacturers; and
(C) enhance competitiveness and strengthen the manufacturing sectors of the United States.
(2) Inclusions
Agency actions identified under paragraph (1) shall include—
(A) an assessment of previous and current actions of the Department relating to smart manufacturing;
(B) the establishment of voluntary interconnection protocols and performance standards;
(C) the use of smart manufacturing to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions in supply chains across multiple companies;
(D) actions to increase cybersecurity in smart manufacturing infrastructure;
(E) deployment of existing research results;
(F) the leveraging of existing high-performance computing infrastructure; and
(G) consideration of the impact of smart manufacturing on existing manufacturing jobs and future manufacturing jobs.
(c) Biennial revisions
Not later than 2 years after the date on which the Secretary completes the plan under subsection (a), and not less frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary shall revise the plan to account for advancements in information and communication technology and manufacturing needs.
(d) Report
Annually until the completion of the plan under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the progress made in developing the plan.
(e) Definition
In this section, the term “smart manufacturing” means advanced technologies in information, automation, monitoring, computation, sensing, modeling, artificial intelligence, analytics, and networking that—
(1) digitally—
(A) simulate manufacturing production lines;
(B) operate computer-controlled manufacturing equipment;
(C) monitor and communicate production line status; and
(D) manage and optimize energy productivity and cost throughout production;
(2) model, simulate, and optimize the energy efficiency of a factory building;
(3) monitor and optimize building energy performance;
(4) model, simulate, and optimize the design of energy efficient and sustainable products, including the use of digital prototyping and additive manufacturing to enhance product design;
(5) connect manufactured products in networks to monitor and optimize the performance of the networks, including automated network operations; and
(6) digitally connect the supply chain network.
(Pub. L. 116–260, div. Z, title VI, § 6006, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2560.)
heading: Editorial Notes
heading: Codification
text: Section was enacted as part of the Energy Act of 2020, and not as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which comprises this chapter.