Ford Launches Michigan LIFT Partnership to Boost Suppliers and Address Manufacturing Challenges

Ford Motor Co. has launched a new partnership called Michigan Launchpad for Industrial Innovation & Transformation (LIFT) to support innovative suppliers and address manufacturing challenges in the state of Michigan.

The goal is to help suppliers who have technology that businesses need, but lack financing, workforce, or customer connections to scale up and prove themselves.

Ford aspires to award up to $1 billion in business to new and existing suppliers through LIFT by 2036. JPMorganChase plans to provide up to $1 billion in financing, while Michigan Central, Newlab, and the Michigan Economic Development Corp. aim to attract additional industrial buyers representing over $1 billion in annual demand by that year.

The partnership comes ahead of Ford's second annual Accelerate conference at Michigan Central, where business leaders will discuss ways to address the crisis in the Essential Economy, or skilled trades with a growing shortage of workers.