Heartland Robotics Cluster
Coalition Lead: Invest Nebraska Corporation
Phase 2 Award: $25 million
Private Investment (Sept. 2022 – Sept. 2024): $750,000
Additional Public and Nonprofit Funding (Sept. 2022 – Sept. 2024): $2.3 million
Project Description:
The Heartland Robotics Cluster is utilizing a $25 million BBBRC grant to accelerate Nebraska’s leadership in the agricultural industry through robotic technologies development and advanced manufacturing automation while simultaneously revitalizing the region’s rural labor force and strengthening the nation’s food supply. One in four jobs statewide is related to agricultural production, and the coalition is working to both increase the agricultural labor supply as well as enhance productivity through new technologies.
The coalition is aligning partners across the state, including the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Nebraska Innovation Studio, the Combine, Northeast Community College, and Metropolitan Community College.
As of September 2024, the Heartland Robotics Cluster has made significant strides in achieving its vision of a more productive and efficient agricultural system that provides opportunities for upward economic mobility for workers of all backgrounds.
- Metropolitan Community College, an Omaha-based institute of higher education, established and continues to host an afterschool robotics camp for middle- and high-school students to foster interest in automated mechanical systems as well as provide opportunities for engineering skills development. The annual number of students participating began at just under 100 and is projected to increase to over 500 by the end of the grant period.
- The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Engineering increased the number of qualified robotics engineers in the state through the establishment of a new robotics engineering curriculum for undergraduate students, the first cohort of whom began their studies in fall of 2024. At full maturity, the program is expected to graduate a total of 125 students annually.
- The Nebraska Manufacturing Extension Partnership is working to demonstrate advancements in agricultural technology as well provide instruction to interested private-sector entities on how to safely and effectively operate it. Demonstrations are currently taking place for a range of clients with recently purchased robots and 3D printers.
Coalition Overarching Narrative (applicant submitted) (PDF)
“The $25 million of grant funding [from EDA to the Heartland Robotics Cluster] will be utilized to develop an automation demonstration space for Nebraska manufacturers, grow the robotics engineering curriculum and build out lab space for undergraduate students, develop urban agriculture and robotics outreach, and increase technical assistance for agriculture technology startups”
Heartland Robotics Cluster
Related Links
- Learn more about the Combine, the partnering incubator supporting agricultural technology founders in scaling up and innovation.
- Learn more about the Nebraska Innovation Studio at the University of Nebraska—Lincoln, a community-oriented makerspace that serves as a hub for innovators, artists, and entrepreneurs.
- Learn more about Invest Nebraska, a state-managed organization providing seed funding to entrepreneurs seeking to build the next generation of industry leaders.
- Learn more about Nebraska College of Engineering, planning to build a robotics lab in the Scott Engineering Center basement, hire more personnel for the Heartland Robotics Cluster, and develop academic curricula in robotics engineering.
- Learn more about Northeast Community College and the iHub, Northeast Community College's iHub is the Norfolk area makerspace and youth STEM center where imagination, design, and creativity take place.
- Learn more about the Nebraska Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the partnering entity to increase the profitability and competitiveness of manufacturers through a concerted effort to develop high caliber workers, foster product innovation, cultivate new customers and enter new markets.
- Learn more about Metropolitan Community College who is developing a K-12 curriculum for underrepresented students, robotics camps in partnership with after-school programs, while also expanding its Freight Farm initiative.