Alabama manufacturers of all sizes now have a chance to connect with companies seeking their capabilities in an effort to keep sourcing as local as possible via CONNEX Alabama.

Part of the national CONNEX Marketplace, the database of manufacturers aims to help prevent the supply chain issues exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but also to provide a showcase of what local manufacturers can do when given the opportunity.

“CONNEX is an online marketplace where manufacturers come to connect together in the United States. It allows us to connect our entire manufacturing ecosystem so we are able to source local-first our manufacturing capabilities,” said Alan Davis, president and CEO of CONNEX Marketplace. “The goal is allowing us to be able to connect and source and find those capabilities we have at the local level. If we can’t find them at the local level, we expand to the state level. If we can’t find them at the state level, expand to the national level, but certainly be able to find the capability within the United States.”

In the Yellowhammer State, CONNEX Alabama is being managed by the Alabama Technology Network (ATN).

“CONNEX Alabama is another example of our commitment to Alabama manufacturers. We believe that CONNEX Marketplace has the potential to transform the way manufacturers do business in Alabama,” said Whitney Barlow, ATN’s Supplier Development manager.

“This is not your standard database; manufacturers can quickly post and respond to needs, visualize supply chain risk, search for qualified suppliers and instantly discover new business opportunities,” Barlow said.

Statewide database access is free. There is a fee for the nationwide database access.

Davis said CONNEX Marketplace started as an economic development study but has grown to become its current platform with a growing database of manufacturers and more states participating.

He said he can point to a number of cases where a manufacturer was convinced they would have to look overseas to find a supplier with a certain capability, only to find one right down the street, thanks to the database.

“It’s amazing how much we don’t know about the guy down the street,” Davis said. “It’s been phenomenal.

“So many companies that have come to us looking for resources, saying that they can’t find them anywhere in the United States. We do a quick search and find that literally they’re within a few miles of their facility.”

Manufacturing capabilities and certifications aren’t things you can find with a Google search, Davis said.

“You can’t search on things like processes and equipment and certifications – all those things which indicate what someone is capable of doing, not necessarily what they’re doing currently or presently.” He noted, for example, that Google can’t provide a list of all of the women-owned, plastic injection molding companies in Alabama.

For a small manufacturer in rural Alabama, CONNEX Alabama could open the door to new business, both in the state and across the country.

“What’s in it for (small manufacturers) is the ability to be found by others who are looking for your capabilities and can find you locally first and then, certainly, all of those across the country who are looking for you,” Davis said. “We constantly are working with large manufacturers and others who are looking for manufacturing capabilities. We want them to be able to find them in the U.S. and specifically in Alabama. The small mom and pop shop in rural Alabama, we want them to be found and make sure that their capabilities are being utilized by those who need them.”

The Alabama Technology Network is managing CONNEX Alabama. (contributed)

Having ATN take the lead will help make sure someone isn’t overlooked, Davis said.

“The wonderful thing in ATN taking a leadership role for the state of Alabama is really helping to propagate and roll this out across the state of Alabama,” he said. “And if everyone together in Alabama comes together around manufacturing, it helps the manufacturers know about the capability, about the opportunity that they have and what they can do to leverage that to their benefit. It benefits not just them, it benefits local economies and the state economy overall in manufacturing.”

It also helps avoid supply chain issues that the pandemic exposed when companies rely on overseas suppliers.

“The ultimate goal is to connect our entire manufacturing ecosystem – allow us to have the resource that we need to strengthen our manufacturing ecosystem to make it more resilient, more secure,” Davis said.

“We’re working not just to connect it but to secure it, to identify the risks that exist within our ecosystem and bring those risks down and help make that visible, transparent, and to a level that we can actually address it at the local level and thereby strengthening the entire ecosystem of manufacturing.”

In Alabama the process begins by contacting ATN, where manufacturers can sign up for free statewide access. They can also use the code FREE30 for a 30-day trial to the nationwide database.

“We are very excited to introduce CONNEX Alabama as the supply chain solution,” ATN’s Barlow said.