Oklahoma has established a customer-driven industrial extension system. A publicly-chartered, private non-profit corporation, the Oklahoma Alliance for Manufacturing Excellence, Inc. (`the Alliance') coordinates the system. The system incorporates principles that Oklahoma manufacturers value: (1) decentralization and local accessibility; (2) coordinated existing resources; (3) comprehensive help; (4) interfirm cooperation; (5) pro-active outreach; (6) self- help and commitment from firms; (7) customer governance; and (8) performance accountability. The Oklahoma system consists of: (1) a network of locally-based broker/agents who work directly with manufacturers to diagnose problems and find appropriate assistance; (2) a group of industry sector specialists who collect and disseminate sector specific technological and market intelligence to the broker/agents and their clients; (3) all the specialized public and private sector resources coordinated by the system; and (4) a customer- driven coordination and evaluation mechanism, the Alliance.

Date Published: 7 March 1994
PDF: 4 pages
Proc. SPIE 2102, Coupling Technology to National Need, (7 March 1994); doi: 10.1117/12.170616

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 2102:
Coupling Technology to National Need
Arthur H. Guenther; Louis D. Higgs, Editor(s)