Hope Global’s Leslie Taito Joins National Team Provide Providing Guidance to Help Small Manufacturers

Leslie Taito, Senior Vice President of Corporate Operations for Hope Global in Cumberland, Rhode Island, has been named to the National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership ("MEP") Advisory Board (http://www.nist.gov/mep). The NIST MEP Advisory Board is a national board that is legislatively mandated and established under the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

MEP is a public-private partnership with centers in all 50 states and Puerto Rico dedicated to serving small and medium-sized manufacturers. Last year, MEP centers interacted with 25,445 manufacturers leading to $9.3 billion in new and retained sales, $1.4 billion in cost savings, $3.5 billion in new client investments, and the creation and retention of more than 86,602 jobs.

Taito will join a team of manufacturing professionals chosen to provide advice and guidance to the national Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The MEP Advisory Board is expected to assist in identifying proactive actions that will enable small manufacturers to successfully address and implement changes in technology and the business environment in the future.