42 USC § 17115a - Development of national smart manufacturing plan

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t42/s17115a"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "42 USC § 17115a - Development of national smart manufacturing plan"
title_number: 42
title_name: "THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE"
section_number: "17115a"
section_name: "Development of national smart manufacturing plan"
chapter_number: 152
chapter_name: "ENERGY INDEPENDENCE AND SECURITY"
subchapter_number: "III"
subchapter_name: "ENERGY SAVINGS IN BUILDINGS AND INDUSTRY"
part_number: "D"
part_name: "Industrial Energy Efficiency"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Pub. L. 116–260, div. Z, title VI, § 6006, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2560.)"
---


# § 17115a. Development of national smart manufacturing plan

**(a)** **In general** December 27, 2020

Not later than 3 years after , the Secretary of Energy (in this section referred to as the “Secretary”), in consultation with the National Academies, shall develop and complete a national plan for smart manufacturing technology development and deployment to improve the productivity and energy efficiency of the manufacturing sector of the United States.

**(b)** **Content**

**(1)** **In general** The plan developed under subsection (a) shall identify areas in which agency actions by the Secretary and other heads of relevant Federal agencies would—

**(A)** facilitate quicker development, deployment, and adoption of smart manufacturing technologies and processes;

**(B)** result in greater energy efficiency and lower environmental impacts for all American manufacturers; and

**(C)** enhance competitiveness and strengthen the manufacturing sectors of the United States.

**(2)** **Inclusions** Agency actions identified under paragraph (1) shall include—

**(A)** an assessment of previous and current actions of the Department relating to smart manufacturing;

**(B)** the establishment of voluntary interconnection protocols and performance standards;

**(C)** the use of smart manufacturing to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions in supply chains across multiple companies;

**(D)** actions to increase cybersecurity in smart manufacturing infrastructure;

**(E)** deployment of existing research results;

**(F)** the leveraging of existing high-performance computing infrastructure; and

**(G)** consideration of the impact of smart manufacturing on existing manufacturing jobs and future manufacturing jobs.

**(c)** **Biennial revisions** Not later than 2 years after the date on which the Secretary completes the plan under subsection (a), and not less frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary shall revise the plan to account for advancements in information and communication technology and manufacturing needs.

**(d)** **Report** Annually until the completion of the plan under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the progress made in developing the plan.

**(e)** **Definition** In this section, the term “smart manufacturing” means advanced technologies in information, automation, monitoring, computation, sensing, modeling, artificial intelligence, analytics, and networking that—

**(1)** digitally—

**(A)** simulate manufacturing production lines;

**(B)** operate computer-controlled manufacturing equipment;

**(C)** monitor and communicate production line status; and

**(D)** manage and optimize energy productivity and cost throughout production;

**(2)** model, simulate, and optimize the energy efficiency of a factory building;

**(3)** monitor and optimize building energy performance;

**(4)** model, simulate, and optimize the design of energy efficient and sustainable products, including the use of digital prototyping and additive manufacturing to enhance product design;

**(5)** connect manufactured products in networks to monitor and optimize the performance of the networks, including automated network operations; and

**(6)** digitally connect the supply chain network.

---

**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 116–260, div. Z, title VI, § 6006, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2560.)

## Editorial Notes

### Codification

Section was enacted as part of the Energy Act of 2020, and not as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 which comprises this chapter.