Nov. 6, 2025 – Fall is one of our favorite seasons at FORGE because it means it’s time for another annual Fall Startup Showcase. This year, as always, we got to show off the most amazing physical products made by regional startups and innovative companies. More than 150 innovators, local suppliers and manufacturers, investors, and…
On April 17th, FORGE brought together state leaders, industry, and educators for a factory tour at Advance Welding in Springfield, Massachusetts to spotlight regional innovation and workforce development in advanced manufacturing. The event also highlighted a strong partnership between Advance Welding and Western New England University (WNE), a collaboration equipping students with hands-on experience in…
Apr. 8, 2025 – A custom Cybertruck and a Volkswagen Buzz sit on the lawn out front. Shelves of innovative products line the entry hallway. It’s easy to tell interesting things are happening at product development company Gyre9’s Southbury, CT facility, even before you set foot on the factory floor. Gyre9 took us behind the…
by Paige Romanick, Strategic Projects Associate Supply chains are a significant source of CO2 emissions for consumer companies, comprising over 80 percent of their total greenhouse gas emissions (Bove & Swartz, 2016). By partnering with local manufacturers, companies can reduce these emissions while gaining significant operational benefits. The impact of CO2 emissions Carbon dioxide, or…
by Sofia Bueso, FORGE Event Marketing Associate Each day at FORGE begins with the energy of the Green Line commute and a warm welcome at the front desk. The moment you walk into our Somerville headquarters in FORGE’s sister organization Greentown Labs, there’s a sense of camaraderie setting the tone for a day filled with…
Nov. 21, 2024 – We spent the night with some of Connecticut’s brightest and most enterprising minds! FORGE teamed up with Innovation Nights to show off physical products from amazing local companies at Innovation Nights Connecticut. It was a chilly, rainy day at GE Appliances’ CoCREATE Facility in Stamford, CT. But the arrival of more…
For its fourth year, the annual Manufacturing Mash-Up moved to Gillette Stadium for even more manufacturing ecosystem networking, panels, grants, and awards. FORGE joined in the fun as an event partner again. We brought some of our favorite manufacturers, suppliers, and startups to table at the event. Mark Michalski, one of our manufacturing experts in…
Manufacturing a medical device is fundamentally different from producing a consumer or other non-medical device. The stakes are higher, the regulations stricter, and the need for precision and reliability greater. Here’s what medical device startups need to keep in mind on the journey from prototype to full-scale production. Regulatory compliance Ensuring your device meets all…
Finish Line Product Development Services, a Friend of FORGE partner, is a product development consultancy complementing companies’ existing product development team with experts, processes and reference designs exclusively for startups and small companies. In this Tools of the Trade about market validation, Finish Line describes why startups need to validate their products before pouring money…
The team of experienced engineers at Next Rung Technology, a Friend of FORGE partner, collaborates with growth-stage companies creating sustainable technologies to support them through the range of complex challenges faced in commercialization. In this Tools of the Trade, Next Rung Technology goes in-depth on how lean startups can use techno-economic modeling to position themselves…
