About Us
NCAM, originally formed in 1999, is a principal NASA resource in Louisiana which supports aerospace manufacturing research, development and innovation critical to the goals of the nation's space program. It has evolved into a multi-tenant facility at one of the world’s largest manufacturing centers, NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility located on the 832-acre site in eastern New Orleans, La., with 43 acres under a single roof and deepwater access that enables transportation of large space systems and hardware.
On August 2, 2012, leaders from the State of Louisiana, NASA, LSU and UNO committed to a five-year extension of an agreement to support and develop NASA’s NCAM.
Under the newly restructured NCAM agreement, NASA and its academic and industry partners will continue to work jointly on research, development and test activities to meet future space system needs. NCAM partners strive to improve U.S. competitiveness in aerospace and commercial markets and to enable the transfer of technology to industry partners and educational institutions within the partnership and across the nation. NCAM also has a strong educational role, sponsoring a consortium of Louisiana research universities to develop advanced materials and manufacturing technologies that are key to the production of aerospace hardware and structures.
In September 2012, the Louisiana Council of Engineering Deans convened to designate the NCAM partnership with NASA as an LCED initiative and encourage their faculty to work collaboratively on research projects centered on advanced manufacturing, with NCAM serving as the clearing house for these research partnerships.
To date, the State of Louisiana has invested more than $62 million in the NCAM partnership—funds that have helped sustain a trained aerospace workforce in Louisiana with world-class manufacturing capabilities.