NC H316

Codifies the establishment of the Manufacturing Solutions Center at Catawba Valley Community College as a new Article 5B in Chapter 115D of the General Statutes.

The Center's purpose is to create and maintain jobs in North Carolina through training, testing, market development, entrepreneur support, product sourcing, prototyping, applied research, and operating a manufacturing business incubator.

The Catawba Valley Community College president appoints an executive director of the Center, who then selects other Center personnel subject to presidential approval; all are subject to the college's personnel policies.

Fees collected by the Center for services to industry (excluding tuition receipts) are retained and used for Center operations; these purchases are exempt from state procurement requirements in G.S. Chapter 143, Article 3.

The Center must notify the Secretary of the Department of Administration for contracts exceeding $1,000,000, include audit clauses in agreements, and cannot award cost-plus percentage contracts.