Association's Website Is First Step to Help U.S. Firms in India
U.S. manufacturers of woodworking machinery can now market their products to potential buyers in India through a new website: AmericanCenterForWoodProcessing.com. The center is a private company representing in India U.S. manufacturers of woodworking machinery, cutting tools and accessories. The American Center is owned by the companies it represents as well as the Wood Machinery Manufacturers of America (WMMA), the U.S. trade association representing the commercial interests of over 200 U.S. producers of woodworking equipment. In late 2008, WMMA received a $183,305 Market Development Cooperator Program award for the India project.

Woodworking machinery such as the horizontal and vertical panel saws and tooling for door-making shown above, are now marketed to Indian buyers at WMMA's AmericanCenterForWoodProcessing.com. The next step for the center is to host product warehousing, demonstration, and after-sale service capability for WMMA member companies.

MDCP Applications Due June 2
All applicants should plan on submitting their applications online via grants.gov well before the deadline, 5:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on June 2. It often takes several days to secure all the registration information needed by grants.gov. All applicants should access grants.gov to set up an account as soon as possible.

Funding Opportunity Notice Was Published on April 7
April 7 marks the date that notice for federal MDCP funding is published in the Federal Register and on grants.gov. It also means that April 6 was the last day for applicants to freely pitch their ideas to federal employees and get their feedback. Applicants can still talk to ITA officials. However, ITA officials are not allowed to comment on the merits of MDCP project ideas. See FAQs 6 and 7 for more about restrictions on comments from ITA. (Although we focus on comments from ITA, the restriction applies to all federal employees.)

Online Discussion Group
Potential applicants and others interested in MDCP can stay in touch with each other via a new list serve. The group may be found on Google Groups. Use "MDCP" as your search term. Once you sign up or log in to Google Groups and find the MDCP group, follow the instructions to request to become a member of this group. The group is not an official federal government website. Parties interested in MDCP use this group to communicate and share information with others interested in MDCP.

Four New MDCP Awards Made in 2008
Click on "Award Recipients" above to see a brief description of the latest MDCP awards.

How to Know if You Are On Our Email Contact List
If you received an email on April 29 regarding the May 5, conference call, then you are on the list. If you did not receive an email and you have not received an email since then notifying you that you are on the list, please email Brad.Hess@mail.doc.gov

Familiarity with ITA Will Help You Succeed
In order to prepare a good application, it is important to demonstrate knowledge of what International Trade Administration resources are available. To find out more about ITA, click on the links in the "Related Links" box.

Review this website. Determine whether your organization is eligible. Contact us. Then contact your local ITA office and the relevant industry specialist.

Determine Whether You Are Eligible

Review a Mock Application and an Example Application

Frequently Asked Questions

MDCP is designed for applicants such as non-profits, trade associations, etc. that represent an industry. It is not designed for individual companies. For more information about eligibility for financial assistance programs other than MDCP, visit the eligibility page of grants.gov.