Businesses in Washington and Fairfield were announced as recipients of grants from Governor Kim Reynolds’ office and the Iowa Economic Development Authority Friday.

Bazooka Farmstar LLC. in Washington was awarded three Manufacturing 4.0 Workforce Innovation grants totaling about $374,995 to purchase a Press Brake, Siegmund Weld Tables and a Bystronic ByTrans Material Handler, all coming from American Rescue Plan Act funds. New Sky Factory in Fairfield was awarded a $50,000 Manufacturing 4.0 Technology Investment Program grant in state funds for a $139,922 project.

The Workforce Innovation Program addresses workforce issues by assisting manufacturers negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on addressing workforce shortages that are either limiting the company in growth or sales and retaining existing employees by refocusing human capital from manual, labor-intensive positions into highly skilled, value-added occupations through the integration of varying robotic and automated systems. The technology investment grant is aimed at helping manufacturers increase productivity, efficiency, and competitiveness, with eligible projects including machinery acquisition, specialized equipment for automation, advanced and autonomous robotics, and equipment for process improvements. About $22 million was given in total through Iowa’s Manufacturing 4.0 plan.