New MARINER initiative will help Eastern North Carolina manufacturers access opportunities within the Maritime and Defense Industrial Base
Eastern, NC [October 7, 2026] NC East Alliance has been awarded a $380,000 grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to launch the Eastern North Carolina Maritime Supplier Accelerator which is a new initiative designed to help small manufacturers across eastern North Carolina enter and expand within the nation’s Maritime and Defense Industrial Base.
NC East Alliance was selected through the SBA’s Supply Chain Acceleration and Logistics Enablement (SCALE) Program, a national initiative designed to strengthen domestic manufacturing and strategically important American supply chains. The SBA awarded $8.9 million to 18 organizations across 17 states, with NC East Alliance selected as North Carolina’s recipient with a focus on the Defense Industrial Base.
“This investment gives us an opportunity to connect the manufacturing strength that already exists across eastern North Carolina with one of the most important industrial challenges facing our country,” said Dr. Frank “Trip” Belote, President & CEO of NC East Alliance. “Our region has the companies, workforce, educational institutions, and manufacturing capabilities to play a much larger role in America’s maritime and defense supply chain. The MARINER framework will help us build the connections and capacity necessary to make that happen.”
This grant is part of a broader effort to strengthen North Carolina’s maritime industrial base, including the development of the emerging North Carolina Maritime Association, and will help build the connections and capacity needed to support small manufacturers seeking opportunities within the maritime and defense supply chain.
Building a Maritime Supplier Pipeline
MARINER will be a 24-month regional initiative focused on identifying, preparing, and connecting small businesses in NC East Alliance’s 29-county service area with opportunities throughout the Maritime and Defense Industrial Base.
The initiative will create a structured pathway for manufacturers to move from initial identification to becoming increasingly prepared to compete for maritime and defense supply-chain opportunities.
Through MARINER, NC East Alliance and its partners will:
- Map regional manufacturing capabilities and identify companies with potential to serve the maritime and defense industries;
- Assess participating manufacturers for production capacity, workforce readiness, cybersecurity, quality systems, federal registrations, contracting experience, and other supplier requirements;
- Ready businesses for the maritime industrial base and provide individualized technical assistance to help businesses address identified gaps;
- Improve manufacturing and business capability by helping manufacturers with pursuing certifications, cybersecurity requirements, workforce development, process improvements, financing, and other capabilities needed to compete;
- Network with customers and prime contractors by connecting participating businesses with shipbuilders, prime contractors, federal agencies, and other qualified buyers through supplier forums, matchmaking opportunities, and industry events; and
- Evaluate and expand the supply chain by comparing mapped regional capabilities with documented market demand.
- Retain and grow the supplier network by developing a long-term regional supplier network that continues connecting eastern North Carolina manufacturers with opportunities beyond the grant period.
The initiative will initially identify approximately 200 manufacturers across the region, assess at least 40 high-potential businesses, and provide participating companies with customized technical assistance and opportunities to engage directly with potential customers and prime contractors.
A Regional Partnership
NC East Alliance will lead MARINER in collaboration with regional education, industry, economic development, and technical assistance partners.
Partners identified in the initiative include College of The Albemarle, East Carolina University, ECU’s Crisp Small Business Resource Center, GRIT, and the emerging North Carolina Maritime Association, along with additional regional and industry partners.
These organizations will provide specialized expertise ranging from workforce development and technical training to engineering, cybersecurity, business development, supplier readiness, and connections to the maritime industry.
“Eastern North Carolina has a long history of manufacturing, maritime activity, and supporting our nation’s military,” Belote said. “The opportunity now is to bring those assets together around a coordinated strategy that allows our small businesses to compete for work that may otherwise leave the region or the country.”
Strengthening America’s Maritime Industrial Base
Eastern North Carolina possesses a substantial manufacturing base with capabilities relevant to the maritime and defense industries, including precision machining, metal fabrication, plastics and composites, electronics, logistics, industrial maintenance, shipbuilding, and aerospace manufacturing.
MARINER will build upon those capabilities while helping companies overcome barriers that can prevent smaller manufacturers from entering highly specialized defense supply chains.
The initiative comes as the United States works to increase domestic industrial capacity supporting shipbuilding, submarine construction, defense manufacturing, and other strategically important supply chains.
By connecting eastern North Carolina companies with new markets and providing the technical assistance necessary to compete, NC East Alliance intends for MARINER to create a sustainable regional capability that continues beyond the two-year SBA grant.
“This isn’t just about completing a two-year program,” Belote said. “It’s about creating a permanent pipeline that connects eastern North Carolina manufacturers to customers, capital, technical resources, workforce partners, and opportunities within the maritime economy. We want companies across our region to see the Maritime Industrial Base as a market they can participate in and grow with.”
