Hartford Business Journal

12 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | SEPTEMBER 22, 2025 Kirti Patel at the Connecticut Convention Center just after he was announced as the state's new chief manufacturing officer. HBJ Photo | Harriet Jones Fresh Perspective Engineer, business veteran Kirti Patel brings high-tech expertise to strengthen CT's manufacturing sector struggles to find skilled labor — partic- ularly machinists, technicians and maintenance workers — while also facing high energy and materials costs, tariffs, inflation and global supply chain disruptions. Stepping up Patel replaces Paul Lavoie, who left in July to become University of New Haven's first vice president of innova- tion and applied technology. Lavoie took the job in February 2022, and had made the position into a high profile one, authoring a new manufacturing strategic plan for the state that debuted earlier this year, and leaning into challenges including automation, workforce development and cost reduction. Lavoie set a goal of raising the manufacturing sector's contribution to state gross domestic product from 10% to 20%. There's still a long way to go to reach that mark. As of the first quarter of 2025, manufacturing made up 11.65% of Connecticut's $295.9 billion GDP, according to Bureau of Economic Anal- ysis data. That's up from 11.58% from the year-ago period. Meantime, the manufacturing sector employed 153,100 people at the end of July, down 1.7% from a year ago, according to state Department of Labor data. Overall, manufacturing employment has been on the decline since the start of 2024, with experts blaming labor shortages, an aging workforce and an increasing reliance on automation. The chief manufacturing role was first created by Lamont in 2019. The position sits inside the state Depart- ment of Economic and Community Development (DECD). "Neither the governor nor I think that government is here to solve all the world's problems," said DECD Commis- sioner Daniel O'Keefe. "We truly want to approach all of this in a spirit of partnership." But he has no illusions about the moment that Patel is stepping into. "We're in a challenging environment right now," O'Keefe said. "We're seeing a lot of businesses defer investment because of all this rising protectionism and tariffs. That uncertainty has a real economic impact. We saw our economy, just like the rest of the United States, contract in Q1 after being on a really interesting acceleration path." He's also concerned about what the second quarter figures may show. And, as the federal government pulls back from investment in science and industry, he sees a role for the state to step up. By Harriet Jones hjones@hartfordbusiness.com K irti Patel says he has never taken a position knowing every- thing about it — and that's part of what motivates him. Now, as Connecticut's newly appointed chief manufacturing officer, Patel views the steepest part of his learning curve as government itself. Still, he says his new job offers the chance to make an "impact at scale." "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to culminate all my collective experi- ences in the private sector and to apply it, while also learning about what it is to work in the public sector," he said, speaking with the Hartford Business Journal just after his appointment was announced. A chemical and electrical engineer by training, Patel has spent his career in high-tech sectors — with chipmaker Intel, at a medical imaging startup spun out of Stanford, and later at major healthcare technology companies Siemens and Eppendorf. In a state that sometimes seems dominated by heavier manufacturing, making submarines and jet engines, it's a background that Gov. Ned Lamont thinks is important. " It's, in many ways, where we're headed in terms of advanced manufac- turing in this state and in this country — where Connecticut's got to stay a particular leader," Lamont said as he introduced Patel to a crowd of some 600 manufacturing leaders in Hartford. The new manufacturing czar, he says, has worked at "places that require the most sophisticated manufacturing, the most sophisticated engineering. He's on the front lines there." As Connecticut's manufacturing chief, Patel is expected to help compa- nies adopt new technologies such as automation and advanced robotics, strengthen supply chains and ensure small and midsized firms can access the capital and technical support they need to grow. He will also assist with aligning state workforce training programs with employers' needs. That focus comes as manufacturers across the state report persistent MANUFACTURING'S SHARE OF CONNECTICUT GDP 20% 15% 10% 5% 2008* 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 GDP SHARE * January 1 | Source: HBJ analysis of Bureau of Economic Analysis data

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