The Italian Machine Tool Technology Award (IMTTA) program asks senior students attending premier North American universities to write theses on contemporary innovations and issues taking place in mechanical engineering-related industries. The aim of the program is to enrich the engineering education advancing knowledge on significant technological issues within the industry for the next generation of engineering professionals. Recent winners of the IMTTA won a two-week trip to Italy and have taken part in certification programs such as those offered by the Polytechnic University of Milan. The IMTTA is coordinated and sponsored by the Italian Trade Agency’s Chicago Office, and co-sponsored in Italy by UCIMU-SISTEMI PER PRODURRE (Association of Italian Manufacturers of Machine Tools, Robots, Automation Systems and Ancillary Products - www.ucimu.it), and in the United States partners with the Society of Manufacturing Engineers’ Education Foundation (SME-EF – www.smeef.org).