A new advanced manufacturing "supercluster" of area research and industry players announced by the federal government Thursday will pay enormous economic benefits for Hamilton, local business leaders say.

The move — part of a $950-million series of initiatives across Canada — is being described as a major shot-in-the-arm to a burgeoning network powerhouse developing between Toronto, Kitchener-Waterloo and Hamilton.

"We are evolving into a more regional economy and we have to be able to evolve it further to remain globally competitive," says Keanin Loomis, president of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce.

He says preliminary efforts putting together the network have "unlocked a lot of co-ordination between the three centres" and encouraged hundreds of millions of dollars in industrial investment.

The federal government did not say how much of the $950 million will go to the "advanced manufacturing supercluster" but Loomis believes it will be biggest local federal investment to date.

Read the full story at thespec.com.