The immense complexity of modern defense supply chains has created critical vulnerabilities, where the inability to source a single legacy component can sideline an entire multibillion-dollar weapons system. This reality has spurred a strategic pivot toward advanced manufacturing, with a focus on creating a more resilient and responsive industrial base capable of producing essential parts on demand. In a landmark move to address these production bottlenecks, the U.S. defense sector is now aggressively integrating cutting-edge additive manufacturing technologies. This initiative represents a concerted effort to shorten lead times, enhance operational readiness, and ensure that the nation’s military can maintain its technological edge. A significant new collaboration aims to leverage 3D printing not just as a prototyping tool, but as a core component of the defense production ecosystem, fundamentally changing how critical military hardware is developed, maintained, and deployed in the field.
A Strategic Alliance to Overcome Production Hurdles
To spearhead this transformation, the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) has established a pivotal partnership with additive manufacturing specialist Velo3D, formalized through a $32.6 million agreement under the ambitious Project FORGE initiative. The central mission of this collaboration is to systematically identify and eliminate the production chokepoints that have long plagued the output of vital defense systems. The primary objective is the development and rigorous qualification of additively manufactured metal components, which will serve a dual purpose: replacing obsolete legacy parts that are difficult or impossible to procure through traditional means, and enhancing the performance and longevity of current military platforms. By qualifying these 3D-printed parts for mission-critical applications, the project directly addresses the challenge of industrial base fragility, promising to dramatically improve the operational readiness and sustainment of the U.S. armed forces by making the supply chain more agile and less dependent on fragile, decades-old manufacturing processes.
Fortifying the Domestic Industrial Base with Advanced Technology
At the heart of this initiative lies a comprehensive evaluation of large-format laser powder bed fusion capabilities, a technology poised to fill critical gaps within the nation’s industrial framework. To achieve this, Velo3D is implementing its complete Rapid Production Solution, which leverages its domestically assembled Sapphire printers. These systems are engineered to produce large-scale metal parts with exceptional precision and complexity, qualities essential for modern defense applications. A crucial element of this deployment is the integration of robust security protocols. Velo3D’s systems are meticulously designed to meet the stringent cybersecurity standards mandated by the Department of Defense, enabling secure connectivity with military networks. This ensures the protection of sensitive design data and guarantees the integrity of the manufacturing process from digital threats. This partnership therefore represents more than a technological upgrade; it is a strategic investment in a resilient, secure, and highly efficient manufacturing ecosystem for the entire U.S. defense industry. This integration of secure, advanced manufacturing cemented a new standard for how the defense industry approached industrial sovereignty and technological resilience.
