America Makes Announces Winners for Defense AM Qualification and Alloy Development Projects
America Makes and NCDMM have revealed the recipients of two significant project calls focused on advancing defense industrial capabilities and developing high-temperature alloys for additive manufacturing.
America Makes, in collaboration with the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM), has announced the selected winners for two substantial project calls. The first, the Joint Additive Qualification for Sustainment – Supplier Qualification (JAQS-SQ – Groups 2 & 3), is a $10.5 million initiative funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of War, Manufacturing Technology Office (OSW ManTech). This project aims to enhance the defense industrial base's capabilities and manufacturing readiness by focusing on unified training and qualification requirements for suppliers utilizing laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and directed energy deposition (DED) processes. Practical training for production and engineering operations managers will be developed with Wichita State University – National Institute for Aviation Research (WSU-NIAR) to ensure effective implementation of process control documents and qualification principles.
The second project call, the $6 million Powder Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing (PADAM) 2.0 Project Call, is funded by the Air Force Research Laboratory, Foundational Technologies Directorate (AFRL/REMD). Its objective is to advance the readiness, manufacturability, performance, and supply chain resilience of high-temperature refractory alloys specifically for additive manufacturing applications relevant to the Department of War. The initiative seeks to transition these advanced alloys from theoretical potential to practical application within the defense sector.
In related additive manufacturing news, a major aerospace original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is reportedly utilizing Additive Assurance's AMiRIS in-process quality assurance solution. This adoption signifies a move beyond simple monitoring to generating "decision-ready evidence" that can be applied across a manufacturing ecosystem. The machine-agnostic approach of AMiRIS aims to increase confidence in metal additive manufacturing by providing a consistent method for in-process data collection and interpretation across various supply chain partners and powder bed fusion platforms. This is particularly crucial as build volumes increase and traditional post-process inspection can become a bottleneck for complex geometries.
These developments highlight a concerted effort to mature additive manufacturing for critical defense applications. The JAQS-SQ and PADAM projects address fundamental needs for qualified suppliers and advanced materials, essential for scaling AM in demanding sectors. The adoption of in-situ QA by an aerospace OEM underscores the industry's push for reliable, scalable processes that move beyond defect detection to anomaly identification, a key step for widespread adoption in high-assurance environments.
Edited by the news editor with AI from the original report — please refer to the original source.