It has turn into nearly unattainable to commonly observe additive manufacturing (AM) business information and never stumble throughout the time period “protection industrial base” (DIB), an idea encompassing all the numerous numerous organizational and technological components related to the ultimate consequence of manufacturing army {hardware}. Nonetheless considerably underrepresented on this discourse, although, is the time period “natural industrial base” (OIB): the totality of U.S. government-owned services accountable for sustaining and repairing fleets, manufacturing weapons programs and ammunition, and usually contributing to the sustainment of all branches inside the U.S. army.
A straightforward manner to consider the connection between the DIB and the OIB is that it’s much like the connection between squares and rectangles. Similar to all squares are rectangles however not all rectangles are squares, the OIB is a part of the DIB, however the reverse isn’t essentially true.
There’s additionally a 3rd class of establishments that appears to take a seat someplace between these two already overlapping spheres: the analysis, growth, take a look at, and analysis (RDT&E) organizations. Such organizations, just like the U.S. Military’s Fight Capabilities Improvement Command (DEVCOM) and the U.S. Air Pressure Analysis Laboratory (AFRL), are accountable for conducting analysis into rising applied sciences thought-about priorities for U.S. nationwide safety, usually early section analysis, in direction of the target of creating these applied sciences to the purpose the place they are often transitioned to commercialization by the DIB and OIB.
The seemingly numerous RDT&E organizations inside the Division of Protection (DoD) have arguably been the U.S. army’s most crucial asset within the decade-plus buildup of its AM capabilities. The Naval Data Warfare Middle (NAVWAR) Techniques Command is an ideal instance of that. Unfold throughout 5 totally different websites across the U.S., NAVWAR’s particularly outlined process is to focus “on succesful and safe communications and networks that span platforms and services”. Lately, as DoD has turn into an increasing number of explicitly centered on accelerating U.S. army superior manufacturing capability — which requires elevated consideration to the cybersecurity of DoD-relevant manufacturing processes — NAVWAR has turn into an indispensable hyperlink within the U.S. army AM worth chain.
Shut-up of the AMOS 3D printer by Chicago Additive, that includes a ruggedized design for each protection and industrial environments. The system is constructed with stainless-steel {hardware} for enhanced sturdiness in harsh circumstances.
In Could 2025, as an illustration, a little-known startup based in 2024, Chicago Additive, introduced that the corporate was launching the AMOS 3D printer, a ruggedized desktop FDM printer that will probably be made in America at two Chicago Additive services in Indiana. ‘AMOS’ stands for ‘Superior Manufacturing Operation System’, a expertise developed at Naval Data Warfare Middle (NIWC) Pacific below the management of Undertaking Supervisor Spencer Koroly. Chicago Additive was enabled to provide the AMOS in March 2025, when the Division of the Navy leased to the corporate a co-exclusive patent license, “Superior Manufacturing Operational Equipment, System, and Technique”.
Though the AMOS is optimized to be used by the OIB — together with by service members on the frontlines — Koroly, in an interview, identified to me that the true rationale behind the printer was to create a machine that might work in as many alternative environments as doable:
“It’s designed to work for nearly any consumer, proper throughout DoD, proper throughout business, throughout academia,” Koroly mentioned. “It wasn’t designed solely to be a army 3D printer, however somewhat a genuinely dual-use product.
DoD is clearly very as of late in creating extra dual-use programs, i.e., applied sciences equally related to each industrial and protection functions. By shifting away from these specialised programs the place the federal government is the one buyer, it will increase the accessibility for the final market and, hopefully, drives the manufacturing value down. So along with making a machine that may face up to harsh circumstances, we’re attempting to make a machine that may drive up the AM adoption fee.”
In eager about the DoD’s inner use of the AMOS, particularly, Koroly and his collaborators additionally needed to make a 3D printer that might finally be built-in into any conceivable context the place the U.S. army has a bodily presence. A part of the issue with the DoD’s makes an attempt to really leverage AM as an enabler for distributed provide chains — and this can be a technological downside with 3D printers, typically, not a problem distinctive to DoD — is that an enterprise could be utilizing any variety of totally different machines in all of its totally different, geographically-dispersed items.
A coaching session with many AMOS 3D printers in use by service members and technical workers.
By making a machine optimized for nearly any group inside DoD, the AMOS may lay the groundwork for genuinely decentralized protection provide chains:
“Most firms attempting to enter the U.S. protection market don’t take into accounts how the DoD funds is minimize into so many alternative small pies,” defined Koroly. “So that you’ll go to 1 battalion that sources its personal 3D printer, and one other that sources a distinct model, and many others. We needed to ensure that we designed a printer that might be realistically inexpensive for each totally different battalion, each totally different innovation unit, inside DoD, with just a bit little bit of funding — one thing attainable for the common army consumer.
The AMOS might not be the least costly machine, then, however the worth level isn’t outrageously excessive, both. One other factor we saved in thoughts was utilizing standardized elements, which might be sourced from quite a lot of totally different places.
We additionally needed to be aware of things just like the corrosiveness of saltwater for customers within the Navy and the Marines. That’s why the AMOS makes use of all stainless-steel {hardware}. The standard of the elements we use may improve the upfront value, however I believe that the sturdiness of the machine over its complete life-cycle will considerably slender the hole in opposition to the options available on the market.”
Koroly envisioned eventualities wherein the AMOS might be used to realize distributed manufacturing:
“You may design an element in a single lab within the continental U.S., after which you probably have a machine at a army base in, say, Hawaii, the half high quality could be assured prematurely, and the 3MF or no matter file format you utilize would allow the an identical half to be reproduced. I’ve truly seen as many as three totally different manufacturers of FDM printer on a single Navy ship earlier than. If we are able to standardize every little thing onto one machine, no less than concerning one explicit AM expertise, we are able to assure that we are able to allow that cross-pollination of elements with out duplicating capabilities.
That’s the extra essential angle to the AMOS, past ruggedization — the aim of ruggedization is de facto to contribute to distributed provide chains. The extra broadly {that a} single machine is adopted, the extra you’re capable of actually create a digital warehouse of elements.
That may additionally decrease the quantity of pre-planning of stock ranges that’s needed for any half that the AMOS could make. Should you can retailer the half within the digital warehouse, and you realize you will have the bodily infrastructure that permits reproducibility, now you don’t have to make all of those 1000’s of elements prematurely, and retailer them in a brick-and-mortar location for nevertheless many months or years on finish.”
This might additionally make it simpler to coach new service members and make these service members extra productive over the course of their careers. By leveraging a machine that may produce as many alternative elements as doable, in as many places as doable, the army can scale back the variety of totally different specializations that every of its varied branches is determined by for operational effectiveness. That may be particularly helpful for anybody who must supply elements in a contested surroundings:
“Each time you add a brand new specialised machine, that’s a brand new course of that an operator has to study and be skilled on,” Koroly continued. “After which, usually, sailors and marines, as an illustration, rotate out, so you’ll be able to’t guarantee how lengthy the employee you’ve skilled will keep in that position.
Each new machine provides a brand new layer of complexity. Then, when you concentrate on attempting to handle that in distant places, you’re not going to have the ability to get a upkeep employee right into a contested surroundings on an island someplace simply to repair one particular part. You’d have to have the ability to depend on the customers, the war-fighters and sailors and troopers which can be already there on the bottom, or at sea, to have the ability to repair their very own gear within the area.
So I believe that the concept ought to be to create probably the most generalized machines doable that limits the quantity of apparatus that customers in energetic fight need to take with them. And, by organising that kind of distributed manufacturing functionality, you additionally make sure that for those who lose one warehouse, or one manufacturing operation, you don’t lose all of the elements that you just’re storing or making. Now you’ll be able to simply supply these elements from different areas inside the provide chain.”
U.S. Marines function the AMOS 3D printer.
Lastly, whereas the AMOS is designed to provide elements for as many alternative functions as doable, drone parts are maybe probably the most in-demand utility class driving DoD curiosity in frontline 3D printing proper now. Developments from real-world battlefields over the previous a number of years display the importance of instruments enabling the creation of elements that haven’t even been designed but:
“One of many key classes realized in modern battle is that you’ve to have the ability to iterate,” Koroly informed me. “Having a high-speed printer that may reliably iterate elements, whether or not a drone or a medical forged or the rest you may make from polymer, is one thing we have been deeply centered on. Earlier than this venture, I used to be working in autonomous applied sciences, and we have been utilizing 3D printers day-in, day-out.
I believe the well-known Marine Corps saying is adapt and overcome. No matter offers the warfighter the very best stage of adaptability and adaptability is what they’re naturally going to gravitate in direction of. I don’t like being caught in a single set of options and one strategy to resolve an issue. I need to have the ability to iterate in a short time after which scale up shortly from there.
Not realizing every little thing that the AMOS goes for use for is likely one of the most rewarding features of all this to me: placing the machine into the arms of Marine Innovation Items, and different superior manufacturing teams, and seeing the issues they provide you with. As a result of that’s what we have been eager about within the years that it took to make the AMOS — what’s the perfect, most dependable instrument we are able to produce, that may deal with the widest vary of supplies? And the way can we design it in order that the end-users who’re skilled on it could possibly maximize the instrument’s functionality?”
Pictures courtesy of Chicago Additive and NIWC Pacific.
Subscribe to Our E mail E-newsletter
Keep up-to-date on all the most recent information from the 3D printing business and obtain info and affords from third social gathering distributors.
Add your 3D Fashions and get them printed shortly and effectively.
