The US Army is nearing the ability to 3D print spares at the “tactical edge,” according to a DefenseNews report.
While companies like SPEE3D have repeatedly demonstrated military spare part 3D-printing capabilities, making these urgently and under crisis conditions hadn’t been tested until recently.
During a rotation at Fort Johnson’s Joint Readiness Training Center, a Tank-Automotive & Armaments Command file was passed to a team who 3D printed it at the tactical edge. In the words of Lt. Gen. Christopher Mohan, the test represented a “heavy lift,” and the Army “don’t quite have it right yet.”
But with it proving “relatively easy” to digitize parts, the acting commander on the project says the technology is there, and it continues to have great potential within on-demand production.
Over the last four years, Army personnel have been working to establish a digital manufacturing hub out of Rock Island Arsenal, an initiative that has seen them map around 1,000 parts. The AMC has already begun using advanced manufacturing to make out-of-stock widgets, and it’s thought the technology could offer similar lead time benefits with forgings or castings.
There are a few roadblocks that still need clearing. For example, third-party products need to undergo in-house Army testing. Then there’s the issue of responsibility and who’s accountable for 3D printing in the field: individual brigades, divisions, or corps.
However, there’s no denying that the US Army’s successful field test represents an encouraging step towards 3D printing in the heat of battle, where mission supply delays can be deadly.
