Velo3D Makes History as U.S. Army’s First Qualified 3D Printing Vendor for Ground Vehicles
Velo3D and Army engineers will begin printing and validating alternative spare parts for the U.S. Army Tank and Automotive Command (TACOM) supply chain to relieve current sustainment bottlenecks.
Military-grade 3D printing is moving out of the lab and onto the front lines. The U.S. Army has officially qualified Velo3D as its first additive manufacturing vendor for ground vehicles—a milestone reached after a lightning-fast validation process. Using advanced metal AM technology, the Army is now poised to print complex components for combat systems that were previously impossible to manufacture on demand.
To become the first qualified additive manufacturing vendor for the U.S. Army’s Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC), Velo3D, a U.S.-based metal 3D printer manufacturer, met all GVSC qualification criteria in less than two weeks.
“Velo3D is proud to be the first U.S.-based industrial-scale OEM with domestically developed Laser Powder-Bed Fusion additive manufacturing technologies to additively manufacture alternatives for the U.S. Army’s ground vehicle supply chains,” says Arun Jeldi, CEO of Velo3D. “Through our Rapid Production Solution, we are helping provide faster part delivery, enhanced reliability, and the surge capacity needed to meet evolving defense demands.”
Under an existing research agreement with GVSC, Velo3D will partner with Army engineers to rapidly develop and validate complex 3D printed components and assemblies intended for specific ground combat vehicles and other systems facing supply chain challenges.
California-based Divergent Technologies is another additive manufacturing firm using metal laser powder bed fusion technology with a U.S. Army Cooperative Research & Development Agreement, poised, potentially, to also become an additive manufacturing vendor for the GVSC.
“In support of … the Army’s push to expand additive manufacturing, a contingent of GVSC teams is executing a faster AM part qualification process for ground systems—cutting down the time it takes to assess, test, and qualify AM-produced parts,” the U.S. Army DEVCOM Ground Vehicle Systems Center posted on LinkedIn. “As a result, critical components are delivered to the warfighter more quickly, directly addressing urgent sustainment challenges on the battlefield.”
Rapid Qualification and Strategic Role
Velo3D met all GVSC qualification criteria in less than two weeks, the company says, earning its position as the first qualified vendor under the Army’s accelerated additive manufacturing initiative. The effort aims to expand the Defense Industrial Base’s capability to deliver qualified AM solutions more quickly and reliably.
As part of the qualification process, the Army and Velo3D will validate mission-critical parts using Velo3D’s Sapphire line of metal laser powder bed fusion 3D printers. These printers — capable of processing materials such as Aluminum CP1 and Inconel 718 — can produce parts up to 600 mm in diameter and one meter tall.
Upon successful validation, the Army’s Tank and Automotive Command (TACOM) will be able to deploy Velo3D’s AM-produced alternatives into the military supply chain, helping relieve existing sustainment bottlenecks for ground vehicle platforms.
Technology Built for Defense Needs
All Velo3D Sapphire systems are assembled in the United States and feature in-situ, layer-by-layer process monitoring designed to deliver high fidelity and repeatability, the company says. The systems also meet Department of Defense cybersecurity standards and can connect securely to military networks, ensuring protected manufacturing operations.
The defense sector’s interest in additive manufacturing to bolster resilience and flexibility in manufacturing critical parts has accelerated recently, with new Department of Defense initiatives to expedite qualification, reduce qualification requirements, and boost military readiness overall.
“Accelerating AM solutions is a critical effort for the Army and GVSC,” says Brandon Pender, associate director of GVSC Materials Engineering. “Velo3D has the advanced AM technology we need within industry and the robust process, quality, and material data available required to support our accelerated qualification process. We are excited to replicate this process with other industrial base partners and appreciative of Velo3D’s close cooperation that enabled us to rapidly validate this concept.”
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