YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining announced two new project calls worth a combined $14.5 million.
Both projects are funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office.
Delta Qual 2.0
The Delta Qual 2.0 project call is worth $9 million in funding and addresses key additive manufacturing qualification challenges across the defense industrial base by streamlining testing requirements, strengthening machine installation standards and increasing flexibility for processing parameters. These advancements support the U.S. Department of Defense’s objectives to deploy reliable, cost-effective and scalable advanced manufacturing solutions for national security.
“Modernizing qualification for advanced manufacturing is essential to maintaining our defense readiness,” said John Martin, additive manufacturing research director at America Makes. “This project lays the groundwork for a more agile, trusted and scalable manufacturing ecosystem, ensuring we can deliver mission-critical parts faster and with greater confidence for decades to come.”
Proposed efforts are expected to deliver actionable insights that reduce technical and industrial risk while enabling realistic transition pathways. Collectively, the outcomes are intended to provide mutual value to the DoD and organic industrial base.
The proposal submission deadline is 5 p.m. June 2. For more information and to submit a proposal, click HERE.
Generation of Technical-Data for High-Strength Aluminum Alloy Material
The Generation of Technical-Data for High-Strength Aluminum Alloy Material project call is worth $5.5 million in funding and focuses on developing material allowables for a high-strength, 7075-T73-equivalent aluminum alloy across three classes of LPBF additive manufacturing systems, enabling scalable production on small-, medium- and large-format printers.
By delivering a corrosion-resistant, aerospace-grade alloy with broad defense and commercial applications, the effort is positioned to generate a strong return on investment for original equipment manufacturers and the organic industrial base as it transitions into qualified production.
Using large-format, multilaser LPBF systems, the effort aims to deliver robust material data supporting durable, corrosion-resistant components for critical defense applications.
“By delivering validated data and maturing LPBF capability, we’re giving U.S. manufacturers what they need to produce reliable components for critical defense systems,” Martin said.
The proposal submission deadline is 5 p.m. June 2. For more information and to submit a proposal, click HERE.