Defense-Wide Manufacturing Science and Technology Program

The Manufacturing Education and Workforce Development (M-EWD) project provides a strategic framework for DoD leadership of advanced manufacturing talent development and includes MII-led regional initiatives informed by labor market data profiles of regional economies, a pilot effort to develop an automated real-time labor market data portal, and launch of ManufacturingWorkforce.org, a dual-use digital learning platform with advanced manufacturing course offerings.

To develop bioindustrial manufacturing technologies that harness the power of biology to help create and domestically source manufactured goods for warfighter requirements, the DoD has partnered with the BioMADE Manufacturing Innovation Institute. BioMADE is hastening the adoption of bio-manufactured goods within the U.S. supply chain, bridging the gap between lab-scale research and at-scale manufacturing of biotechnology products, and will deliver a new class of manufacturing using domestic resources and capabilities to bio-manufacture critical products at scale with increased supply chain security. Bioindustrial manufacturing also has the potential to create entirely new classes of products with primary defense applications, such as chemicals and materials with advanced properties for use in austere environments. Bioindustrial manufacturing addresses defense priorities and offers commercial potential for innovations in fuels, industrial chemicals, fibers, and other chemical components of commercial and defense supply chains that will create new opportunities for U.S. manufacturers and reshore domestic production of critical materials.

To improve the capabilities and producibility of smart, collaborative robotics for defense manufacturing requirements within a more comptetitive U.S. manufacturing base, enable artificial intelligence utilization, and increase robotics autonomy, the DoD has partnered with the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Manufacturing Innovation Institute. ARM is focusing on technologies enabling human robot interaction, and perfecting robotic adaption, learning, manipulation, autonomy, mobility, and perception.

To make practical the scalable, consistent, and cost-effective manufacturing of cells, tissues, and organs and develop the trained and ready workforce necessary for regenerative tissue manufacturing, the DoD has partnered with the BioFabUSA Manufacturing Innovation Institute. BioFabUSA advances human tissue manufacturing innovations in cell and biomaterial processing, bioprinting, automation, and non-destructive testing technologies. BioFabUSA is establishing a collaboration to mature tissue-related technology across manufacturing readiness levels (MRL) 4-7, enabling post-delivery assurance of tissue identity, viability, function, and efficacy. This MII is assembling a diverse and currently fragmented collection of industry practices and institutional knowledge across many disciplines (e.g., cell biology, bioengineering, materials science, analytical chemistry, robotics, and quality assurance).

To hasten the availability of integrated photonic circuits – chips that move information faster and more efficiently than traditional electronic circuits while using less power – the DoD has partnered with the American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics (AIM) Manufacturing Innovation Institute and the electronic photonic design automation (EPDA) industry. Integrated photonic circuit manufacturing advances the promise of unprecedented interconnection between electronics and photonics that will deliver world-class performance in speed, density, and power consumption. Photonics provides differentiating benefits for defense applications such as high-speed signal processing; electronic warfare; position, navigation, and timing; information transport and computation; sensing; imaging; and targeting. AIM Photonics has established an end-to-end U.S. ‘ecosystem’ for advancing domestic integrated photonics manufacturing, including access to a responsive integrated photonic circuit fabrication foundry. AIM Photonics provides the world’s most accessible 300 mm silicon photonics multi-project wafer service, state-of-the-art process design, and a highly advanced test, assembly, and packaging (TAP), facility.

To improve quality and point-of-need availability of additive manufactured and adaptive manufactured parts for defense applications, the DoD has partnered with the America Makes Manufacturing Innovarion Institute. Additive manufacturing (AM) (i.e., 3D printing) is a process of joining materials to make objects from 3D model data, usually layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing methodologies such as traditional machining. AM benefits the DoD by enabling lifecycle cost savings and enhanced capabilities including: distributing supply chains to enable the right part in the right place at the right time; improving mission readiness by producing work aids for DoD depots; replacing long-lead time and out of production spares and enhancing lethality through production of lighter weight and higher performing parts than could otherwise be achieved with traditional manufacturing.

To improve the quality and quantity of suppliers within the DoD supply chain, a digital interface must exist between the DoD and its vendors. The DoD has partnered with the Manufacturing times Digital, Design and Cybersecurity (MxD) Manufacturing Innovation Institute to make available a defense. Digital Thread -- the unencumbered flow of data across the lifecycle of a manufactured product encompassing data from design, production, supply, sourcing, inventory, assembly, quality, maintenance, and sustainment. It includes analysis of data to reduce the time and cost of bringing new products to market. MxD eliminates barriers between design, manufacturing, and sustainment by using both product data and process data in a way that is seamless and transparent.

To increase electronic packing density and meet the demands of hazardous environments, the DoD has partnered with the NextFlex Manufacturing Innovation Institute (for flexible hybrid electronics (FHE) circuitry innovation. FHE manufacturing involves highly tailorable devices on non-traditional, compliant substrates that combine thinned components manufactured from traditional processes with components added via “printing” processes. NextFlex invests in prototyping and scale-up of manufacturing processes for high-speed pick-and-place, printed circuits, and hybrid fabrication to enable defense and commercial applications in wearable electronics, unattended sensors, integrated array antennas, medical devices, and soft robotics devices. NextFlex is also committed to continuous improvement in SWAPC (Size, Weight and Power plus Cost) for electronic systems.

Provides the resources for the management and policy of OSD and DoD-Wide T2 and transition activities. Provides contractual and subject matter expert support for the Undersecretary of Defense (Research and Engineering)’s DoD Domestic T2 responsibilities per DoDD 5137.02.

Activities to establish capacity for critical bioindustrial products include initial production runs at a significantly higher scale (example: production batch size increasing from 1,000L to 10,000L), purchase of necessary equipment to increase production capacity, or design studies of additional production lines and/or capacity to increase product availability for defense specific requirements.

Biomanufactured products will be rapidly matured with coordinated DoD activities to validate if the product is capable of meeting DoD requirements. Activities include: formulation studies, early prototyping efforts, qualification testing, and initial relevant environment testing.

This project uses a three-step approach: (1) Assess, (2) Protect/Promote; and (3) Monitor. In the first step, TIB uses emerging technology assessments to translate technology needs to manufacturing and industrial innovation base requirements to identify industrial innovation base issues, risks, and opportunities. TIB created an assessment methodology that incorporates four types of studies to provide a full overview of the technology from a manufacturing and industrial innovation base point of view. The results of the assessments are used to generate industrial-innovation-base inputs to technology roadmaps, develop an investment plan addressing the needs of the industrial innovation base, and create technology and industrial innovation base protection and promotion strategies (second step of the approach). TIB leverages DoD and Federal Government tools and initiatives to implement the strategies. In the third step, TIB uses data analytics to measure the success of mitigation and exploitation strategies, establish trends in the markets, and identify the need for additional assessments or changes in investments and strategies.

Advanced and Emerging Manufacturing addresses advanced manufacturing technologies and business practices for defense applications. Key focus areas include direct digital (or additive) manufacturing, advanced manufacturing enterprise, machining, robotics, assembly, and joining. Projects selected will accelerate delivery of technical capabilities to impact current warfighting operations while reducing cost, acquisition time, and risk of major defense acquisition programs.

Advanced Materials and Composites is a series of efforts addressing advanced manufacturing technologies for a wide range of materials such as composites, metals, ceramics, nanomaterials, and metamaterials. Through productivity and efficiency gains, these manufacturing technologies will accelerate delivery of technical capabilities to impact current warfighting operations, while reducing the cost, acquisition time and risk of our major defense acquisition programs. Advanced materials manufacturing technologies undergoing development include materials for ballistic survivability and ballistic protection, survivability and rapid fabrication of structural components.

Advanced Electronics and Optics is a series of efforts addressing advanced manufacturing technologies for a wide range of applications such as sensors, radars, power generation, switches, and optics for defense applications. Focal points are productivity and efficiency gains in the defense manufacturing base to accelerate delivery of technical capabilities to impact current warfighting operations, and manufacturing technologies to reduce the cost, acquisition time and risk to our major defense acquisition programs. Future efforts will focus on advances in fuel cells, lasers, enhanced acuity micro-displays, and transparent ceramics for opto-mechanical and armor applications.

Advanced Energetics Manufacturing develops improved manufacturing capabilities for safer, low-cost, high-quality production of existing and newly developed ingredients and composites used in energetic materials production. Develops techniques such as additive manufacturing, microfluidics, continuous processing, resonant acoustic mixing, robotics, etc. for production of critical energetics and supporting ingredients to ensure Department access to these materials and enable development of new, highly advanced energetic systems for improved range and performance.

To improve supply chain and hasten the adoption of emerging materials, the DoD has partnered with LIFT – the Advanced Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (for advanced materials development, processing, integration, and talent development). LIFT advances American materials manufacturing technology at the intersection of materials research, manufacturing processes, systems engineering, and talent development. LIFT’s technology pillars include Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) and Computational Engineering, Agile and Smarter Manufacturing, Advanced alloy and Process Development, and Multi-materials Joining. In addition, LIFT is filling the advanced manufacturing workforce pipeline with capable talent ready and willing to work in today’s in-demand jobs. LIFT is working across the education continuum to create robust pathways for the future materials workforce with the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to use the advanced technologies emerging from the LIFT institute.

To modernize and increase innovation in the U.S. domestic fiber and textile industry, the DoD is partnering with industry to advance the state of the art for manufacturing of traditional fibers, yarns, and woven textiles. It is working to connect the domestic textile industry to emerging fiber and weaving technologies and improve producibility through automation and digital connection.