The project call, Improvements in Manufacturing Productivity via Additive Capabilities and Techno-Economic Analysis 3.0 (IMPACT 3.0), consisted of two topic areas of focus and aims to demonstrate lead time, productivity, and yield improvements for casting and forging (C&F) manufacturing operations using additive manufacturing (AM) technologies. Released in April 2025, three awards were anticipated.

YOUNGSTOWN, OH — America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) are proud to announce the winners of a recent project call awarded through the  Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD ManTech), worth a total of $4.5M. The project call, Improvements in Manufacturing Productivity via Additive Capabilities and Techno-Economic Analysis 3.0 (IMPACT 3.0), consisted of two topic areas of focus and aims to demonstrate lead time, productivity, and yield improvements for casting and forging (C&F) manufacturing operations using additive manufacturing (AM) technologies. Released in April 2025, three awards were anticipated.

AM holds significant importance for the Defense Industrial Base and the wider manufacturing industry due to its ability to enhance productivity and provide greater design flexibility. This technology enables on-demand production of parts, addressing needs across both new acquisitions and existing legacy systems. Efforts from the award recipients to advance the integration of AM technologies within the C&F domain will play a key role in validating AM's ability to streamline production processes, reduce lead times, and achieve substantial cost savings.

"At America Makes, we are privileged to mobilize our membership in addressing the nation's most complex manufacturing challenges with urgency and rigor through the IMPACT 3.0 project call," said John Martin, AM Research Director at America Makes. "We congratulate the awardees and look forward to partnering with them to strengthen sustainment strategies and accelerate the adoption of additive manufacturing across industry and defense sectors."

Below is the list of award winners and related topic areas:

Topic 1: AM in the Digital Foundry

Team Lead: The Pennsylvania State University
Project Team: Donsco, Inc.; 3D Systems, Inc.; Skuld, LLC; Element Materials Technology; Tethon 3D; Foundries in Penn State Cast Metals Industrial Advisory Committee; Marotta Controls, Inc.; Parker-Hannifin Corporation.
Topic 2: Wire Arc DED Process Sensing and Control

(Awardee 1) Team Lead 1: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Project Team: GE Aerospace Research; Wason Technology, LLC
(Awardee 2) Team Lead 2: RTX Technology Research Center
Project Team: FasTech, LLC
Project teams will report on their progress at the America Makes Technical Review and Exchange (TRX) and other industry events during the execution phase of the program.