Livingston, Tennessee, Sept. 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SPEE3D, a leading metal additive manufacturing company, announced that it has successfully participated in the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Army Research Laboratory (ARL) advanced manufacturing demonstration at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. The goal of the exercise was to train a soldier with no previous additive manufacturing training or experience to print a crucial part that can be used to build or repair equipment in the field or at a deployed location. The trial was successful and ran from August 5-16, 2024.
The soldier, who had no experience using SPEE3D's proprietary cold spray additive manufacturing (CSAM) technology, printed a Bradley Fighting Vehicle’s transmission mount. The part was installed in a Bradley and the vehicle was take out on multiple test cycles through the 278th field test area. Upon return, the part was examined and showed no degradation. This exercise proved that SPEE3D’s CSAM technology can successfully create a repair part and restore the vehicle to operational capability returning it to the fight. VRC Metal Systems was also involved in the additive manufacturing demonstration.
"SPEE3D intends to make additive manufacturing accessible as a quick, cost-effective, and easy way to print crucial metal parts that otherwise would not be available at the point of need. Having a soldier with no previous additive manufacturing experience learn our technology within a week certainly meets that goal", said Byron Kennedy, CEO of SPEE3D. "We are proud to have collaborated with Army Research Labs, the University of Knoxville, the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, and all of our other partners to participate in this successful demonstration.”
“This demonstration successfully illustrated how cold spray technology can be utilized to positively impact the warfighter in expeditionary scenarios,” said Michael Nicholas, Materials Engineer at DEVCOM ARL. “Expeditionary cold systems provide added repair and manufacturing capabilities which can address supply chain challenges as would be expected in a contested logistics environment. Overall, this advanced manufacturing demonstration was extremely successful due to our amazing partnerships with industry, academia and future technology users.”
The exercise was organized by DEVCOM ARL as the government lead, the University of Tennessee Knoxville as the demo host, the 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR) as the site host with soldiers, technical expert SPEE3D, and VRC Metal Systems. The final demonstration of the printed part was held on August 15 at the ACR Armory in Livingston, Tennessee, with VIPs in attendance.
About DEVCOM ARL:
The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory, known as DEVCOM ARL, is the Army’s research laboratory. Nested strategically within DEVCOM and the Army Futures Command, ARL’s mission is to Operationalize Science. ARL identifies and executes disruptive research leading to scientific discovery and emerging technologies for Army continuous transformation. A hallmark of ARL’s mission is collaborative partnerships to broaden Army access to expert talent and accelerate transitions of science-enabled capabilities. For more information, visit https://arl.devcom.army.mil/.
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