America Makes Offers Additive Manufacturing Research Grants Worth Nearly $12 Million

The National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) and America Makes have announced two new open project calls funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Research and Engineering Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD (R&E)), and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) worth a total of $11.75 million. This is the largest funding opportunity launched by America Makes since its inception in 2012.

Each project call has two areas of focus. One award is anticipated for each topic area with the maximum request for funding varying depending upon the topic being addressed.

The first project call for “Powder Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing (PADAM)” is worth $6 million and is being funded by the AFRL. America Makes, its members and government stakeholders have assessed the benefits and strategic opportunities offered through the development and scaling of novel additive manufacturing (AM) materials at the Alloy Development Workshop in 2021. This project call aims to accelerate the maturation of AM high-temperature metals to demonstrate measurable improvement in application-specific performance criteria.

The PADAM request for proposal (RFP) is separated into two topic areas:

1. Topic 1: High-Temperature Refractory Alloys ($3.6 million); and
2. Topic 2: High-Temperature Nickel-Based Superalloys ($2.4 million)

“For the better part of a decade, the additive community has been advocating for funding to direct research and development to establish proven methods for applying the best attributes of novel AM materials. The materials that project partners will be working with are incredibly important to the future of the applications used in the aerospace and defense communities,” says Brandon Ribic, America Makes technology director. “Our organization is incredibly fortunate to have the support of the Under Secretary of Defense and AFRL, and the engagement of the brightest minds in the country who will be collaborating to revolutionize this technology.”

The second project call is for “Proliferation of AM Material Datasets” and offers a total of $5.75 million in funding through OSD(R&E) and the AFRL. Recognizing there are additional material systems beyond Ti-6Al-4V that can benefit the AM industry, this project call aims to increase the number and type of pedigreed, statistically-based and industrially-relevant AM material datasets. The RFP also looks to encourage the proliferation of these learnings, practices and data to a more expansive cross section of the AM supply chain by requiring partnerships with small businesses.

The Proliferation of AM Material Datasets RFP is separated into two topic areas:

1. Topic 1: Aluminum Alloy Material Dataset ($2.875 million)
2. Topic 2: High-Temperature Nick-Based Superalloys ($2.875 million)

“This project is a great opportunity for America Makes and our members to lay the foundation for ground-breaking development and incorporation of alloy-based refractory metals, which are extraordinarily resistant to heat and wear, into AM applications used in the aerospace, defense and energy industries,” says John Martin, America Makes additive manufacturing research director. “Additionally, data and best practices formulated and shared as a result of this project will help expand the AM supply chain through the inclusion of smaller businesses from across the country.”

• Membership Eligibility Deadline is Sept. 14
• Submission Deadline is Sept. 29 by 5 p.m., ET
• Anticipated Awards Announcement is Oct. 30

Proposers for the project calls are advised to reference the RFP for full details and guidelines:

• Powder Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing Project Call.

• Proliferation of AM Material Datasets Project Call.