AML3D delivers tailpiece parts for US nuclear submarine program
The prototype parts were delivered in just five weeks
AML3D, an Australia-based metal additive manufacturing company that has made strong inroads into the American market through military partnerships, has successfully delivered a series of 3D printed copper-nickel components to the U.S. Navy’s Virginia-Class nuclear submarine program. The parts, a series of tailpiece prototype components, will now undergo tests and in-service trials on a Virginia-class nuclear submarine, a type of nuclear-powered vessel used for intelligence gathering, mine warfare and to seek and attack enemy vessels.
Notable about the prototype part supply is how quickly AML3D was able to fulfill the order. According to the company, it was able to 3D print the copper-nickel components in under five weeks using its WAM-based ARCEMY technology. Using traditional manufacturing methods, the same prototypes could have taken up to 17 months to produce and deliver.
The submarine tailpiece prototypes, valued at AUD $156,000 (~ USD $98k), were manufactured in Australia and delivered within the context of the AUKUS partnership between Australia, the UK and US. Through this trilateral partnership, the three nations aim to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines, which, according to the White House, “will lift all three nations’ submarine industrial bases and undersea capabilities, enhancing deterrence and promoting stability in the Indo-Pacific”.
AML3D’s metal AM technology is thus playing a role in establishing a resilient supply chain to support AUKUS. “Production of a U.S. Virginia-Class Submarine component in Australia is a great example that AUKUS is happening now, and demonstrates our commitment toward supporting expansion of the trilateral industrial base,” commented Richard Marles, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence. “Australia’s Nuclear Powered Submarine Program and the AUKUS partnership will provide incredible opportunities for Australia’s industry, and these opportunities have already started.”
AML3D, which recently opened a U.S. technology center in Stow, Ohio, has been working in partnership with the U.S. Navy’s Maritime Industrial Base (MIB) and industrial base integrator BlueForge Alliance for the past two years to explore the viability of metal AM as a solution to address supply chain weaknesses for submarines. The company’s large-scale metal AM technology could be a valuable tool in the production of replacement parts, which could help keep nuclear submarines operational during supply chain lags.
“AML3D has been working with the U.S. Navy and its partners for close to two years,” elaborated AML3D CEO Sean Ebert. “In that time, we have created a successful model that includes cross-continental coordination, information sharing and the deployment of our ARCEMY advanced 3D metal printing technology across a network of U.S. defense industry and academic experts. We have also completed several alloy testing and characterisation programs including Copper-Nickel, which allows us to supply components to the U.S. Nuclear submarine program.”
