Part way through a conversation with Saab and BAE Systems Hägglunds on how the aerospace and defence companies are working together to deploy microfactories on the frontline – enabled by additive manufacturing (AM) – there’s a note that catches my attention: ‘The use of 3D printing will become a natural part of the defence forces supply chain.’
It’s a fair – and timely – observation. In just the last 12 months we’ve seen the UK’s Ministry of Defence launch its advanced manufacturing strategy with AM at the centre, while the U.S.’s National Defense Authorization Act, signed in December, namechecked AM multiple times as a solution for delivering parts on demand. Similarly, the Swedish Armed Forces, Björn Hellholm, Head of R&D at BAE Systems Hägglunds tells me, has made clear its intention to use AM to accelerate the secure supply of spare parts.
Both Saab and BAE Systems Hägglunds have been working with AM for many years. But interest in the technology from the Swedish Armed Forces and international allies, according to Hellholm, has intensified. There’s good reason, too. Ongoing conflicts continue to impact the supply of products and raw materials, while ageing equipment, reliance on single-source vendors, and lead times between one to two years are not uncommon. Supply chain, it seems, is a battlefield in itself.
So, Saab and BAE Systems Hägglunds, asked themselves, “What if we could enable our customers to manufacture the necessary spare parts themselves, in the field?” A microfactory, encompassing a complete, endto-end AM workflow, looks to be the answer.
