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Earlier articles on this collection have explored the potential for the U.S. to leverage additive manufacturing to its benefit. Nevertheless, this potential could also be undermined by a propensity for creating overly refined options reasonably than efficient ones. This problem is compounded by the chance that these costly options could possibly be matched by less expensive merchandise from different international locations. If the U.S. focuses totally on main incentives to stimulate 3D printing, it dangers overlooking quite a few alternatives. Amongst these missed alternatives, essentially the most important could possibly be the prospect to rework its enterprise practices.
A B-52H Stratofortress.
Potential Squandered Alternative 1: Misallocation
Within the first publish of this collection, we offered an summary of a number of areas the place the U.S. may considerably profit from adopting additive manufacturing. Be happy to revisit that checklist right here.
On the identical time, we’ve assumed that the most important strategic areas drumming up authorities {dollars} are hypersonics, MRO, provide chain resilience, and constructing the economic base. Now, think about for a second somebody gave you a billion {dollars} for every of the above strategic areas after which distributed that cash over the factors above. A number of the deep benefits would get funded, however many wouldn’t. Particularly within the space of improvised manufacturing and duct tape-like makes use of for 3D printing. Additionally, whereas MRO would see some huge cash go to the Navy, it isn’t clear that the cash would find yourself making new polymer hulls for small vessels. This in and of itself may unleash a drone-like revolution in naval warfare, disrupting current capital ships. As an alternative, the US army would use 3D printing to spend increasingly more cash sustaining legacy expertise that’s to be supplanted. Of the attainable squandered alternatives, I’m the least positive of this one. Maybe the mysterious methods of protection procurement will result in an allocation of 3D printing the place it’s transformative reasonably than it piling on inefficiency over inefficiency. I’ll attempt to be optimistic about this area however do assume that the potential of piling good cash over dangerous is important right here.
Potential Squandered Alternative 2: Reimagining Procurement
I as soon as steered to a pal that the US authorities ought to personal all of the CAD for the automobiles it commissions. It may then farm out manufacturing of add-on components, new automobiles, or repairs to essentially the most environment friendly bidder. Sure, I used to be as totally shocked as you had been that this went nowhere. Nevertheless, the best menace to the protection and safety of the US just isn’t some terrorist band in a cave someplace and even Putin; it’s the protection procurement system itself. Value overruns, gradual growth processes, feature-laden lemons, and automobiles which can be all issues to nobody are harming the protection and efficacy of the US. The US continues to be inefficient at procuring weapons, in keeping with the Authorities Accountability Workplace, whereas it spends over $1.79 trillion on these programs. This is the same as the GDP of Australia or Spain. The thirteenth richest nation on this planet, all they produce collectively is lower than the US spends on creating new weapons per yr. The worldwide passenger car market is estimated to be $1.45 trillion and produces round 4 million automobiles. Or, put one other manner, that is the income of Apple, Walmart, and Amazon mixed. The options to extra environment friendly authorities procurement are advanced and will be present in higher oversight, planning, and framework agreements. This isn’t one thing that may be solved in a flourish however would require a whole overhaul or cautious optimization over a long time. With the rivalry with China heating up and the US being purposely drawn into many conflicts concurrently, the US doesn’t have the posh of time, although.
The GAO highlights the dangers of corporations going out of enterprise as a threat to the economic base. Why not stipulate that the CAD and designs of all army tools ought to be the property of the DoD? Why not be like Apple and provoke a relationship extra akin to that of contract producer Foxconn with protection contractors? Or why not do it solely in these areas the place the tools is crucial or a commodity?At present, there isn’t any stick in any form of enchancment course of for protection contractors. They know they’re few and can simply queue up with three different corporations every time you want one thing. Why not penalize essentially the most egregious offenders or be certain that they carry out? Or why not separate the event and manufacturing duties of latest tools in order that extra corporations could make the method extra honest, environment friendly, and, dare I say it, capitalist?Or why not undertake a Springfield Armory-type method the place, for sure tools, the US army will produce its personal weapons? It might probably accomplish that effectively, and this might act as an sincere dealer, exhibiting the protection group that efficiency is feasible.Why not use additive manufacturing to make prototypes rapidly, check them within the subject, after which implement them? As an alternative of attempting to create a program that will work for everybody, why not take what truly works within the subject, iterate, and scale it up so that it’ll work for extra folks?Certainly, as an alternative of big multimillion or billion-dollar packages, why not concentrate on what issues to troops and enhance that? Or why doesn’t the army study gaps, lethality, and direct threats to troops after which create small, efficient merchandise to boost the survivability, consolation, and efficacy of the person warfighter? Piecemeal enhancements can be manageable, cost-effective, and will make an actual, significant influence rapidly.Or why not deploy prototypes within the subject in a short time to de-risk bigger packages?
On the entire, whereas I do assume that the US Protection institution is embracing 3D printing wholesale, it might not be doing so holistically. They could possibly be utilizing the components with out capturing some great benefits of utilizing additive manufacturing as a extra versatile manufacturing platform. We now have the flexibility to make the suitable form on the proper time and place with distinctive properties. The benefits of 3D printing are solely actually unlocked if you happen to use the expertise to truly produce issues extra effectively, cheaply, and quicker. The New House corporations aren’t solely utilizing additive as a result of we make higher combustion chambers; they’re doing so as a result of we do that faster and fewer expensively than different applied sciences as nicely. It’s via adopting extra agile engineering approaches and utilizing 3D printing to make the suitable components appropriately that the true worth of our business will come to the fore. And to me, the largest squandered alternative lies in the truth that the army could possibly be making components with out changing into extra environment friendly and remodeling the best way it develops new tools.
Now, earlier than we toot our personal horns, we should acknowledge that we’re untried in lots of areas and ourselves a fickle expertise in lots of respects. The Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), for instance, was delayed for 9 months resulting from a delay in procuring two 3D printers wanted to make the oil tank and different buildings. Maybe, reasonably than being extra environment friendly, we should always simply cost extra too, after which we’ll match proper in?
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