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The U.S. War Department has allocated $39.6 million to fund three companies in strengthening the solid rocket motor supply chain through technologies such as 3D printing.

September 22, 2025 Applications 92

U.S. invests $39.6M in three companies to boost domestic solid rocket motor production and secure its defense supply chain.

The U.S. War Department has allocated $39.6 million (approximately 281 million RMB) to three companies to strengthen the U.S. solid rocket motor (SRM) manufacturing base. The funding, granted under Title III of the Defense Production Act (DPA), will support Ohio-based additive manufacturing specialist Materials Resources LLC (MRL), New Jersey-based materials processing expert ICF Mercantile LLC (ICF), and Virginia-based U.S. defense contractor SPARC Research. This initiative underscores the War Department’s broader objectives of expanding domestic manufacturing, securing critical supply chains, and enhancing U.S. capabilities in defense-related technologies.

The Under Secretary of the Army for Acquisition and Sustainment, Michael Duffey, stated: "These strategic investments in our solid rocket motor industrial base are critical to ensuring the Army continues to have access to the ammunition propulsion systems required for national security. By collaborating with industry through the Defense Production Act, we are enhancing supply chain resilience and boosting domestic manufacturing capabilities, which is essential to maintaining our technological advantage."

Fund Allocation
The largest award of $25.2 million (approx. ¥179 million RMB) is granted to MRL to advance prototype production of solid rocket motor metal casings. The company plans to utilize additive manufacturing and scalable production cells to achieve flexible, efficient production and quickly adapt to different materials and designs.

ICF has received $9.3 million in funding to establish the United States' first specialized rayon fiber production base. This product is a core material for manufacturing carbon-phenolic ablative agents, which are essential for solid rocket motors (SRMs) and reentry vehicle heat shields. ICF's process is based on ionic liquid technology—an eco-friendly method expected to increase rayon fiber yield and reduce overall costs. Lastly, SPARC will receive $5.1 million to develop specialized solid rocket motor components aimed at improving advanced propulsion systems.

Ursa Major 3D prints small motor casings and components for tactical missiles.

With these awards, the Department of Defense has now made four investments in the solid rocket motor sector under the Defense Industrial Base Consortium (OTA) framework, totaling $53.9 million. More broadly, since the start of Fiscal Year 2025, the OTA Procurement Office has allocated $777.1 million to 14 projects, supported by $88 million in cost-sharing. Oversight of these projects is managed by the Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) office under the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Industrial Base Policy.

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Additive manufacturing is becoming a cornerstone of European defense innovation.

The U.S. Department of Defense is increasingly interested in the role of additive manufacturing within its security strategy. In its $1 trillion budget request for Fiscal Year 2026, it has sought $3.3 billion to fund 16 projects. This budget allocates $58.4 million to DARPA’s Additive Manufacturing of Microelectronic Systems (AMME) and OSD’s Additive Manufacturing Innovation Program, both of which explicitly focus on 3D printing technology.

Additionally, U.S. shipbuilder Austal USA purchased an ARCEMY Small Edition metal 3D printer from Australia’s AML3D for approximately AU$1.2 million (approx. $780,000 USD). The system, which uses AML3D’s proprietary Wire Additive Manufacturing (WAM) technology, will be installed at the U.S. Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM CoE).

Last month, composite 3D printing company Continuous Composites (CCI) secured a multi-year, multi-million-dollar contract with the U.S. Air Force. Through this agreement, the Idaho-based company will advance the development of high-performance composites using its proprietary Continuous Fiber 3D (CF3D) printing technology.