When the Defense Logistics Agency announced a competitive contract for an additively manufactured F-15 pylon bumper in November 2024, it marked the first time the agency had competitively procured a 3D printed part for that aircraft.

The Air Force had previously produced the bumper at an organic reverse engineering and tooling lab. They sought commercial production to avoid overloading its in-house 3D printing capacity, according to the same report.

That contract sits on top of a broader policy framework for additive manufacturing across the Department of Defense. This includes a 2021 instruction that formally defined DLA’s responsibilities for integrating 3D printing into the supply chain and supporting shared data and standards, according to DoD ManTech.

Key Developments in Military 3D Printing


  • A 2024 DLA contract for F-15 pylon bumpers marked its first competitive buy of an additively manufactured spare part.
  • DoD Instruction 5000.93 defines DLA’s role as a facilitator for additive manufacturing, including hosting the JAMMEX model exchange.
  • DLA’s just-enough logistics model relies on data, AI, and forward 3D printing to reduce large inventories and long supply lines.
  • Exercises and field labs have used 3D printing to create low-volume repair parts near the point of need to cut lift and delay risks.
  • DLA’s 2022 implementation plan highlights qualification, quality assurance, cybersecure data, and sustainment funding as key hurdles for wider 3D printing use.

From Contract to Concept: Why Just-enough Needs 3D Printing


DLA’s recent work on additive manufacturing is tied directly to its “just enough” logistics model. It presents this model as an alternative to traditional just-in-time and just-in-case paradigms.

In that model, DLA leaders describe commercial just-in-time logistics as efficient but vulnerable to disruption. Just-in-case stockpiling is seen as resilient but costly and inflexible. The just-enough logistics approach seeks to manage higher operational risk with more targeted readiness and less excess inventory.

DLA’s description of just-enough logistics emphasizes the use of data and artificial intelligence for demand forecasting. It also highlights advanced maintenance strategies, including predictive maintenance and 3D printing at forward locations, to reduce reliance on long supply chains while maintaining readiness.

Within the naval context, DLA reporting notes that just-enough logistics aligns with a dispersed maritime posture. It supports readiness without tying forward units to vulnerable supply chains, and explicitly cites distributed manufacturing capabilities such as 3D printing as part of that approach.

The 2024 F-15 bumper contract illustrates how these ideas move from concept to execution. A service-level technical data package for an additively manufactured part can support competitive bids, with vendors supplying parts produced using 3D printing methods rather than conventional casting or machining.

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Inside the JAMMEX Exchange


DLA’s formal role in additive manufacturing was defined in 2021 through DoD Instruction 5000.93. The instruction gave the agency responsibilities that include integrating 3D printing into the supply chain and managing raw material handling standards. It also covers sharing technical data, maintaining a list of qualified suppliers, and supporting relevant information technology, according to DoD ManTech.

At the center of that work is the Joint Additive Manufacturing Model Exchange, or JAMMEX. This system allows users to download and print 3D models from multiple sources through a single portal and initially launched with the Army as its first service user.

DLA officials describe JAMMEX as a catalog of alternate sources for hard-to-procure and obsolete parts. It can reduce readiness risks and costs by giving engineers access to vetted digital models instead of relying solely on existing physical inventories, according to the same coverage.

Within JAMMEX, models can be associated with technical data requirements and build parameters. This ensures manufacturers and, in some cases, forward-deployed units have consistent information about how to print a part and what quality standards apply. This is consistent with roles for technical data sharing defined in DoD Instruction 5000.93.

DLA has also explored remote inspection of 3D printed parts. Experts can review digital evidence and test data rather than inspecting every item in person. Officials describe this as a way to shorten inspection processes and improve material availability.

Field Use and Planning in Contested Theaters


By 2019, analysis of 3D printing for joint agile operations described additive manufacturing as a way to support sustainment concepts that move repairs and maintenance closer to forward units. This approach reduces the need for large logistics bases and long distribution lines, according to a Department of Defense Manufacturing Technology Program article on DoD ManTech.

That article defines additive manufacturing as building parts by adding and bonding material in layers, contrasting it with subtractive methods that cut away material and often generate more waste. It notes that 3D printing near the point of need can reduce spare parts inventories, shorten acquisition timelines, and provide redundancy when traditional supply routes are under stress.

The same work highlights examples such as shipboard printers, expeditionary fabrication labs, and containerized Army labs. These labs, equipped with multiple polymer 3D printers, were deployed to locations like Bagram Airfield and Camp Arifjan to support emergency repairs and custom tooling needs. This showed how units could address specific problems without waiting for centrally stocked items.

These early field uses were subject to policy constraints, including limits that confined some applications to emergency repairs. They also required units to requisition traditional parts in parallel with printed substitutes. Despite this, they demonstrated how additive manufacturing could reduce transport needs and equipment downtime in distributed operations.

At a larger scale, that analysis argues that additive manufacturing embedded in prepositioned stocks and mobile warehouses could allow those platforms to carry fewer finished parts. They could rely more on raw materials and digital files, and allocate transportation assets more toward moving operational forces and less toward replenishing spare parts.

Unresolved Technical and Policy Hurdles


While DLA and the services have demonstrated additive manufacturing for aircraft components, protective caps, and other repair parts, 3D printing of mission-critical items remains constrained. Qualification and certification demands are more complex than for many conventional parts, as described in both DLA and joint agile operations reporting from DoD ManTech.

The joint agile operations analysis notes that qualified 3D printed parts require certified printers, standardized materials, and controlled environmental conditions. These include temperature, humidity, and powder handling procedures. These requirements have largely restricted field printing to polymers while metal parts are typically produced in more controlled facilities.

It also lists material standards, reproducibility, cyber security, and part and process validation as key implementation challenges. The ability to reverse engineer components is another hurdle that must be addressed to scale additive manufacturing across the department. The analysis points to the need for a secure unified digital network containing technical data packages and related metadata.

DLA’s 2022 Additive Manufacturing Implementation Plan, referenced in later reporting, similarly highlights the importance of data management and cyber hardening. It also underscores the need for supplier qualification processes and sustainment funding to move from research projects to routine procurement and field use, according to the plan hosted by DLA.

Within this framework, DLA officials have described the agency’s role as a facilitator and enabler of service-driven additive manufacturing capabilities. They focus on eventually procuring items designated for DLA supply support while relying on strong collaboration with the services to determine technical standards and approve parts for use, as reported by DoD ManTech.

Outlook


The 2024 F-15 pylon bumper contract and subsequent efforts to qualify other additively manufactured parts illustrate a shift. The military is moving from isolated field printing experiments toward a model where 3D printed components can be produced through standard procurement channels when technical data and quality requirements are in place, according to DLA.

In parallel, just-enough logistics materials from DLA position 3D printing as one element in a broader system. This system uses data, artificial intelligence, tiered readiness, and distributed stocks to match supply posture to operational risk. JAMMEX and related tools provide the digital infrastructure required for shared models and supplier information.

DLA and joint analytical work describe 3D printing not as a replacement for depots or mobile warehouses but as a way to reduce inventories and add redundancy. It keeps some repair capacity available even when traditional supply lines are stressed. The question of how far additive manufacturing will eventually reshape logistics structures remains open as qualification, standards, and digital infrastructure continue to develop.

Sources


Article Credits

Portrait of Michael LeSane
Michael LeSane
Editor