DISCMAM marks first year with key milestones to boost on-site metal additive manufacturing for defence operations

DISCMAM project held its third meeting in Frankfurt to review progress of recent months project work and set the stage for the challenges of 2025.
During the initial phase, the project has reached an important achievement: the definition of on-site maintenance scenarios and the selection of use cases.

The DISCMAM project, funded by the European Defence Fund (EDF), completed its first year of progress with a significant anniversary meeting in Frankfurt, Germany, on November 21, 2024. This gathering of consortium partners — including leading technical and research institutions— reviewed the project’s achievements over the past year and discussed key research and execution plans for the future.

Progress and strategic achievements

The first 12 months of the DISCMAM project have been pivotal in establishing the foundation for its continuation over the next two years. Aligned with the project’s objectives and through close cross-border collaboration among all partners, significant progress has been achieved. Notably, the first major milestone —the identification of scenarios and the selection of components or use cases aligned with these scenarios— has been reached. Five use cases have been defined, three for spare parts manufacturing and two for parts repair; those include an air compressor cover, a fuel filter housing, a phalanx maintenance tool, a front pulley and a joint shaft flange.

During this initial period, the goal has been to enhance efficiency and equipment readiness in military operations through the manufacture and repair of spare parts by two selected Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies: Laser Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) and Laser Directed Energy Deposition (DED-LB).

Additionally, based on the selected scenarios and use cases, an on-site maintenance plan has been developed, together with the data flow characteristics required to establish a secure digital pathway. This plan addresses logistical considerations, ensures robust data protection, and aims to provide rapid responses to specific types of equipment failures and challenges on on-site maintenance and logistic supply chain.

Further work has been carried out to collate information regarding the specifications and requirements of the parts together with processing and post-processing steps for the selected use cases.

Reflecting on a year of project work, the project coordinator at LORTEK, stated:
“We are pleased to report that the project is making good progress. While the future outlook is challenging, we are confident of achieving our goals in a timely and efficient manner”.

In the coming months, DISCMAM anticipate implementing monitoring solutions and cybersecure digital pathways, as well as making progress on scanning technologies and the initial fabrication or reparation of the previously described use cases. These developments will drive the project’s mission to revolutionize maintenance and manufacturing processes in defence contexts

DISCMAM at FORMNEXT 2024

The third in-person consortium meeting since the project began in December 2023 was strategically aligned with the location of FORMNEXT convention in Frankfurt, the leading global event for additive manufacturing and industrial 3D printing. The project was proudly represented by its coordinator LORTEK with an own booth, while the project partners EULER and ADAXIS complementary highlighted the project work they are in lead of at their booths from November 19 to 22 at Formnext expo.

This meeting point offered DISCMAM an invaluable platform to highlight its objectives and achievements, connect with leading experts in AM, explore potential collaborations, engage stakeholders, and gain insights into emerging technological trends. These opportunities will significantly enhance the project’s ability to innovate and redefine logistics capabilities in the defence sector as the project advances toward initial trials, validation and field military interoperability exercise scheduled for 2025.