US Army 3-D printer expeditionary kit field components 13007171

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Military Defense Industry Technology - 3-D Printing in the field
 
American engineers to develop 3-D printer expeditionary kits to make components on the field.
American engineers here are developing 3-D expeditionary kits that could be used when needed to make specialty tools, spare parts, and other components to fill the time gaps between when parts break and when the replacement arrives from the original equipment manufacturers.
     
American engineers here are developing 3-D expeditionary kits that could be used when needed to make specialty tools, spare parts, and other components to fill the time gaps between when parts break and when the replacement arrives from the original equipment manufacturers.
Army PACBOT lightened by 6 pounds by using 3-D printed parts (shown in color). 3-D printing capability in the field means that Soldiers won't always have to wait for spare parts to arrive from original manufacturers, increasing Soldiers' readiness and flexibility. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army photo by Erin Usawicz)
     
Rapid Fabrication, also known as R-FAB, with additive manufacturing on the battlefield is a fieldable system for rapid construction of critical repair parts, specialty tools, spares, and custom packaging for brigade support battalions, sustainment supply activities, and other special mission activities.
 

Use of the kit also allows Soldiers to innovate solutions that can be validated by engineers to solve operational and mission-specific needs.

"The number one priority of our Army is readiness," said Capt. Jeremy Pinson, who is the Additive Manufacturing Lead for U.S. Army Combined Arms Support Command. "R-FAB allows Soldiers and leaders to increase their readiness by making either authorized replacement parts or user-designed "readiness replacement parts."

Commercial off-the-shelf and ruggedized equipment and tools can be used to make custom parts and packaging for shipment, supply support items, and replacement/repair parts and components.

But the new R-FAB kits will have the required equipment, software, and tooling as well as database of approved design files accessible by Soldiers for manufacturing in the field.

R-FAB would be deployed with Soldiers as close to point of need as possible and to any maintenance group or unit that is deployed with limited supply support.