Critical components on demand

A broken latch on the armored door of a combat support vehicle can leave troops vulnerable behind enemy lines. If the nearest logistical base doesn’t have a replacement on hand, fixing the critical component can take more than six weeks.

Last October, TCE engineers in partnership with Tennessee Army National Guard (TNARNG) and SPEE3D helped make it happen in under 10 hours.

The demonstration, held at the Army National Guard’s Knoxville Armory, was the culmination of a five-year, $27 million cooperative agreement between TCE’s Defense Development and Applied Research Center (DARC) and the United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Army Research Laboratory (ARL).

DARC, which launched last year, is one of the only academic centers in the nation with access to ruggedized, mobile expeditionary manufacturing equipment—a deployable 3D printer capable of printing metal components right where they’re needed.

“We have an integrated team of research staff and faculty to support the full spectrum of research—from basic science to deployment—and a unique, near-continuous interaction with the warfighter,” said Bruce LaMattina, the executive director of DARC and a research professor in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. “That gives us a deep-rooted awareness of current and emerging defense needs, such as those arising from contested logistics and supply chain strains.”

Over the last five years, researchers from UT have worked with DEVCOM ARL to optimize a process that would allow a US Army commander in a combat zone to print critical components on demand.

The multidisciplinary team of materials scientists, mechanical and aerospace engineers, industrial systems engineers, and applied engineers collaborated to create a workflow that bypasses standard supply chain bottlenecks and reduces risk to troops.

“We expect manufacturing at the point of need to be a critical capability for our military and we intend to support this important effort for many years to come,” LaMattina said. “Developing these technologies will be a game changer for our warfighters, increasing operational readiness and ultimately saving American lives.”

A System for Tactical Scenarios

In DARC’s demonstration last fall, TCE engineers successfully trained soldiers from TNARNG’s Field Maintenance Shop-2 and 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment to reverse engineer a MAT-V latch handle, print and finish the component, and install it to restore the vehicle’s operational readiness in under 10 hours.

DARC faculty and staff are leveraging cutting-edge research to develop a “commander’s playbook” that translates complex, science-based insights into a clear, actionable format, enabling commanders to make informed decisions about employing advanced 3D printing in the field. This process requires understanding geometry, functionality of the part, material requirements, material behavior under loading conditions, optimal spray and post-processing parameters, and more.

“Translating detailed scientific results into clear, actionable guidance for commanders is a complex challenge,” LaMattina said. “It requires designing expansive experiments that account for a wide range of ‘what-if’ scenarios across numerous performance thresholds.”

Since last fall, DARC researchers and TNARNG soldiers have produced over 20 different prototypes in a variety of metals, demonstrating the point-of-need printer’s utility for a variety of military applications.

The center is now exploring more expeditionary manufacturing technologies in partnership with the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division and TNARNG and will be supporting the Rim of the Pacific exercise, the world’s largest international maritime warfare exercise, in the summer of 2026.