Category Archives: Air Force

Aerospace, Air Force, Defense, Engineering, Products, Services, Technology

U.S. Air Force Awards $975 Million Contract to MELD Manufacturing for Advanced Additive Manufacturing

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CHRISTIANSBURG, VA, August 21, 2024 — /EPR DEFENSE NEWS/ — In a significant move to enhance the operational readiness of its assets, the U.S. Air Force’s Rapid Sustainment Office (RSO) has awarded a substantial $975 million contract to MELD Manufacturing. This partnership highlights the growing importance of additive manufacturing technology in the aerospace and defense industries.

MELD Manufacturing, a leader in solid-state metal additive manufacturing, was chosen for its groundbreaking technology that enables the production of large, high-quality components from aerospace-grade materials. The company’s innovative process, which includes materials such as Al-7075, Al-6061, and Ti-64, has already proven its value in producing flight-critical parts that meet forging-level standards.

This new contract builds on previous investments from various branches of the U.S. military, including the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Energy (DoE), which have already equipped themselves with MELD’s L3, K3, and CD-14 machines. These machines have been central to several key projects, including the development of UAV airframes by the Air Force. MELD’s technology is unique in that it is the only large-scale, solid-state metal 3D printing process developed and manufactured entirely in the United States.

The selection of MELD by the RSO underscores the critical role of advanced manufacturing technologies in maintaining the U.S. Air Force’s operational capabilities and sustainability. This partnership is set to further strengthen the U.S. military’s ability to rapidly produce and deploy essential components, ensuring readiness in the field.

About the Rapid Sustainment Office:
The United States Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office (RSO) is committed to revolutionizing Air Force sustainment operations through the adoption of innovative technologies and processes. Established to enhance mission readiness and reduce costs, the RSO focuses on rapid and agile solutions that improve the maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) capabilities of the Air Force. By partnering with industry leaders like MELD Manufacturing, the RSO advances the integration of cutting-edge technologies, including additive manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and data analytics. These initiatives ensure that the Air Force maintains its operational superiority by minimizing downtime and extending the lifespan of critical assets, such as aircraft and other military equipment. The RSO’s work is essential in ensuring the Air Force remains agile, responsive, and capable of meeting current and future challenges.

About MELD Manufacturing:
MELD Manufacturing Corporation offers groundbreaking 3D printing and hybrid machines designed for metal additive manufacturing using the proprietary MELD process. Their printers accommodate volumes as large as four meters wide, two and half meters deep, and one meter high, with custom integration services available for even larger print volumes. The MELD process, a revolutionary solid-state technology with over 20 patents, enables the additive manufacturing of metal parts without melting the material. Operating in an open atmosphere, MELD’s process allows for the production of large metal components at a scale and speed unmatched in the metal additive market. MELD Manufacturing is committed to disrupting traditional metal manufacturing and repair processes, both on Earth and in space, by leveraging the power of 3D printing. With its award-winning, patented technology, MELD aims to deliver reliable equipment capable of printing in any metal, at any size, and at unsurpassed speeds, all while maintaining forged properties. For more information about MELD Manufacturing

Corporation and the AFSD process, please visit www.meldmanufacturing.com.

SOURCE: EPR Network

Aerospace, Air Force, Engineering, Military, Military Equipment, Munitions, Naval & Marine, Services, Technology

Nobles Worldwide Announces New Weapon Mounts and Engineer Weapon Solutions to its Product Line

Nobles Worldwide, the largest supplier of ammunition-feed systems to the U.S. military and its allies, announced the launch of the company’s new mechanically-stabilized crew-served Viper Medium- and Small-Caliber Weapon Mounts along with their Engineered Weapon Solutions and composite ammunition-feed systems for land, sea and air platforms. Nobles Worldwide products will be on display at the 2012 Association of the U. S. Army Annual Meeting at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Oct. 22-24.

The Viper Small-Caliber Weapon Mount replaces and vastly improves the MK-93 heavy machine gun mount by replacing the awkward, hand-cranked “transverse and elevation” mechanism with a patented, mechanically-stabilized, gun-mount braking system. The system enables the gunner to rapidly move from one target to another, with deadly accuracy and stability. Viper Small-Caliber Weapon Mount accommodates the 50-caliber M2/M3 guns, 40-mm MK19 grenade launchers, and 7.62-mm M240 and 5.56-mm M249 guns all on the same mount with no modifications to the host vehicle or platform. The guns can be swapped out in minutes. The Viper Medium-Caliber Weapon Mount offers unprecedented firepower with the 30-mm M230LF chain gun, the only crew-served 30 mm in the world. The Viper Medium-Caliber Weapon Mount is also interchangeable with the 40-mm MK19 grenade launder and the 50-caliber M2/M3 guns.

“The Vipers offer a significantly lower price point than remote systems. This is very important, especially in this budget-constrained market. The Vipers fit on any platform or vehicle, require little or no maintenance, reduce life-cycle costs, require minimal training and are very stable and accurate on target.” said Mark Russell, vice president of Business Development. “Both Viper variants are operationally ready today.”

Nobles also launched their Engineering Weapons Solutions business unit, which improves weapons system performance with its designs, superior engineering, magazines and ammunition-feed systems, said Russell. “From the bullet resting in the magazine until target impact, Nobles products improve weapon performance across all medium and small caliber systems,” he said. “And we’ve been doing that successfully since 1948.”

From the engineering and design successes of its feed systems equipping every “F” and “A” series aircraft worldwide, Nobles offers that to all air, land and sea-based systems requiring improved reliability, accuracy, lethality, ammunition conservation, reduced weight, lower energy needs and lower life-cycle costs. For a live fire demonstration video of the Viper Small- and Medium-Caliber Weapon Mounts visit Nobles Worldwide.

Via EPR Network
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