America Makes Launches Two DoD-Backed AM Project Calls Totaling Over $35M

America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) have announced two new project calls worth more than $35 million, both funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering's Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD ManTech), targeting additive manufacturing modernization across the U.S. defense industrial base.

The larger of the two calls is the 2026 Department of Defense Organic Industrial Base (OIB) Modernization Challenge, released in cooperation with fellow Manufacturing Innovation Institutes (MII). Typical awards will range from $10 million to $15 million, with larger concepts up to $25 million considered where justified. The challenge takes direct aim at shopfloor-level modernization, with technical focus areas spanning digital operations technology, artificial intelligence, robotic process planning, in-situ quality checks, hazard exposure reduction, pilot lines for emerging military products, and mobile and large surface automation.

The second call, Joint Additive Qualification for Sustainment – Supplier Qualification (JAQS-SQ) – Groups 2 & 3, carries $10.5 million in funding and anticipates up to 30 awards. Built on the original JAQS-SQ program, it targets unified requirements and training for the qualification of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and directed energy deposition (DED) suppliers feeding the metal AM industrial base. The stated objectives include standardizing AM training and audits, aligning suppliers with acquisition requirements, accelerating the onboarding of nontraditional vendors, and ensuring consistent, qualified production across the supply chain.

John Martin, Additive Manufacturing Research Director at America Makes, framed the stakes plainly. "Modernizing the organic industrial base is a readiness imperative," he said. "Through this project, we're hardwiring shopfloor improvements and additive manufacturing into daily production to drive measurable reductions in cost per pound of material, while boosting throughput, quality, and resilience. By making AM a core requirement for submissions, we turn fragmented innovation into award-winning capabilities that scale across depots and arsenals."

According to the NCDMM announcement, proposed efforts are expected to deliver actionable insights that reduce technical and industrial risk while enabling realistic transition pathways, with outcomes intended to provide mutual value to both the DoD and the OIB.

It is worth noting that some America Makes social posts and coverage in specialty outlets referenced a separate pair of project calls totaling $8 million, led by a $6 million Powder Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing (PADAM) 2.0 call funded by the Air Force Research Laboratory's Materials and Manufacturing Directorate (AFRL/RX), focused on high-temperature refractory alloy readiness and supply chain traceability. Whether PADAM 2.0 is part of the broader OSD ManTech-backed portfolio or a distinct, contemporaneous AFRL-funded announcement has not been confirmed in the official NCDMM and Digital Engineering reporting on the $35 million figure. Prospective applicants should verify the full solicitation details directly through America Makes and NCDMM's official project call pages in Youngstown, Ohio.