America Makes, NCDMM Launch $6M PADAM 2.0 and $2M AIM-4AM Project Calls

America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing & Machining (NCDMM) launched two new project calls that together offer $8 million in funding to accelerate qualification and adoption of additive manufacturing metals for defense and industry. The calls are aimed at strengthening domestic supply chains and reducing technical and industrial risk for high‑temperature alloys and material allowables.

The larger call, Powder Alloy Development for Additive Manufacturing (PADAM) 2.0, carries $6 million and is funded by the Air Force Research Laboratory, Material and Manufacturing Directorate (AFRL-RXN). PADAM 2.0 targets high‑temperature refractory alloys for Department of Defense applications and focuses on advancing readiness, manufacturability, and performance. Project topics include work on existing refractory alloy systems, novel or emerging refractory alloy systems, and a refractory alloy supply chain assessment. John Martin, AM Research Director at America Makes, summed up the aim: “This project call is about moving refractory alloys for additive manufacturing from promise to practice. Many of today’s AM metals were never designed with additive processes or extreme operating environments in mind. By focusing on alloys that already show feasibility, this effort will generate data, process understanding, and qualification pathways needed to reduce risk, improve performance, and enable real‑world adoption. The outcome strengthens domestic manufacturing capability, lowers barriers to qualification, and delivers more reliable, high‑temperature materials for critical DoD and warfighter applications.”

The $2 million Artificial Intelligence for Material Allowables in Additive Manufacturing (AIM-4AM) call is funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD ManTech). AIM-4AM is structured in two phases and will develop an AI‑driven framework to identify and quantify risk in the current material allowables approach for 17‑4PH stainless steel (H1025) produced by laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). The program aims to use machine learning to model process-structure-property relationships and to guide the most informative tests so that physical testing can be safely reduced and any reductions can be linked to clear probabilistic risk categories. Organizers expect the work to provide faster, lower‑cost pathways to qualification and certification for additively manufactured metals.

NCDMM located the announcement in Youngstown, OH, and VoxelMatters reported an anticipated awards announcement date of April 28 for both projects. The public materials do not yet list proposal deadlines, solicitation IDs, awardees, or detailed budget breakdowns.

A LinkedIn post tied to the announcement also included a separate note: "America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing & Machining (NCDMM) are proud to announce the winners of a recent project call funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering, Manufacturing Technology Office, worth a total of $1.1M." That post referenced allied interoperability work under an AAMI program and used nonstandard phrasing in its funder description.

For designers, materials engineers, and small suppliers in the AM ecosystem, these calls mean potential funding and clearer pathways to qualify challenging alloys and to use AI to reduce testing load. Track America Makes and NCDMM for solicitations and technical requirements, and expect the PADAM and AIM-4AM efforts to shape how refractory feedstock and LPBF allowables move from lab validation to real‑world parts and supply chains.