Automation Alley Awarded Contract to Advance Secure Distributed Additive Manufacturing forthe U.S. Departmentof War

Michigan-basedIndustry4.0knowledgecentertoleaddevelopmentofastreaming,IP- protectedmanufacturingnetworkundertheIndustrialBaseAnalysisSustainmentprogram

TROY, Mich., Oct. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Automation Alley, Michigan's Industry 4.0 knowledge center, today announced the award of a Phase I $7.5 million Task Order with a Base and Option under the Industrial Base Analysis Sustainment (IBAS) program, administered through the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) IDIQ. The contract supports the U.S. Army's efforts to modernize defense supply chain sustainment through secure, distributed additive manufacturing (AM).

Under this first phase, Automation Alley will lead the design and validation of a secure digital manufacturing environment that enables intellectual property-protected streaming of manufacturing instructions to a distributed network of AM equipment. The effort is part of Project DIAMOnD — Automation Alley's flagship defense manufacturing initiative — and represents a significant step toward demonstrating that complex defense components can be produced on demand, at distributed locations, with full data security, traceability, and quality assurance.

Addressing a Critical Defense Manufacturing Challenge

Legacy defense components frequently face supply chain disruptions, long lead times, and limited domestic production capacity. This program directly addresses those challenges by validating a "streaming manufacturing" model — analogous to how digital media is securely licensed and streamed — applied to the production of physical components.

Phase I technical work will include development of a secure encrypted digital workflow architecture aligned with Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) cybersecurity standards, identification and validation of candidate polymer and metallic weapon system components, and production of additively manufactured parts using validated processes. A core deliverable of the program is demonstrating secure, end-to-end transfer of smart product recipes (SPRs) to distributed manufacturers with complete digital quality assurance recipes for each part produced.

A Collaborative Effort

Automation Alley will execute the program in partnership with Markforged, a leading provider of industrial AM systems, and Fraunhofer USA, a world-class applied research organization. NCDMM, which manages America Makes — the nation's leading public- private partnership for AM technology and education — will serve as the prime contractor. This collaboration brings together complementary expertise in AM technology, cybersecurity, and manufacturing process validation to deliver a program with meaningful and measurable impact.

"This award reflects years of work building a platform and a network capable of supporting the Department of War's most critical manufacturing needs," said Tom Kelly, Automation Alley executive director and CEO. "Phase I gives us the opportunity to demonstrate, in a real and rigorous way, that secure distributed additive manufacturing is not just possible — it is ready."

About Automation Alley

Automation Alley is Michigan's Digital Transformation Insight Center with a global outlook and a local, membership driven foundation of more than 4,000 members. Through education, collaboration, and its Project DIAMOnD platform, Automation Alley helps manufacturers navigate the technologies transforming manufacturing and strengthen the state and national manufacturing base.

About NCDMM

NCDMM delivers innovative and collaborative manufacturing solutions that enhance our nation's workforce and economic competitiveness. NCDMM has extensive knowledge and depth in commercial and defense manufacturing areas to continually innovate, improve, and advance manufacturing technologies and methodologies. Our experienced team specializes in identifying the needs, players, technologies, and processes to attain optimal solutions for our customers. We connect the dots. That's the NCDMM methodology. With seven locations nationwide, NCDMM manages America Makes , Youngstown Innovation Hub , and El Paso Makes and is a subsidiary of the Manufacturing Technology Deployment Group, Inc. ( MTDG ). Learn more at ncdmm.org.

SOURCE Automation Alley