'3D Printing'

The Office of the Secretary of Defense has helped launch a "3D printing" additive manufacturing program, according to the Pentagon's industrial policy shop.

OSD's Manufacturing Technology program "recently led an interagency effort to launch a $69 million public-private partnership in additive manufacturing," a post on the Defense Department's manufacturing and industrial base policy website states:

Participants include the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Science Foundation, and the Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology. The private partner team is led by the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining, a not-for-profit 501(c)3 company. The interagency investment of $30 million has been matched by a $39 million cost share from non-federal sources.

More commonly known as "3D Printing," additive manufacturing is an enabling manufacturing technology for our military platforms. The National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute (NAMII) officially opened on September 27, 2012, and will serve as a training and collaboration center to bridge the gap between basic research and technology adoption. NAMII will also serve as an example for the proposed National Network for Manufacturing Innovation and has a goal to be self-sufficient within three years.