3D printing parts for military aircraft

First metallic 3D printed part installed on F-22

Wow.
Wow!

I had always been trying to push for the idea of adopting 3D printing technology to lower the cost of having to lug around spare parts onboard ships. Spare parts take up space which can be used for other purposes. But the issue with widespread implementation is: certification. Very few companies are willing to certify 3D printed parts as "meeting the required specifications to be used as a replacement" for their parts. After all, this puts them out of the parts business. They won't be able to sell spares anymore. It then falls on the onus of the ship owner to determine if those 3d printed parts are good enough, and given the risks involved, most owners are going to simply say, nada, not worth my time to try and test and certify.

But what we have now is the U.S. military setting an example. If 3D printed parts are good enough to be used as spares on a multi-million state-of-the-art fighter jet, there is no reason why they cannot be good enough for other forms of transportation. Of course, there is still the need for testing to make sure those parts meet the required specifications. But this move does help to lower the mindset hurdle.

Hopefully, more and more people will see the merits of using 3D printing to produce spare parts. The savings in storage space is obvious. But beyond that, it also helps to reduce the number of types of spares that one needs to keep on hand, and the turn-around time; the logistics implication is huge. There is a possibility here, an opportunity waiting to be explored. Let us move beyond the confines of traditional mindsets to see things at a different level.