Sintavia Awarded DoD Contract to Develop 3D Printed Hypersonic Propulsion Systems
It has long been clear that with additive manufacturing, not even the sky is the limit. And once again that has been proven. Sintavia, a company which claims to be the world’s first all-digital aerospace component manufacturer, has announced that it has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Through this, Sintavia will be developing additively manufactured hypersonic propulsion components.
In aerodynamics, the word hypersonic refers to a speed that exceeds five times the speed of sound, starting at speeds of Mach 5 and above, or greater than 3000 mph. Hypersonic propulsion is considered useful in a range of applications, including long-range ballistic flight and air-defense interceptor missiles. Given the current environment, developing this technology has become a major goal of the American defense industry. This is where Sintavia comes in.
Sintavia has been involved in numerous projects dedicated to growing additive manufacturing, including Biden’s Forward AM Initiative
The contract was awarded as part of the DoD’s Growing Additive Manufacturing Maturity for Airbreathing Hypersonics (GAMMA-H) challenge, which seeks to help efforts to expand manufacturing processes to create hypersonic weapons parts. It was first announced in October 2023 with a budget of $106.7M and is a joint effort between the Office of Secretary of Defense ManTech and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division. The reason for the focus on additive manufacturing is because traditional manufacturing processes are unable to meet the intricate geometric specifications required for advanced hypersonics. This, of course, an area where additive manufacturing thrives.
The Florida-based Sintavia, which was also previously chosen to represent the AM supply chain in the AM Forward initiative and has backing from companies like Honeywell and Lockheed Martin, was thus a perfect fit due to its all-digital process. The company is known for using generative design to simulate, additively manufacturing, post-process, test and even certify complex mechanical components. It is particularly well-known as well in the aerospace and defense industries. The company was contracted through the S²MARTS OTA managed by National Security Technology Accelerator (NSTXL) and will be expected to “develop and prove the robust quality and operational processes needed to design and manufacture critical precision components needed for hypersonic flight” according to a press release.
“The GAMMA-H award represents an important step forward in developing and formalizing standard additive manufacturing processes that can be used across the industry for hypersonic production,” concludes Brian R. Neff, Sintavia’s Founder & CEO. “As the industry leader in this effort, Sintavia is uniquely positioned to work with the GAMMA-H project to successfully develop and validate these processes. We are grateful to the GAMMA-H team for their trust in Sintavia regarding this absolutely critical national security imperative.” The contract is expected to run through 2025.
What do you think of the news that Sintavia will be developing hypersonic engines as part of GAMMA-H with the DoD? Let us know in a comment below or on our LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter pages! Don’t forget to sign up for our free weekly newsletter here for the latest 3D printing news straight to your inbox! You can also find all our videos on our YouTube channel.
*All Photo Credits: Sintavia
