Page 33 - ADT MARCH 2023 Latest Magazine | GBP

 3D PRINTING
THE SKY © Al Seer Marine

IS THE LIMIT

The use of additive
manufacturing is
transforming the defence

industry, making it possible
to produce anything, from
unmanned surface
vessels, barracks or fighter
jet parts, within days

- By Arun Sivasankaran

ne of the exhibits at the recent NAVDEX largest corporations.
2023 in Abu Dhabi encapsuled the
O boundless possibilities that the use The UAE has its own 3D printing center for excellence; Sindan.
of additive manufacturing offers the defence Spearheaded by Tawazun and located in Abu Dhabi, the facility
sector. The Hydra unmanned surface vessel is already operational and will help the indigenous UAE defence
(USV), showcased by Al Seer Marine, a UAE- industry to produce large-scale additive manufacturing products
based company, weighs 350 kg and measures and parts quickly and cost-effectively, thus increasing the lifespan
5m in length. The boat, stealthy in nature, has of legacy systems and improving the complexity of new systems. Not
sensors located inside the vessel, and will be surprisingly, one of the active partners of Sindan is Al Seer Marine.
powered with electric motors. A technolog-
ical demonstration platform, Hydra will be A World of Possibilities
used for ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, And The excitement over the possibilities that 3D printing offer the
Reconnaissance) missions once it becomes defence sector is not limited to the Middle East. As AM applications
operational. pushes production costs down and provides new ways to 3D print
replacement parts on demand, a plethora of projects, many of them
For all the capabilities of the vessel, it is some- pushing the limits of 3D printing far beyond what most imagined
thing else that stands out. Hydra is the first 3D possible, have either been completed or are underway.
printed unmanned surface vessel. After the
design and engineering work for the drone Some of the most effective uses of AM technologies in the mili-
were completed, the printing process took just tary sphere are in making combat vehicles hulls, parts for fighter
five days. Al Seer Marine’s 3D printing unit is aircraft, submarine manufacture and repair, construction of field
reportedly the world’s largest robotic additive shelters, fabrication of essential components, manufacture of equip-
manufacturing facility. The company intends to ment parts, and 3D printing of explosives. Analysts expect further
expand the facility even further and manufac- breakthroughs as militaries are exploring new design engineering
ture parts for its other unmanned vessels and possibilities using AM technologies that have the potential to reduce
vehicles. Also in the works is a 3D printed mast part lead times by as much as 90 per cent, slash materials cost by
for the HYDRA. 90 per cent, reduce waste and cut energy use in half as compared
to legacy processes.
Meanwhile, Tawazun Economic Council is
working with Swedish conglomerate Saab to Among the unmanned aerial vehicles that United Kingdom rapidly
develop additive manufacturing (AM) applica- developed and flight-tested to help Ukraine resist Russian aggres-
tions for UAE Air Force and Air Defence (AFAD) sion is a 3D-printed delta-wing suicide drone. In July 2022, the U.S.
spare parts. Saab, one of the early adaptors Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS Essex became the first American
of 3D printing in the defence sector, is one of ship with a metal 3D printer onboard. The high-speed printer, used
the cofounders of Additive Manufacturing by both the Navy and the Marines, gives the crew the ability to man-
Excellence for Industry (AMEXCI), a consortium ufacture replacement parts for drones on demand, thus reducing
formed in 2017 that includes many of Sweden’s the inventory of spare parts on the ship.
ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY MARCH 2023 | 33