NCDMM, America Makes awarded contract increases

The National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) and America Makes have received substantial ceiling increases on their major government contract vehicles.

America Makes, driven by NCDMM, received a $256 million ceiling increase on its third Cooperative Agreement (CA3) with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). Initiated in November 2019, the seven-year, CA3 government share contract ceiling value is now set at $483 million. The official announcement was made by Timothy Sakulich, Executive Director of the Air Force Research Laboratory, on August 15, 2023, at the Institute’s Annual Members Meeting and Exchange (MMX) event.

America Makes is the nation’s leading public-private partnership for additive manufacturing (AM) technology and education. Founded in 2012 as the Department of Defense’s national manufacturing innovation institute for AM and first of the Manufacturing USA network, America Makes is based in Youngstown, Ohio, and comprised of member organizations from industry, academia, government, and workforce and economic development resources – all working together to accelerate the adoption of AM and the nation’s global manufacturing competitiveness.

Today, America Makes and its members executed an applied research portfolio of more than $400 million in public and private funds invested in advancing the adoption of AM to increase U.S. competitiveness, resiliency, and security. With the additional funding, the Institute will continue to advance the technology within the industry, grow and develop the workforce, and ultimately expand the AM ecosystem.

“America Makes is thrilled to learn of the increased ceiling limit as this directly impacts the success of our membership, the growth of the industry, and most importantly our warfighter,” stated John Wilczynski, executive director of America Makes. "The additional funding signifies continued confidence by AFRL in our work and our mission. We are excited by what the future holds for the Institute and our stakeholders.”

On September 8, it was announced that the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center (DEVCOM AvMC) at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, had increased NCDMM’s Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract funding ceiling by $176 million to more than $246 million. The five-year contract was originally awarded at $69 million. An IDIQ contract enables the DoD and other government organizations to leverage the advanced manufacturing expertise and services of NCDMM and its alliance partner network for oversight of projects across the nation focused on manufacturing technology, assessments, process analysis, development and demonstration, and implementation of manufacturing solutions. It is the fourth such contract awarded to NCDMM since its inception in 2003.

“We are honored to receive this enhanced award from the United States Army," noted Gary Fleegle, president and CEO of NCDMM. "This contract is a testament to the success we have achieved under previous IDIQ contracts, and we are eager to work with our Army partners to position our armed forces and the U.S. for success."

Founded in 2003 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, NCDMM remains committed to revitalizing and delivering innovative collaborative solutions for our nation’s manufacturing industry.