The UK defence sector is missing out on major savings by failing to adopt additive manufacturing as a mainstream production method, an industry leader has warned.
Highlighted at the DSEI defence and security exhibition in London last week, Craig Pyser, chair of Additive Manufacturing UK (AMUK) and Chief Executive of Portsmouth-based AMufacture, said a persistent “knowledge gap” between manufacturers and defence procurement teams is preventing the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) from making use of technologies that are already proven at scale.
The MoD’s own Advanced Manufacturing Strategy identifies AMg as a way to strengthen supply chains and cut costs. A Defence Innovation Unit study cited in the strategy estimates that if 15% of the MoD’s inventory were produced through additive processes, the department would save £110 million over the next 15 years, with annual savings of £35.5 million after that.
