Revolutionizing Repair: US Army Advances 3D Printing for Battle-Worn Vehicles

The US Army is exploring an advanced additive manufacturing process to rapidly restore battle-worn ground vehicles, cutting repair times and boosting operational efficiency.

Known as Battle Damage Repair and Fabrication (BDRF), the process leverages 3D computer-aided design models and additive manufacturing technology to quickly replace hard-to-find or long-lead-time vehicle parts.

This significantly reduces the Army’s logistics burden and helps extend the life cycle of older platforms, which might contain obsolete components.

Although groundbreaking, Michael Hansen of the US Army Tank-automotive Armaments Command (TACOM) emphasized that the BDRF process is designed to produce only temporary vehicle parts.

Still, these temporary components have reportedly outperformed original parts in testing, prompting discussions about the potential for BDRF to serve as a permanent secondary source of supply.

‘Generate Readiness as Far Forward as Possible’

The advanced additive manufacturing process is being spearheaded by TACOM in collaboration with the US Army DEVCOM Ground Vehicle Systems Center, Integrated Logistics Support Center, and Rock Island Arsenal – Joint Manufacturing and Technology Center

Together, they aim to fill critical production gaps and keep battle-worn vehicles in the fight for longer.

As part of the process, vehicle parts are scanned, uploaded to a secure database, and then 3D-printed, making it possible to fabricate hard-to-find or obsolete components on demand.

Since the BDRF’s launch in 2024, nearly four dozen product lines have reportedly been produced and approved for temporary use.

“Units are installing those parts on vehicles and bringing equipment back to mission-capable status,” Hansen noted. “In collaboration with our partners, we hope to use 3D printing and other advanced manufacturing techniques to generate readiness as far forward on the field as possible.”