ASTM International has been awarded funding from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering’s Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD(R&E)) through an America Makes project call. America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) announced the call in June 2024. The project call is worth $2.1 million in funding. ASTM will lead research on the sustainability and environmental benefits of additive manufacturing (AM).
Reusing and recycling AM materials
The project will focus on developing methodologies for reutilizing and recycling AM materials while ensuring sustainable design strategies that meet the necessary quality and performance standards for end users.
With this initiative, ASTM aims to deepen industry understanding of AM sustainability by assessing the environmental impact of various materials and processes. The project will explore strategies for material recovery, lifecycle assessments, and frameworks that help manufacturers to implement eco-friendly practices without compromising part performance or reliability. ASTM leads a team that also includes The Boeing Company, ADDMAN, Amaero Advanced Materials and Manufacturing, and the Additive Manufacturing Green Trade Association, LLC.
“Advancing sustainable practices in additive manufacturing is crucial for the future of aerospace and other industries,” said Melissa Orme, Vice President of Additive Manufacturing at Boeing. “This project represents a major step toward achieving those goals by addressing full lifecycle assessment and sustainable design considerations.”
The research will build on ASTM’s expertise in AM standards, qualification, certification, and sustainability, ensuring that the findings contribute to industry-wide best practices and regulatory guidelines. Through this project, ASTM and its partners will help drive solutions that align with circular economy principles and enhance the long-term viability of AM in industrial applications.
“We are pleased to lead this important project with America Makes,” said Mohsen Seifi, ASTM International’s Vice President of Global Advanced Manufacturing. “Our focus will be on developing methodologies that eventually promote the sustainable use of materials in additive manufacturing, ensuring both environmental benefits and high-quality outcomes for end users.”
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