Designfax weekly eMagazine

Subscribe Today!

Archives

View Archives

Partners

Manufacturing Center
Product Spotlight

Modern Applications News
Metalworking Ideas For
Today's Job Shops

Tooling and Production
Strategies for large
metalworking plants

Army lets us in on new advanced manufacturing capabilities

By DEVCOM U.S. Army Research Laboratory

Persistent collaboration between Army researchers and the University of North Texas (UNT) has resulted in new advanced manufacturing capabilities for industry to strengthen the Army's armament.

The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, or DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory (ARL) is positioned as the scientific nexus between academia, industry, and the Army to support continuous transformation.

These high-strength aluminum turbine engine components with complex geometries were created using a special aluminum alloy that Dr. Rajiv Mishra developed with DEVCOM ARL researchers. [Credit: Photo courtesy of Rajiv Mishra/DEVCOM U.S. Army Research Laboratory]

 

 

 

 

The long-running ARL-UNT research collaboration enabled the introduction of new metal alloys in industry that support the rapid production of sturdier and more resilient vehicles, aircraft, and other Army platforms.

Army researchers partnered with Dr. Rajiv Mishra, now UNT professor and founder of advanced manufacturing startup Optimus Alloys, as early as 2008 to develop material solutions with military-relevant properties not found elsewhere in industry. The research collaboration led to numerous discoveries and innovations that Mishra's company later adopted for its commercial operations and services.

This kind of partnership is an example of a far-reaching strategy that ARL employs to advance mission-relevant science and help university researchers turn scientific ideas into innovative technologies for the Army.

By engaging with ARL, university collaborators gain access to Army scientific expertise, specialized research equipment, and valuable knowledge on the warfighter's future needs.

"We work very closely with a lot of academic partners," said Dr. Brandon McWilliams, ARL materials engineer. "Our work with Dr. Mishra is a common example of how ARL helps commercialize Army technology and get things moving. It's a model that we all strive for."

In one case, ARL researchers and Mishra developed a special aluminum alloy that can withstand advanced manufacturing conditions that enable a more rapid production of sturdier parts for ground vehicles, munitions, and drones. This alloy demonstrates unique mechanical properties that allow it to meet the physical demands of laser-based additive processes, which damage most other aluminum alloys.

In another instance, the joint research team produced cold spray alloy powders that, for the first time, can restore steel armor and components on combat vehicles, rotorcraft, and other Army platforms. These new high-entropy alloys are expanding the Army's application possibilities for cold spray, a cutting-edge technique that a growing number of Army depots are adopting for vehicle repairs and additive manufacturing.

Optimus Alloys, which Mishra founded in 2021, now offers both products as raw material for the U.S. industrial base to manufacture into military-grade parts.

"There is a large gap in the U.S. industrial base of being able to procure novel material feedstocks for the many new advanced manufacturing techniques that are rapidly being developed right now," McWilliams said. "Our efforts enabled the Army to procure materials that we previously couldn't obtain as easily."

According to McWilliams, ARL's research partnerships with universities help enterprising academic researchers break into the commercial defense sector and close critical gaps in the U.S. industrial base.

Furthermore, one successful partnership often leads to many more, thanks to the culture of research mentorship in academia.

Several of Mishra's students and postdocs first learned about ARL's mission through their mentor's long-term involvement, inspiring them to engage with the laboratory to support the Soldier. One former pupil founded his own spin-off company and transitioned an additive manufacturing technique based on the research he conducted with ARL.

"The research partnerships we execute at ARL benefit the Army, academia, and industry all equally," McWilliams said. "Our model allows the Army to shape the trajectory of its future warfighting capabilities as we help high-priority, emerging research grow and mature in academia. Once the technology is ready, we help that research make the jump into industry where it can become a valuable capability for the Army and the nation."

With advanced manufacturing set to play an integral role in the Army, ARL remains in close contact with the researchers at UNT and continues to build connections with other promising leaders in academia and industry.

This warfighter-focused partnership represents an important way that the laboratory leverages its strategic position at the center of the Army's science and technology ecosystem to accomplish the Army mission.

Published April 2026

Rate this article