COLUMBUS, Ohio –
The Defense Logistics Agency Weapons Support (Columbus) Product Test Center advanced its additive manufacturing game with the addition of a specialized 3D printing capability with much more on the way, thanks to DLA Research and Development.
“The addition of our first 3D printer in September 2024 has greatly enhanced our capability to test and deliver verified parts to the warfighter,” said Kedric Jones, an electronics engineer for the DLA Electronics PTC lab.
Supervisory Electronics Engineer Jeremiah Jones said what they do at the PTC’s electronics and mechanical labs directly impacts military readiness by ensuring parts for military weapon systems operate as intended.
“We are the gatekeeper for quality assurance for the military’s bench stock,” Jeremiah Jones said.
Jeremiah Jones explained that they heavily rely on fixture creation to perform testing on the wide variety of components that move through both labs daily.
“Testing fixtures are precisely engineered to ensure the quality and functionality of every item we test here,” he said, noting that fixtures are custom-made to facilitate the deep analysis through conformance testing, product lot testing, product verification testing, government first article testing and more.
From months to days: Overcoming traditional methods of fixture creation
Both the electronics and mechanical PTC labs provide quality assurance for about 3,000 items a year, Jeremiah Jones said. To keep up with the demand and to ensure warfighter readiness, the labs must clear parts with both speed and efficiency.
Jeremiah Jones explained the need to create testing fixtures quickly lies in the short 30-day cycle time the lab has for testing each item that comes through its doors.
“Having such a short window to perform full evaluations is an ongoing challenge for us,” he said, noting that the lab supports a diverse set of national stock numbers, all with unique testing requirements.
Kedric Jones said the Stratasys Fortus 450mc 3D fused deposition modeling printer and metrology-grade 3D laser scanner have been a game changer for engineers at both labs, who used to rely on time-consuming traditional fixture manufacturing using computer numerical control machining to cut out a fixture from a solid block of material.
Kedric Jones explained that additive manufacturing is a type of manufacturing where material is layered together to build a 3D object from a preprogrammed digital design. “In traditional or subtractive manufacturing, you take a block of aluminum, and you cut it down to a bearing,” he said. “In this case, you're starting with just an empty plate, and you are putting material onto it to build it up into the bearing.” Additive manufacturing uses a variety of materials like specialized plastics as well as complex polymers and metals.
(Source: Kedric Jones and the National Institutes of Technology)
Fused deposition modeling is a common form of 3D printing that offers low cost per part and short lead times and is ideal for creating prototypes, fixtures and final products. FDM uses a heated nozzle to extrude thermoplastic filaments to build components layer by layer.
(Source: Stratasys)
Computer numerical control milling is a machining process that uses computerized controls to operate and manipulate machine tools that can cut and shape materials subtractively. This means the part or fixture is manufactured by removing material from a solid block of metal, acrylic or a polymer using a rotating cutting tool. This type of manufacturing is time intensive and generates a large amount of waste material.
(Source: Kedric Jones).
“Before the introduction of additive manufacturing, the process of creating one staff-designed fixture could take from several weeks to months,” said electronics engineer Kendall Callahan, noting that the timeframe depended on a variety of factors ranging from complexity of the geometries needed to the composition of the fixture itself.
“We never really know what's going to come through the door on any given day," Jeremiah Jones noted. "But when it arrives, we need something custom-made to be able to test it properly.”
To overcome the limitations of traditional manufacturing, the team started to explore additive manufacturing as a solution to the PTC’s fixture creation challenges. Realizing the potential of this technology, they approached DLA R&D for a viable solution.
DLA R&D Director David Koch and his team assisted the PTC in its modernization efforts by launching the Tools for Testing initiative to provide the necessary equipment and technical assistance to get its 3D printing and laser scanning operations up and running.
“We are always looking for opportunities to make a difference through innovation,” Koch said, citing this was a perfect opportunity to improve the way DLA operates.
Koch called the first phase a resounding success, citing dramatic time savings and cost efficiencies.
“They are now able to make up to 10 of these fixtures for the price of making just one if it were still being traditionally manufactured using subtractive processes,” Koch said, adding that on-demand additive manufacturing capability accelerates testing capabilities, slashing lead times in getting verified parts out to the warfighter.
Kedric Jones said that the production time saved since the Stratasys arrived has been substantial.
“A fixture can be made in as little as six hours of print time for something that took about an hour to design,” Kedric Jones said. “And the best part is that it does not subtract from our staff-hours anymore, freeing us up to work on other projects while the machine is printing.”
The additive manufacturing capability also offers greater flexibility in overall fixture creation.
“With this technology, we can create complex geometries within a day or two that would have been difficult to make with traditional manufacturing methods,” Callahan said.
Callahan added the additive manufacturing capability has also allowed PTC staff to use new thermoplastic-based materials such as ASA, ABS, PEI and ABS-ESD7 for fixture creation.
“In the past, we were mostly working in aluminum and acrylic, but now we are creating fixtures in heavy-duty thermoplastics with properties that can withstand the rigors of the types of testing we do here,” she remarked.
Staff at both labs are looking forward to seeing even more improvements as phase two gets underway.
The lab uses several types of high-grade thermoplastics to create 3D testing fixtures. Those are:
- ASA (acrylonitrile styrene acrylate) is highly resistant to UV light, temperature extremes and chemicals like saturated hydrocarbons, aqueous salt solutions, weak acids and many oils.
- ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) is formulated with butadiene rubber grafted with an acrylic compound designed to make it extra strong, pliable and resistant to temperature extremes.
- ABS-ESD7 (electrostatic-dissipative) combines the strength and durability of ABS with carbon to dissipate static electrical charges in two seconds or less. It also has high impact resistance and strength so it will not break while clamped into a testing machine.
- PEI (polyetherimide) provides ultra heat resistance often exceeding 340 degrees Fahrenheit without deforming. Its strength and stiffness can easily replace traditional fixtures made of aluminum and ceramic materials.
(Source: Stratasys)
The next step: AM capability expansion
Jeremiah Jones said phase two of Tools for Testing involves additional equipment for both PTC labs.
“The mechanical lab will be getting a metal 3D printer, a smaller 3D printer to create prototypes, a CT scanner and the means to get an older Stratasys it received from DLA Disposition Services operational,” he said. “And the electronics lab will be getting an automated benchtop 3D scanner and much needed maintenance on its Stratasys Fortus 450mc.”
“Both labs will get a smaller 3D printer to create prototypes,” he added.
Kedric Jones said these additions will greatly increase the testing capability of both labs by moving items through the process well within that 30-day turnaround window.
“Laser scanners save a lot of manual labor,” Kedric Jones said. “Instead of trying to take manual measurements, this capability lets us build a fixture around a scanned digital mock-up of the part additively.”
Kedric Jones said the CT scanner’s X-ray type capabilities will greatly improve dimensional inspection of parts at the mechanical lab and will allow the electronics lab to see inside parts non-destructively.
“This device will allow us to see inside parts to get highly accurate measurements without having to destroy any coating the manufacturer applied, preserving the parts so that it can still go to the services when we're done dimensioning it,” Kedric Jones said.
With the metal 3D printer, Kedric Jones said the PTC will be moving into the realm of aluminum and nickel and other metals.
“The metal printer’s powder bed fusion process will help us print fixtures for testing that we can't currently do,” he explained. “For example, with a metal printer, we will be able to print fixtures for higher pressure testing and tensile loads. And it will allow for simultaneous printing.”
Jeremiah Jones said phase two is set for completion in March 2027.
Powder bed fusion is an additive manufacturing process that selectively melts and fuses atomized metal powders or polymers layer by layer using a laser or electron beam, creating three-dimensional objects in a nitrogen environment. A laser mounted on a gantry traces the path of a given layer and precisely fuses the metal powder together. A powder distribution system pushes a new layer of loose powder over the previous layer, and the process repeats until the fixture, or part is complete according to the design code input into the machine. These machines can make highly complex geometries, large parts and dense parts out of aluminum, copper, titanium and other alloys.
(Source: Kedric Jones and Stratasys)
The bigger picture: DLA’s AM program and the PTC’s role within the DoW
DLA is no stranger to additive manufacturing as it has a formal role in growing the technology that was codified in DOD Instruction 5000.93 through the creation and management of the Joint Additive Manufacturing Model Exchange, a collaborative tool and a shared additive manufacturing repository for the War Department.
Koch said DLA R&D is always looking for opportunities to optimize DLA’s supply chain operations by seeking out new technology to support the modernization of DLA’s major subordinate commands.
“DLA R&D is highly focused on trying to optimize our supply chain operations, especially in additive manufacturing by using innovative solutions to maximize support to the warfighter,” he said.
Additive manufacturing has been showing much growth throughout the military logistics landscape with many services embracing novel ways of using the technology such as: the Navy’s push in 2025 to integrate additive manufacturing components directly into the supply chain, using specialized 3D printers to make parts that can withstand underwater pressures; the creation of the Army’s Jointless Hull machine, the largest 3D printer in the world, for making large forging level quality parts; and the Air Force’s use of additive manufacturing to drive sustainment for its aging B-1 Bomber fleet.
As the joint force matures and scale their additive manufacturing capabilities, Kedric Jones said the PTC staff must do the same.
“Warfighters are printing out in the field more and more,” he explained. “And as they continue to innovate and expand their additive manufacturing capabilities, we need to possess knowledge of the different techniques and equipment they are using to properly test items and provide the correct technical data packages needed to produce these items additively.”