AM and supply chains

RISE is leading the project on behalf of the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) research and technology development, contributing specialist expertise in additive manufacturing, supply chains, information security, digital manufacturing documentation and quality assurance.

Additive manufacturing creates opportunities to produce spare parts and components closer to where they are needed, thereby reducing dependence on traditional supply chains. Realising these opportunities requires an understanding of how manufacturing capabilities should be organised, which material and information flows need to be secured, and which requirements must be met in terms of information security, quality and reliability.

The project will therefore investigate the conditions required to establish and maintain distributed manufacturing capabilities under normal conditions as well as during crises and war. The work covers the entire process, from digital manufacturing documentation and material supply to production, post-processing and quality assurance.

The project's main activities are to:

• Map existing solutions, experience and relevant standards for mobile and distributed additive manufacturing.
• Analyse supply chains, material flows and critical vulnerabilities.
• Investigate principles for the secure storage, transfer and handling of digital manufacturing documentation.
• Investigate principles for requirements quality assurance of manufactured components.

The results will provide FMV with a comprehensive basis for decision-making and requirements specification to support the continued development of additive manufacturing in disrupted supply chains.