U.S. Navy contracts with Metal Technology for additive manufacturing on Trident missile system

The U.S. Navy has granted Metal Technology Inc. (MTI), Albany, Ore., a contract to develop and demonstrate advanced aerospace additive manufacturing techniques for low-cost manufacturing of refractory metal components for U.S. Navy missile propulsion systems used on the Trident D5 missile system.

While the Trident D5 is expected to remain in service until 2042, the current manufacturing techniques for refractory metal components of the propulsion system are complex and labor-intensive. As part of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract, MTI will be working with the Navy to reduce cost and complexity using additive manufacturing to fabricate refractory metal parts with reductions in complexity, cost, and lead time compared to traditional manufacturing methods.