Babcock and Plastometrex to advance AM in the defence supply chain

Image courtesy Plastometrex

Babcock and Plastometrex are supporting Project TAMPA, the UK Ministry of Defence’s flagship initiative to accelerate the adoption of additive manufacturing (AM) in the defence supply chain. The programme addresses a critical challenge: how to ensure the Armed Forces can access vital components when global supply chains are stretched, traditional suppliers are unavailable, or parts have become obsolete. By proving that parts can be manufactured digitally, produced by multiple suppliers and still meet stringent defence standards, Project TAMPA is laying the foundation for a more resilient, secure and flexible supply chain.

Babcock, a current Plastometrex customer, will coordinate the manufacture of laser powder bed additive parts and oversee the comparison of components produced by different suppliers. Their task is to demonstrate that distributed manufacturing can deliver equivalent, certifiable outcomes to those already approved, ensuring the MoD can maintain operational readiness even when conventional routes are disrupted.

Plastometrex will contribute its Profilometry-based Indentation Plastometry (PIP) technology, delivered through the PLX-Benchtop system. PIP is a physics-based approach that extracts stress-strain curves from indentation test data using an inverse finite element method. It provides faster, lower-cost and richer evaluations of mechanical properties than destructive tensile testing. Unlike tensile testing, it can also be performed directly on parts or samples as small as 1.5 x 1.5 x 0.75 mm and at finer resolution. 

Areas that this capability will support the project with, include:

• Within-build variation: detecting property changes through the height of an AM build that tensile testing often misses.
• Build-to-build variation: identifying differences between builds more rapidly and affordably.
• Equivalency demonstrations: proving alignment with tensile results across a range of alloys produced via laser powder bed fusion.

By enabling rapid, non-destructive validation of part performance, PIP makes it possible to compare and qualify parts at the speed digital supply chains demand – an essential capability for ensuring availability in critical defence programmes. Work on these elements is expected to begin in early November.

Dr Mike Coto, CCO at Plastometrex, commented: “Project TAMPA is about more than advancing additive manufacturing, it’s about national resilience. The ability to securely share digital designs, manufacture parts where they are needed and know with confidence that those parts will perform as expected is transformative for defence. PIP enables that confidence, reducing reliance on slow and destructive methods and ensuring that the MoD can access the parts it needs, when it needs them.”

Kate Robinson, Managing Director Through Life Equipment Support (TLES), Babcock, said: “We will develop solutions for complex parts across various platforms to ensure material availability, reduce obsolescence and enhance the MoD’s defence capabilities. Our collaboration with Plastometrex is a terrific example of how innovation can accelerate the adoption of additive manufacturing within the defence supply chain.”