Cold Spray Metal 3D Printing Goes to Sea at RIMPAC 2026

A U.S.-led advanced manufacturing team demonstrated the ability to produce mission-critical metal replacement parts aboard a vessel underway during RIMPAC 2026, marking the first at-sea deployment of a SPEE3D cold spray manufacturing system.

The Consortium for Advanced Manufacturing Research and Education (CAMRE) at the Naval Postgraduate School, working with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory and other partners, deployed more than 50 advanced manufacturing technologies during the exercise.

Among them was SPEE3D's Expeditionary Manufacturing Unit (EMU), which operated aboard Canadian support vessel MV Asterix, demonstrating distributed production of replacement components from ship and shore.

During RIMPAC, SPEE3D systems produced 32 mission-critical metal parts. Twenty-four were manufactured through reachback capability at the Knoxville Armory in Tennessee, while eight were produced at sea aboard Asterix. Of the 32 parts, 29 were taken through the complete manufacturing process, including heat treatment and machining.

The EMU combines SPEE3D's containerized XSPEE3D metal 3D printer with a SPEE3Dcell post-processing and machining unit, allowing components to move from metal powder to finished part without leaving the ship.

Unlike conventional metal additive manufacturing processes that use heat to melt material, SPEE3D's Cold Spray Manufacturing (CSM) accelerates metal powder to supersonic velocities and deposits it onto a substrate, building dense metal components without melting the material. The ruggedized system is designed specifically for expeditionary manufacturing outside traditional factory environments.

“The ability to produce, post-process, and evaluate parts while operating at sea has direct implications for readiness and sustainment,” said retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Chris Curran, CAMRE NPS program manager.

According to SPEE3D CEO Byron Kennedy, the system operated on an open deck in heavy seas during the exercise.

For naval forces, the technology addresses a growing logistical challenge: supplying ships and distributed forces operating across the enormous distances of the Indo-Pacific. Producing replacement components close to the point of use could reduce dependence on lengthy supply chains and return equipment to service faster.

RIMPAC 2026 ran June 24-July 31 around Hawaii, bringing together 40 surface ships, five submarines, 140 aircraft and more than 25,000 personnel from allied and partner nations.

An Aluminium Bronze Cover Box printed and machined using the UTK DARC & TNARNG SPEE3D Expeditionary Manufacturing Unit (EMU) reach back capability and then installed on the MV Asterix during RIMPAC 2026, an exercise organised by CAMRE NPS. Image courtesy SPEE3D