Huntington Ingalls Industries announced on 10 May that its Newport News Shipbuilding division has partnered with 3D Systems to develop additive manufacturing technologies expected to accelerate the adoption of metal 3-D printing in the naval shipbuilding industry.

The joint effort, which is also part of a technological transformation underway at Newport News called integrated Digital Shipbuilding (iDS), is expected to support future qualification and certification programs necessary to implement this advanced manufacturing technology for the U.S. Navy. 

Newport News’ vice president of engineering and design Charles Southall said 3-D printing could transform the design standards. As part of the joint development agreement, 3D Systems delivered and installed the ProX DMP 320 high-performance metal additive manufacturing system at Newport News. The machine is capable of making three-dimensional, marine-based, alloy parts for castings or other fabricated parts, such as valves, housings and brackets.