At the recent NDIA USW Symposium in Groton CT on 19 Sept 23, the Navy’s senior leaders from the 4-star level at NAVSEA 08, and many NAVSEA, OPNAV, and Submarine Force Flag officers and SESs emphasized the acute workforce and manufacturing shortfalls we are experiencing in the naval shipbuilding and repair sector that are impacting material readiness of the current fleet and new construction. The “1 COLUMBIA + 2 VIRGINIA” construction cadence beginning in FY26 will significantly stress the Submarine Industrial Base (SIB) and the leadership team emphasized the important role both the ATDM Program and the Navy’s AM COE has in teaming with industry to get this job done. The Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing Program (ATDM) and the Navy Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM COE), co-located on the campus of the Institute for Advance Learning and Research (IALR) in Danville, Virginia have been established to address these challenges. These projects are moving forward under the direction of the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program Office (IBAS) in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and Navy’s Program Executive Office (PEO) Strategic Submarines. ATDM trains workers in the critical manufacturing skills to establish a steady and sustainable flow of workers into the SIB/DIB to fill critical skills gaps and manpower shortages. The AM COE’s mission is to enable the introduction of additive manufacturing into naval shipbuilding and repair supply chains to increase manufacturing capacity for the production of submarine components. The 2023 ATDM and AM COE Summit aims to increase awareness of these important initiatives and to promote participation and contributions by industry and other stakeholders. Please reach out to the IALR ATDM Program Director (Debra.Holley@ialr.org) if you have any questions. Here are the links to the Summit. One is for the welcome page and it provides more background information and will also take you to the registration page. The other link takes you straight to the registration page.

Welcome page: https://cvent.me/N5Rl4y

Registration page only: https://cvent.me/nRbaMr