3D Systems Gets $9M More From the Air Force to Build a Giant Metal Printer

A Second Wind for the GEN-II DMP-1000

The US Air Force is not done with 3D Systems yet. The company announced an additional $9 million in funding to continue its Large-Format Metal 3D Printer Advanced Technology Demonstrator program, known internally as the GEN-II DMP-1000. This brings total program funding to $27.4 million.

Work began back in 2023. The goal has always been to develop a metal 3D printer large enough and durable enough to produce flight-critical parts on demand. The current DMP Factory 500 has a 500mm cubed build volume. The GEN-II version is expected to push past 1000mm in at least one dimension.

What This Means for Defense Manufacturing

The Air Force wants the ability to print replacement parts in the field, not wait for supply chains. Large-format metal printing is one path to that capability. If the program delivers, bases could produce brackets, mounts, and structural components without a parts warehouse.

3D Systems will carry out the work at its San Diego and Rock Hill facilities. The next phase runs for two more years. Dr. Michael Shepard, Vice President of Aerospace and Defense at 3D Systems, said the award reflects the Air Force's confidence in the technology and the team.

The Bigger Picture

This is the second major Air Force award to 3D Systems in about twelve months. Last year, an extra $7.65 million kept the program moving through its first phase. That earlier tranche funded the successful demonstration of several core technologies. Now the focus shifts to integrating those technologies into a single machine capable of high-temperature metal printing at scale.

The GEN-II DMP-1000 is not a consumer product. It is a defense research project with commercial spin-off potential. If 3D Systems can prove the system works, the same hardware could eventually appear in aerospace and automotive supply chains. For now, the Air Force is the only customer that matters.