The US Navy hopes 3D printing will keep its ramped-up nuclear submarine production schedule afloat amid a budding military ship-building race with China.
Defense News reported this month that the US Navy aims to build the Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) and Virginia-class attack submarines (SSN) on time by 3D printing various metal parts as standard components for installation on the new vessels.
The Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville, Virginia, is working to help in the transition from the US Navy’s current limited use of 3D printing for small repair parts aboard ships to widespread use in its submarine-industrial base, which is scheduled to boost production to its highest level in four decades.
Defense News reports that the US Navy is collaborating with the center to establish a network of 3D printing partners and a digital order book to oversee the workload, with 28 approved plans for various submarine parts.
The US Navy aims to create a worldwide network of more than 50 locations to 3D-print metal components for new submarines, with the UK and Australia participating as part of the AUKUS alliance. It also plans to launch a digital order book in 2024 with at least 15 3D printing partners producing between 150 to 200 components, the Defense News report said.
The transition from ad hoc to mainstream use of 3D printing technology will be challenging as the US Navy seeks to achieve a submarine construction rate not seen since the 1980s. The Defense News report cites experts saying the technology needs to be advanced enough to meet high production standards, noting significant qualification and certification requirements.
To maintain quality control, some use cameras and sensors to monitor their 3D printing process and detect defects in real time to reduce the need for end-of-production testing to one in 100 items.
Defense One reported last month that the US Navy is urging lawmakers to approve the increased usage of 3D printing so that it can build three submarines per year. Defense One says that Rear Adm. Jonathan Rucker, the US Navy’s lead buyer for attack submarines, said so-called additive manufacturing is essential for meeting construction schedules and maintaining the operation of new submarines.
The source mentions that the first 3D-printed parts are already being installed, and the US Navy aims to increase production to one Columbia-class and two Virginia-class submarines each year. It mentions that the US Navy is requesting more funding, with the White House proposing US$3.4 billion for developing technologies like additive manufacturing and parts testing.
The US Navy is facing challenges with submarine production, affecting its ability to meet operational needs. The Biden administration’s fiscal year 2022 shipbuilding plan has mentioned a requirement of 66 to 72 SSNs to deter and defeat adversaries, namely China. The US Navy currently has only 49 with questionable operational rates.
In a War on The Rocks article last month, Emma Salisbury mentions that the US submarine industrial base faced a significant production downturn after 1992 due to a sharp drop in demand following the cancellation of the Seawolf SSN program at the end of the Cold War.
She notes that the two leading US submarine builders, Electric Boat and Newport News, closed their offsite fabrication and machining facilities, resulting in fewer production sites. Salisbury says the fall in demand resulted in difficulties in recruiting and keeping skilled workers, which led to a decline in the number of active suppliers in the submarine industry and shipyards.
The Defense News report says the industrial base of companies contributing to US submarine production has shrunk more than 70% since the 1980s, from about 17,000 suppliers to just 5,000 at present. It notes that as recently as 2013 the US Navy would begin building one Virginia-class submarine each year but now plans to perform five times that level of annual production by fiscal 2026.
A March 2023 USNI report says that the US Navy estimates it will take five years for Electric Boat and Newport News to be able to regularly deliver two Virginia-class attack boats a year, with the two shipyards currently on pace to produce about 1.2 submarines a year.
Submarine maintenance underscores the production challenge. USNI noted in a September 2022 report that less than a third of the US Navy’s SSNs completed maintenance on schedule in the last ten years.
The report also said that the earliest Virginia-class submarines are the most difficult to repair on time, with the class returning to operations almost nine months later than expected. In comparison, the report says the Los Angeles-class submarines take four and a half months to complete repairs.
At the same time, China is making steady quality and quantity strides in its submarine program. Currently, the US Navy has 71 submarines, an all-nuclear-powered fleet of 53 SSNs, 14 SSBNs, and four SSGNs. In comparison, as of March 2023, China had 56 submarines with 6 SSNs, 6 SSBNs and 44 conventional attack submarines (SSKs).
Last month, a US Congressional Research Service (CRS) report noted that China is upgrading its submarine fleet with newer designs including the Type 095 cruise missile submarine (SSGN) and the Type 096 SSBN. Both are reportedly approaching Russia’s Improved Akula I class SSN in propulsion, quieting, sensors and weapons capabilities.
The CRS report notes that improved cooperation with Russia could benefit China’s efforts to modernize and improve its submarine force, including known weaknesses in propulsion and noise reduction.
The Warzone reported in July that the US Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) has highlighted a significant gap in US and Chinese shipbuilding, with a recent briefing slide showing China’s capacity for producing surface warships and submarines is currently 200 times greater than the US’s.
According to the ONI slide’s estimates, the gap between China and the US will widen significantly by 2035.