Sailors learned how to use additive manufacturing or 3D printing equipment with the help of Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Crane Division.
Steven Seghi and Eric St. Ours, engineers at NSWC Crane, stayed at the USS Boxer amphibious assault ship for two weeks to help onboard sailors gain oh-hand experience with AM technology, Naval Sea Systems Command said Thursday.
“We provided AM and Computer Aided Design (CAD) training, which provided the sailors with the skills and best practices required to design and print needed parts onboard ship,” St. Ours said.
Sailors demonstrated their learnings by producing a 3D printed small plastic closure found in washing machines. The training effort made use of funds allotted for Naval Innovative Science and Engineering.
The Navy began installing AM systems aboard ships in 2018, and ended up having the technology on eight vessels in 2020.
