1998 Army Science and Technology Master Plan 1998 Army Science and Technology Master PlanThe manufacturing science and technology (MS&T) area focuses on technologies that will enable the industrial base to produce reliable and affordable materiel for the soldier, with enhanced performance parameters, and in a reduced cycle time. The technologies in MS&T include processing and fabrication, manufacturing engineering, production management, design engineering, enterprise integration, IPPD, and flexible manufacturing systems capable of addressing both high and low volume dual–use production. The interrelationships among all these technologies are illustrated in Figure IV–20. MS&T addresses the needs of the soldier by deriving requirements from three thrusts: acquisition and sustainment driven needs, pervasive industrial base needs, and S&T needs and opportunities. Potential projects based on these needs are prioritized according to their relevance to TRADOC FOCs and their significance to the successful attainment of ATD and Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD) objectives.
Figure IV-20. Relationships Among Integrated Product/Process Design Tools
and Flexible Manufacturing Systems
Click on the image to view enlarged version
The MS&T program’s three subareas are:
•
Advanced processing of metals, composites, and electronics with emphasis on the development and validation of new manufacturing processes for defense–essential materials, components, and systems. Project technologies include validated process models, embedded sensors and adaptive control systems for composites and electronics manufacturing, improved composites airframe manufacturing for advanced helicopters, improved manufacturing and testing for advanced cooled and uncooled FLIR sensors, computer automated manufacturing for precision optics, manufacturing of advanced battery technology, flexible manufacturing for MMW transceivers, flexible manufacturing of missile seekers and assemblies, flexible manufacturing of munitions and munition components such as propellants, explosives, sensors, fuzing, and agile production control.•
Manufacturing engineering support tools that encompass manufacturing technologies such as CAD, CAE, and computer–aided manufacturing (CAM); AI tools for a broad range of manufacturing processes; design and analysis tools for assessing product producibility and manufacturability; rapid prototyping; control and interface research for component modeling, and system integration and information infrastructure; industrial base modeling and production allocation for management of coordinated supply chain and surge production. This subarea focuses on developing tools for early involvement of the manufacturing discipline in the requirements and design process of new technologies.•
Advanced manufacturing demonstrations for the application of worldclass best manufacturing practices and procedures in a factory environment. These demonstrations are usually large scale, include the pertinent aspects of the enterprise, have specific goals, and are performed over a 2– to 4–year time period.Defense acquisition strategies reflect a significant reduction in weapon system development and production programs. The emphasis within DoD and the Army continues to be on upgrading and modifying existing systems while continuing to support the underlying doctrine of developing technologically superior weapon systems. This environment requires new processing and fabrication technologies and new manufacturing attributes (flexible, lean, agile) in order to economically produce a wide variety of products in lower volumes. Army MS&T must develop and adapt the technologies required to make weapon systems affordable both during materiel production and over the system life cycle.
a. Advanced Processing
Goals and Timeframes
The advanced processing subarea focuses on processing S&T that will lead to the production of affordable components with consistent and reliable properties. Emphasis is on process maturation and the development of technologies that can be implemented to control manufacturing processes.
The Army is focusing on the following advanced processing technology efforts:
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Develop manufacturing processes for second–generation IRFPAs/dewar/cooler assemblies (FY98) that provide technology capability for the Air/Land Enhanced Reconnaissance and Targeting (ALERT) ATD, Target Acquisition ATD, Hunter Sensor Suite ATD, and Rotorcraft Pilot’s Associate ATD.Other pervasive efforts include:
•
Demonstrate integrated workcells for missile and munition seeker assemblies with associated process control systems (FY99).Major Technical Challenges
The major technical challenges for improving processing and manufacturing technologies include increasing performance while decreasing size, weight, and life–cycle cost.
Specific challenges include:
•
Implement in–process controls and improved manufacturing techniques that will reduce dependence on highly skilled labor, increase yields, and increase throughput for tri–service, second–generation, standard advanced IRFPAs/dewars/coolers assemblies.b. Manufacturing Engineering Support Tools
Goals and Timeframes
Manufacturing engineering support tools are essential to improve design, process analysis, prototyping, and inspection processes for manufacturing components and systems. Current Army efforts include developing production engineering tools that will assess product producibility and manufacturability based upon analysis of CAD drawings (FY99), integrating a rapid prototyping system with production engineering tools to reduce product development time (FY00), and developing advanced integrated manufacturing for missile seekers and munitions (far term).
Major Technical Challenges
Challenges for developing manufacturing engineering support tools include the development of design and analysis tools for assessing product producibility and manufacturability; developing rapid prototyping tools, and advancing manufacturing technologies such as CAD/CAM/CAE and inspection. Some specific challenges are:
•
Software environments capable of automatically transferring CAD drawings to machine shops and controlling the required equipment to produce a desired part.c. Advanced Manufacturing Demonstrations
Goals and Timeframes
The advanced manufacturing demonstrations incorporate best manufacturing practices and integrated product and process development to merge innovative concepts and manufacturing technology into a system–level approach to integrated manufacturing. Army MS&T is currently conducting an industrial base pilot demonstration using the Longbow Apache fire–control–mast–mounted assembly as the demonstration article (FY98). A demonstration is planned using a missile IPPD to develop processing technology and producibility strategies during the earliest stages of production development (FY99). This latter activity is supportive of the EFOGM ATD, and the PGMM, Rapid Force Projection Initiative (RFPI), and Precision/Rapid Counter–Multiple Rocket Launcher (MRL) ACTDs. A planned demonstration pilot for MMW missile seekers (FY99) will provide for affordable/flexible manufacturing and design of these missile components.
Major Technical Challenges
The results and observations of industrial pilots indicate that implementation of enhanced business practices combined with technology insertion can significantly reduce cost, increase product quality, and ultimately develop the capability to produce a product in a lot size of one. The major challenges associated with advanced industrial practices include identifying, adapting, and implementing best manufacturing practices; identifying and implementing the appropriate tools for IPPD, and incorporating the changes into an enterprise’s culture.
The roadmap of technology objectives for Manufacturing Science and Technology is shown in Table IV–40.
Table IV–40. Technical Objectives for Manufacturing Science and Technology |
|||
Technology Subarea |
Near Term FY98–99 |
Mid Term FY00–04 |
Far Term FY05–13 |
| Advanced Processing | Reduce the cost
of tri–service second–generation standard IRFPA/dewar/cooler assembly by 30% and
implement in Army and DoD systems Reduce 20% manufacturing cost of precision gear by improving grinding, and deburring, inspection processes Increase manufacturing process yield 50% for fiber–optic cables and harnesses Reduce optical components cost u20% for spherical lensesUse resin transfer molding for advanced airframe structures Develop noncontact, nondestructive test method to permit 100% evaluation of detector elements in FPAs Develop processes for 60% reduction in machining for beryllium aluminum components Twin screw processing of energetic materials Process scales up of CBD enzymes and antibodies Reduce testing time 75% for flexible static blade balancing technique for helicopter main rotorblades Demonstrate bidirectional through–wafer optical interconnects for advanced missile processors |
Center for
Electronic Manufacturing for supporting current and future changes in defense and
commercial industrial base Advanced nonmetallic rechargeable batteries Smart microdevice for application on ultra–compact antenna technology and system integration for rotorcraft and helicopters Safe, environmentally acceptable, agile manufacturing technologies for propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics that provide the flexibility to meet future production needs Develop real–time controlled welding process to reduce weld time by 50% for complex engine components Develop manufacturing processes for uncooled thermal imaging processors and advanced FPAs Fabricate advanced optical components such as aspherical lenses at u20% cost reductionEliminate manual tooling fabrication for optics production Reduce thick composites fabrication cost for armored vehicles by 30% and labor by 50% using integrated process development Develop real–time processing tool to provide flow modeling database for highly reinforced composite materials Reduce the cost of biological stimulants Enhance manufacturing processes for photonics Lower missile seeker manufacturing costs by u30%Develop optimal machining and heat treat distortion processes for high performance gear materials Increase blade life 5% by developing helicopter integrated manufacturing for applying abradable shroud and abrasive blade coating Reduce cost of compressor impellers by 50% through improved tooling/processing for high rate compressor manufacturing |
Reduce 50% cost
of aircraft transmission capability to produce them from thermoplastic materials Reduce the cost of propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics by at least 25% Develop manufacturing processes for monolithic, multifunction, multispectral advanced FPA sensor systems, multispectral staring FPA sensor systems, and on–chip massive optical parallel processors Develop advanced tooling for cylindrical and toroidal lenses Demonstrate an image control/neural network system to facilitate automated inspection of electronic modules Establish COE for biotechnology |
| Manufacturing Engineering Support Tools | Improve producibility of early designs using quick–turnaround cell software | Develop enterprise metadatabase that puts information in a global form available to local shells | Develop advanced integrated manufacturing technologies (to include desktop tools and virtual factories) using integrated product development for the missile and munitions sector |
| Advanced Manufacturing Demonstrations | Reduce costs with
a 15% weight reduction using integrated composite manufacturing for advanced aircraft Demonstration pilot for MMW seekers for 40% reduction in concept to hardware cycle time |
Affordable manufacturing of rotorcraft systems through the use of turboshaft engine and rotorcraft airframe pilots | Battlefield Manufacturing Center (BMC) demonstration is planned |
The influence of this technology area on TRADOC FOCs is summarized in Table IV–41.
Table IV–41. Manufacturing Science and Technology Linkages to Future Operational Capabilities |
|
Technology Subarea |
Integrated and Branch/Functional Unique Future Operational Capabilities |
| Advanced Processing | TR 97–001
Command and Control TR 97–007 Battlefield Information Passage TR 97–010 Tactical Communications TR 97–012 Information Systems TR 97–020 Information Collection, Dissemination, and Analysis TR 97–021 Real–Time Target Acquisition, Identification, and Dissemination TR 97–022 Mobility—Combat Mounted TR 97–023 Mobility—Combat Dismounted TR 97–027 Navigation TR 97–029 Sustainment TR 97–037 Combat Vehicle Propulsion TR 97–040 Firepower Lethality TR 97–043 Survivability—Materiel TR 97–044 Survivability—Personnel TR 97–057 Modeling and Simulation |
| Manufacturing Engineering Support Tools | TR 97–016
Information Analysis TR 97–022 Mobility—Combat Mounted TR 97–037 Combat Vehicle Propulsion TR 97–040 Firepower Lethality TR 97–057 Modeling and Simulation |
| Advanced Manufacturing Demonstrations | TR 97–021
Real–Time Target Acquisition, Identification, and Dissemination TR 97–022 Mobility—Combat Mounted TR 97–024 Combat Support/Combat Service Support Mobility |
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