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CMTC receives Defense ManTech Achievement Award
By Shelia Watson
Contributing Writer
The Composites Manufacturing Technology Center has been named a co-recipient of the 2005 Defense Manufacturing Technology Achievement Award given by the U.S. Office of Naval Research at the Defense Manufacturer’s Association conference recently held in Orlando.
The ManTech Achievement Award specifically recognizes the composite-to-steel joint development for DD(X), the next-generation Navy destroyer.
The award, established in 1999, distinguishes teams dedicated to advancing the nation’s defense with innovative and affordable technology.
The new Navy ship features an all-composite deckhouse joined to a steel hull. The bonded joint technology developed for the DD(X) significantly improves performance and increases survivability while reducing in-service maintenance expense.
The joint is 40% lighter in weight and 50% less expensive to produce than existing configurations.
“The adhesive bonding technology that was developed by the Applied Research and Development Institute and its consortium will enable the top deck section of the ship to be attached to the steel hull without bolting,” said Henry Watson, vice president of the South Carolina Research Authority and director of ARDI.
“This eliminates the extra cost of drilling the holes and bolting. It also eliminates a lot of additional weight and improves the ‘stealthiness’ of the vessel.”
The DD(X) ManTech project team was led by two Navy Centers of Excellence: the Navy Joining Center, managed by the Edison Welding Institute, and the Composites Manufacturing Technology Center, managed by ARDI, one of the business units of the SCRA.
The ARDI manages the development and implementation of innovative solutions for materials, applications and technology transfers between industries, universities and government agencies. The organization was established as an operational unit of the SCRA in October 2000 with the goal of developing a diverse portfolio of programs through the private industry sector, the Department of Defense and other governmental agencies.
The ARDI has established formal affiliation agreements with Clemson University and the U.S. Navy’s Best Practices Center of Excellence. These agreements are in place to help meet the needs of industries and the DOD.
“A major objective of all of our projects is to improve performance and lower cost,” Watson said.
The CMTC is the ARDI’s primary focus of composites technology development for the SCRA and is supported by the Composites Consortium, an industry-focused team of prime contractors for weapons systems, composites industry suppliers, universities and institutes.
Working as the Navy’s partner with a shared goal of war-fighter support, CMTC’s portfolio of composites manufacturing technology projects includes the transition of technologies to multiple platforms, such as the DD(X) next generation surface ship and aircraft carrier, unmanned aircraft, littoral combat ships, an expeditionary fighting vehicle, an advanced SEAL delivery system and others.
The CMTC recently was awarded a five-year, $150 million contract from the Office of Naval Research. The competitive bid was won from the incumbent, the Great Lakes Composite Center.
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