America Makes and the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining (NCDMM) have announced a new open project call funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office (OSD ManTech) worth a total of $5M. The request for proposals (RFP), titled “Quality Test and Inspection Methods Expediency (QTIME),” focuses on the use of non-destructive inspection (NDI) techniques for additive manufacturing (AM) processes, specifically laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and directed energy deposition (DED).

Rapid, cost-effective methods for inspection and qualification of large, complex AM parts are critically needed. By leveraging advanced analytics and automated inspection hardware and software, manufacturers can reduce production costs, shorten lead times, and boost confidence in part performance. The project aims to explore both in-situ and ex-situ NDI applications.

The QTIME RFP is separated into three topic areas.

  • Topic 1 – Rapid, Cost-effective Methods for Non-destructive Inspection of Large AM Parts: Discover new methods to non-destructively inspect large area AM parts. Successful ideas will reduce the NDI costs by more than 50% over currently available technologies. Materials of interest are those commonly found in LBPF/DED parts, such as Ti 6Al-4V, Inconel 718, and Stainless Steels.
  • Topic 2 – Rapid, Cost-effective Methods for Inspection and Qualification of Complex AM Parts: This topic targets parts with complex, repeating geometries – such as LPBF lattice structures – featuring small internal features typically under 5–10 mm, for which no robust inspection method currently exists. The goal is to advance in-situ geometric validation at these scales and translate that data into mechanical deformation models capable of identifying and accounting for missing or poorly formed features to enable worst-case deformation predictions.
  • Topic 3 – Industry Transition Team (ITT): This topic aims to accelerate the adoption, transition, and implementation of monitoring and inspection methods for additive manufacturing. Currently, there are no widely adopted AM-specific NDE standards with defined acceptance criteria. The ITT will act as a critical conduit connecting active America Makes projects, external resources, standards, and end-use industry needs to identify, translate, and scale inspection and monitoring practices for industrial implementation.

The proposed projects should apply to Technology Readiness Level 4-7 and Manufacturing Readiness Level 4-7 at the onset of the proposed project. Up to five awards are anticipated.

Important Dates:

  • A Kickoff Webinar for interested participants is scheduled for May 8, 2025, for which registration is required.
  • Questions from potential submitters are due May 15, 2025.
  • The lead proposer must be an America Makes member in good standing and paid in full by June 17, 2025.
  • The proposal submission due date is June 30, 2025, by 5 pm EDT.

For more information and to submit proposals, visit: https://www.americamakes.us/project_calls/quality-test-and-inspection-methods-expediency-qtime/.