America Makes, the national additive manufacturing accelerator managed by the National Center for Defense Manufacturing and Machining, has launched a new project call called Quality Test and Inspection Methods Expediency (QTIME), offering up to $5 million in funding to advance non-destructive inspection (NDI) technologies for additive manufacturing (AM). Funded by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, Manufacturing Technology Office, the initiative seeks to enhance inspection methods for laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and directed energy deposition (DED) processes.
Announced on May 1, 2025, the open call targets mature, near-commercial NDI solutions suitable for real-world implementation. It focuses on both in-situ and ex-situ inspection of large or geometrically complex AM parts. Five awards are anticipated.
“Industry and government stakeholders have clearly identified the need for trusted, efficient inspection techniques to support additive manufacturing growth,” said Ben DiMarco, Technology Transition Director at America Makes. “The QTIME project call is an important first step (…) focusing not just on developing new methods, but validating and transitioning mature technologies that agencies like the Department of Defense, Federal Aviation Administration, and NASA can trust.”
Three targeted topic areas
The QTIME call is structured around three topic areas. The first focuses on developing rapid, cost-effective NDI techniques for large AM parts, aiming to cut inspection costs by over 50% for commonly used materials such as Ti 6Al-4V, Inconel 718, and stainless steels. The second addresses qualification of complex components, including LPBF lattice structures with internal features under 10 mm. Projects in this area are expected to advance in-situ geometric validation and link that data to predictive mechanical models. The third topic will form an Industry Transition Team (ITT) to accelerate the adoption of AM-specific inspection practices, bridge gaps in standardization, and scale up validated methods for industrial deployment.
Key dates include a kickoff webinar on May 8, 2025 (registration required), with proposer questions due by May 15. The membership eligibility deadline is June 17, and final proposals are due by 5:00 p.m. ET on June 30. Award announcements are expected on July 30, 2025.
Bridging AM’s quality assurance gap
Inspection and qualification remain pivotal challenges in scaling additive manufacturing for critical applications. Conventional tools often fall short when applied to large-format or intricate 3D printed components. The QTIME initiative reflects a broader effort by America Makes to accelerate the deployment of validated, application-specific inspection technologies across the AM supply chain.
Last year, America Makes announced the winners of a $6 million project call focused on advancing materials and process development for AM. Among the selected projects, RTX Technology Research Center led the “Inspection Using In-Situ Height Mapping Data” project to improve dimensional accuracy, while R3 Digital Sciences developed a framework integrating in-process monitoring with ex-situ inspection workflows.
Earlier in the year, the organization awarded $1.2 million across five proposals to address qualification challanges, data standards, and machine reliability. A separate $6.4 million project call launched in late 2023 emphasized sustainable additive manufacturing practices, reflecting the institute’s expanding focus on energy and environmental performance.
Through QTIME and similar initiatives, America Makes continues to lay the groundwork for a robust, scalable quality assurance framework for AM, enabling greater trust in part performance across aerospace, defense, and medical sectors.
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Featured image shows America Makes logo. Image via America Makes.
