Thea Loise Woodward
The U.S. Naval Academy Foundation has secured a $150,000 grant from Northrop Grumman to further develop a 3D printing laboratory at the school and support advanced manufacturing research by students. Northrop said Thursday that the funds will help the academy establish the USNA MakerSpace facility for students and faculty members who work on engineering projects.
USNA will use the money to also assist capstone projects that align with the company’s additive manufacturing efforts such as programs to build a satellite component for NASA and redesign a load-carrying equipment pack for the U.S. Marine Corps.
“Investing in educational programs like this helps to develop critical manufacturing capability in future military leaders and further strengthens our important partnership with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps,” said Larry Ferranto, vice president of manufacturing at Northrop.
Ferranto added that additive manufacturing approaches facilitate the development of new materials and platforms intended to help warfighters confront emerging threats in combat missions.
