Dual-use and defense advanced manufacturing innovation hubs

(a) Establishment The Secretary of Defense shall establish one or more dual-use advanced manufacturing hubs that co-locate and share resources among public and private stakeholders from industry, academia, government, nongovernment agencies, and workforce and economic development resources. The hub or hubs should span the full spectrum of advanced manufacturing capabilities and cover the full development timeline between prototyping and fielding. (b) Requirements A hub established under subsection (a) shall— (1) utilize, to the maximum extent possible, the Department of Defense Manufacturing Innovation Institutes (MII) and encourage the MIIs to coordinate efforts in a joint manner; (2) provide shared advanced manufacturing infrastructure and equipment, such as high-speed metal printers and material testing laboratories; (3) establish a process to provide advanced manufacturing capability, including on shared classified space as needed; (4) utilize, to the maximum extent possible, the Defense Logistics Agency’s Joint Additive Manufacturing Model Exchange (JAMMEX) as a central data repository for technical data packages for advanced manufacturing; (5) build on the Defense Innovation Unit’s Blue Manufacturing Initiative and Blue Manufacturing Marketplace to match hardware and software manufacturers in defense technology with advanced manufacturing providers; and (6) meet annual production benchmarks for defense applications. (c) Consultation The Secretary shall consult with the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment in establishing a dual-use advanced manufacturing hub under subsection (a). (d) Recommendation Not later than September 30, 2026, the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees a recommendation for the appropriate number of regional hubs to be established under subsection (a) for the Department of Defense to meet its sustainment needs and such requirements, specifications, and capabilities as the regional hubs may require.