Australia’s sovereign submarine partner, ASC, and shipbuilder Austal have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on additive manufacturing (AM) technologies and workforce development, marking a significant step forward in strengthening Australia’s sovereign naval capability.
Signed at the 2025 Indo Pacific International Maritime Exposition in Sydney, the partnership will advance the use of cutting-edge 3D printing in shipbuilding and submarine sustainment, strengthening Australia’s domestic AM supply chain to support both the Collins Class and US-built Virginia Class submarines.
It will also support workforce development through training and upskilling in advanced manufacturing technologies.
ASC Chief Capability Officer Danielle Bull welcomed the partnership, and said it reflected the companies’ shared commitment to innovation and sovereign capability.
“Additive manufacturing offers transformative potential for Australia’s maritime industry — enabling faster production, improved part performance, and greater flexibility in shipbuilding, maintenance and sustainment,” Danielle said.
“At ASC, we are already investigating ways to further integrate AM into our sustainment operations. This partnership with Austal will accelerate our efforts to scale these capabilities and embed AM into the broader Australian supply chain, improving resilience, reducing lead times, and enhancing the performance and maintainability of critical components.”
Austal USA’s Advanced Technologies division has been at the forefront of AM adoption, operating the U.S. Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM CoE) in collaboration with BlueForge Alliance. The facility supports the qualification and scaling of AM parts for defence applications, including submarine platforms.
Austal Chief Technology Officer Glenn Callow highlighted Austal’s journey and approach to Additive Manufacturing.
“This partnership builds on our long-term investments into advanced manufacturing,” Glenn said.
“As early as 2020, Austal has worked with partners to align 3D printing technologies with the demands of its maritime customers. With this new partnership, we will continue efforts to uplift Australia’s shipbuilding and sustainment capability across the supply chain.”
Don Hairston, Austal USA’s Vice President for Submarines and Advanced Technologies said Austal USA was excited to embark on the collaboration.
“It represents a tremendous opportunity for the AM CoE to share the knowledge, capabilities, and experience – our collective ‘lessons learned’ – with Austal Australia, ASC, and their AM partners,” Don said.
“Together, we’re pushing the boundaries to build faster, more resilient worldwide supply chains for defence.”
The MoU aligns with broader defence initiatives to enhance sovereign capability and ensure Australia remains at the forefront of maritime innovation.
Editor’s notes:
About ASC:
ASC has proudly served as Australia’s submarine builder and sustainer for 40 years. ASC built Australia’s Collins Class submarines and now maintains and upgrades them, while providing in-operation service and support. In March 2024, ASC was selected as the Australian Government’s Sovereign Submarine Partner to sustain and, together with BAE Systems, jointly build conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines at Osborne, known as SSN AUKUS.
For more information: www.asc.com.au.
About Austal
Austal is Australia’s strategic shipbuilder and defence prime contractor designing, constructing and sustaining some of the world’s most advanced commercial and defence vessels. In its 37 years of operations, Austal has built more than 350 vessels for 122 commercial and defence operators in 59 countries. Austal is Australia’s largest defence exporter and first ASX-listed shipbuilder. The Company has industry-leading shipyards in Australia, the United States of America, Philippines and Vietnam, and service centres worldwide. Austal delivers iconic monohull, catamaran and trimaran commercial and defence vessel platforms, in aluminium and steel.
For more information: https://www.austal.com/.
Media contacts:
ASC
Damon Hunt
Mobile: +61 (0)409 079 887
Email: [email protected]
Austal
Cameron Morse
Mobile: +61 (0)433 886 871
Email: [email protected]