The Army secretary is ordering the service to step up its manufacturing game to keep from 'falling behind' rivals Russia and China

US Army Watervliet Arsenal/John Snyder

A 120 mm tank barrel is heated to nearly 2,000 degrees just prior to moving to the rotary forge.

• Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy has issued a new policy aimed at transforming Army manufacturing by using advanced technology and materials.
• "Advanced manufacturing will fundamentally change the way the Army designs, delivers, produces, and sustains materiel capabilities," McCarthy said. "It will enable the Army to modernize systems while simultaneously enhancing readiness."
• The Army has yet to issue implementation guidance, but this is expected to be a service-wide initiative that will also involve coordination and cooperation across the Department of Defense, industry, and academia.
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Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy has issued a new policy on advanced manufacturing, an effort to keep the service from "falling behind" near-peer rivals, the Army has revealed.

"Technology is evolving rapidly and manufacturing techniques are transforming," the Army explained in a policy fact sheet provided to Business Insider. "Near-peer adversaries are heavily investing in research and development of advanced manufacturing."

"The Army is falling behind," the service said.

The secretary sent out a policy directive on advanced manufacturing in mid-September, explaining that "advanced manufacturing will fundamentally change the way the Army designs, delivers, produces, and sustains materiel capabilities. It will enable the Army to modernize systems while simultaneously enhancing readiness."

The Army's new policy, an effort to realize certain top Army priorities such as readiness, modernization, and maintaining overmatch in a time of renewed great power competition with rival countries like China and Russia, "will help the Army secure a competitive edge against near-peer adversaries," the Army said in a statement Friday.

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Ryan McCarthy, then-nominee for Secretary of the US Army, at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, September 12, 2019.

The service is looking at using new technology, such as robotics, artificial intelligence, sensors, digital networks, advanced materials, and 3D printing, among other things, to find new ways to produce products.

The Army aims to overcome the limitations of traditional manufacturing for improved product performance through the use of optimized designs with advanced materials that are both lighter and stronger and accelerated innovation through rapid prototyping.

In his September policy memorandum, McCarthy suggested that the Army work to transform industrial operations to not only increase efficiency and effectiveness but also achieve improved quality control, predictive maintenance, and automated supply management. Beyond the industrial base, he also sees this approach changing battlefield logistics with the possibility of on-demand fabrication of necessary products.

This is a service-wide initiative with a key focal point being the relatively new Army Futures Command, a four-star command dedicated to the quick development of future war-fighting technology, such as next-generation combat vehicles and long-range precision fires systems.

The secretary of the Army has directed Army Futures Command to "establish and maintain collaborations within the defense industrial base, DoD engineering laboratories and centers, academia, and industry to ensure the integration of best practices in manufacturing."

As is, these types of connections have been of critical importance to the command.

For the time being, this is a preliminary policy announcement.

"We expect implementing guidance in the upcoming months," an Army spokesman told Business Insider on Friday. "The policy is the first step."