New CNC machining and 3D printing capabilities aim to help drone manufacturers move from prototype to production faster As commercial and defense drone programs continue to expand, manufacturers face growing pressure to shorten development cycles while maintaining quality. Digital manufacturing company Protolabs (NYSE: PRLB) says it is responding by expanding its rapid … [Read more...] about As Drone Demand Grows, Protolabs Scales On-Demand Manufacturing
additive manufacturing
US Drone Makers Are Building a Different Kind of Factory
Additive Manufacturing Helps Build Flexibility, Scale, and Supply Chain Resilience At AUVSI’s XPONENTIAL 2026 conference in Detroit, one theme surfaced repeatedly across panels and interviews: the future of U.S. drone manufacturing may not look anything like the mass-production model pioneered in China. Instead of trying to recreate enormous factories optimized for millions … [Read more...] about US Drone Makers Are Building a Different Kind of Factory
Designing the Optimal Drone: How HP Additive Manufacturing Enables Speed, Scale, and Supply-Chain Flexibility
The drone industry is under pressure from multiple directions at once. Manufacturers are expected to move faster, iterate more often, scale production without overcommitting capital, and build supply chains that are easily identifiable, secure, and resilient. Increasingly, those pressures are forcing a rethink of how drones are designed and manufactured, not just how they … [Read more...] about Designing the Optimal Drone: How HP Additive Manufacturing Enables Speed, Scale, and Supply-Chain Flexibility
Building Smarter, Flying Further: How HP’s Additive Manufacturing Team Is Changing the Way Drones Are Made
As the U.S. and its allies race to secure their drone supply chains, a quiet revolution is happening inside HP’s additive manufacturing division. At the intersection of digital design, advanced materials, and scalable production, the team and some of their customers are convinced that 3D printing is no longer just a prototyping tool; it is a path to full-scale, flight-ready … [Read more...] about Building Smarter, Flying Further: How HP’s Additive Manufacturing Team Is Changing the Way Drones Are Made
DIU’s Blue Manufacturing Initiative: Powering U.S. Production Through Trusted Manufacturing
As DoD accelerates drone procurement, DIU’s vetted manufacturing marketplace bridges the gap between innovation and industrial scale. The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) has unveiled the Blue Manufacturing Initiative, aimed at forging direct links between defense technology developers and pre‑vetted, advanced manufacturing providers. According to DIU, the initiative "will focus … [Read more...] about DIU’s Blue Manufacturing Initiative: Powering U.S. Production Through Trusted Manufacturing
