New Mexico universities unite in $7 million project to develop automated additive manufacturing

A $7 million collaborative research grant will unite four universities in New Mexico to research and develop intelligent additive manufacturing in a project titled "Research Center for Distributed Resilient and Emergent-Intelligence-Based Additive Manufacturing (DREAM)."

The DREAM Center is funded by the National Science Foundation Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) and includes The University of New Mexico, Navajo Technical University, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology and will be led by New Mexico State University (NMSU). The universities will work to advance automated 3D printing technology and cyber security. UNM will receive $2 million for the project.

"The nature of the technology is such that it can operate quite remotely and independently, quite autonomously. If you were to be in a rural or less populated part of the state and you wanted to place a facility there, now you can do that," Michael Devetsikiotis, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, said.

Devetsikiotis and Assistant Professor Xiang Sun in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering are co-principal investigators on the project and will lead the DREAM Center's explorations of enhanced cybersecurity. Devetsikiotis is especially excited to work with Navajo Technical University, which has large additive manufacturing facilities capable of printing metallic machinery like pieces of rockets and cars. Investigators hope the research can unlock a new economic development opportunity for less populated parts of the state. Such technology could also help New Mexico become a larger player in the space tech manufacturing industry.

"This collaborative project is significant as it establishes a robust distributed intelligent additive

manufacturing infrastructure in New Mexico, integrating AI/ML and advanced wireless networks to optimize manufacturing processes. By positioning the state as a competitive player in the $13 trillion global manufacturing sector, the project fosters a diverse, well-trained workforce and addresses critical challenges in machine learning, wireless communications, security, and verifiability," Sun said. "This approach not only enhances local economic development but also democratizes access to advanced manufacturing, bridging the urban-rural gap and serving as a model for similar efforts worldwide."

UNM researchers and Satyajayant "Jay" Misra, DREAM Center primary investigator and associate dean of research and professor in the NMSU College of Engineering, have collaborated on similar projects in the past.

"There is a very positive history of the schools working together," Devetsikiotis said. "At the end of last year we finished another five-year collaboration funded by NSF EPSCoR focused on renewable energy and smart grid systems."

During the four-year project, each university will focus on different elements of advancing automated additive manufacturing. The UNM team will work on developing new architecture for connecting the manufacturing systems remotely with a focus on cyber security, resilience and speed. NMSU will work on networking and connectivity, New Mexico Tech will explore the cyber elements of the project and Navajo Technical University will implement much of the hands-on manufacturing infrastructure.

The project also includes workforce development and education initiatives. The DREAM Center will establish college-level credentials on security and the internet of things. It will also provide training to K-12 teachers, with a focus on more rural parts of the state, to help create a job pipeline.

The NSF EPSCoR Program aims to promote research competitiveness of specific states through investments in long-term federally funded projects centered around STEM research and workforce development at the state's research universities. New Mexico EPSCoR'smission is to build the state's capacity to conduct scientific research while cultivating a diverse, well-qualified STEM workforce.

Top image: The DREAM Center team met at New Mexico State University earlier this month to kick-off their research grant. Photo by Brittney Van Der Werff, communication and outreach manager for New Mexico EPSCoR.