The largest specialist event of its kind, AMA: Aerospace, Space and Defense, returns on July 9th. Additive manufacturing in aerospace and defense has entered a more demanding phase. The question is no longer whether metal AM, wire arc additive manufacturing, electron beam powder bed fusion, or advanced materials can produce impressive parts. The harder question is whether these technologies can be qualified, repeated, certified, scaled, and deployed where they matter most: in propulsion systems, aircraft structures, defense supply chains, tactical environments, and mission-critical production programs.
The 2026 edition of 3D Printing Industry’s Additive Manufacturing Advantage: Aerospace, Space and Defense (AMAA 2026) brings together a speaker line-up that reflects this shift from possibility to industrial execution. Presentations will examine modernizing metal AM qualification, tungsten and niobium alloys for high-temperature applications, additive manufacturing machine and material qualification, the role of WAAM in defense autonomy, and the challenge of moving from prototype to mission readiness.
AMAA 2026 takes place online on July 9th. Register for free here.
Speakers include Paul Gradl of NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Cooper Keller of Divergent Technologies, Harshil Goel of Dyndrite, Bahar Fayyazi of TANIOBIS, Gijs van der Velden of MX3D, Jonathan Buckley of JEOL USA, Ben DiMarco of America Makes, Michelle Sidwell of Velo3D, Hugo Sistach of Safran, Karl Littau of Sakuu, Ryan Kirby of Alderman & Company, Alison Wyrick of Outlook Lab, Randy Emert of the Civil Military Innovation Institute, James Ashby of Addlab, Julian Wright of Theta Technologies, and Fabio Sant’Ana of Farcco.
Across the program, a consistent theme emerges: aerospace and defense adoption is now being shaped by evidence, standards, qualification pathways, and operational readiness. NASA will discuss additive manufacturing material readiness and continued work to advance AM for spaceflight applications. Safran will address machine qualification and part certification strategy for aeronautics. America Makes will examine Project AMSCALE and the challenge of unlocking AM qualification at scale. JEOL USA will bring expertise in electron beam powder bed fusion, while TANIOBIS will focus on refractory materials, including tungsten and niobium alloys for high-temperature applications in space.
The agenda also extends beyond conventional AM production. MX3D will explore how WAAM can support strategic autonomy in defense. CMI2 will discuss soldier-led innovation and the transition of ideas from the lab to the tactical edge. Divergent will share lessons from scaling additive manufacturing for aerospace and defense customers, where the real test is not printing a part once, but producing the same part repeatedly, at quality, and at scale. Sakuu will address battery safety and manufacturing for eVTOL applications, including polymeric current collectors designed to reduce thermal runaway risk, weight, and cost.
We are grateful for the support of Dyndrite Corporation, Sinterit, TANIOBIS GmbH, MX3D, and JEOL USA as AMAA 2026 event sponsors.
AMUG is the industry partner for 3DPI’s Additive Manufacturing Advantage event series – continue the AMA conversation at the AMUG Conference.
Paul Gradl, Principal Engineer, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
Dr. Paul Gradl, a principal engineer at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, leads projects in additive manufacturing for liquid rocket engines and has supported development and flight programs for over 22+ years. He has authored 150+ papers, published a book titled Metal Additive Manufacturing for Propulsion Applications (2022), holds five patents, and awarded NASA’s 2024 and 2025 Patent of the Year. An AIAA Associate Fellow, SME member, and advisor to industry, he has earned numerous awards, including AIAA’s 2022 Engineer of the Year and SME’s 2024 Additive Industry Achievement Award. Gradl was named among 3Dnatives’ “Most Influential Personalities of Additive Manufacturing” in 2020.
Cooper Keller, Chief Operations Officer, Divergent Technologies, Inc
Cooper Keller is the Chief Operating Officer at Divergent, where he leads customer-focused application development across the automotive, aerospace, and defense sectors, overseeing operations, engineering, supply chain, quality assurance, and production for the Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS™)—an advanced manufacturing platform combining AI, supercomputing, additive manufacturing, and robotics. Over nearly a decade at Divergent, Cooper has helped drive several industry-first innovations, including the world’s first fully 3D-printed safety-critical chassis structure for the Aston Martin DBR22, the first fully 3D-printed aircraft fuselage in partnership with General Atomics, and the chassis for the Czinger 21C hypercar. Prior to Divergent, he led development programs at Eaton Corporation spanning automotive, aerospace, and defense technologies, and he holds degrees from Dartmouth College and St. Lawrence University.
Harshil Goel, Founder and CEO, Dyndrite Corporation
Harshil Goel is the Founder and CEO of Dyndrite, a Gradient Ventures (Google) backed software company transforming digital manufacturing through advanced computation. A mathematician, engineer, and inventor with degrees in Pure Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley, Goel founded Dyndrite to modernize how geometry is created, processed, and communicated across engineering and manufacturing workflows.
Bahar Fayyazi, Product Manager, TANIOBIS GmbH
Bahar Fayyazi is the product manager of powders for additive manufacturing at Taniobis GmbH. She holds a PhD in Materials Science from the Technical University of Darmstadt in Germany, with a specialization in powder metallurgy. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to advancing the development of high-quality refractory metal and alloy powders. Additionally, she actively explores and pioneers new opportunities for business growth in diverse application fields for these materials.
Gijs Van der Velden, MX3D
Gijs van der Velden is the CEO and co-founder of MX3D, a Dutch company known for large-scale robotic 3D metal printing in the Defence industry.
Jonathan Buckley, AM Applications Engineer, JEOL USA
Jonathan Buckley is an AM applications engineer for JEOL USA, supporting JEOL’s additive manufacturing division. He has worked in the additive manufacturing industry for the past 10 years, primarily supporting electron beam powder bed fusion technologies. Buckley has experience both from supporting an EB-PBF machine manufacturer and from utilizing EB-PBF technology at an AM contract manufacturer focused on the production of additively manufactured orthopedic implants. He actively engages with the AM community through technical outreach including webinars, trade shows and industry events to educate peers on the advantages and applications of EB-PBF.
Ben DiMarco, Technology Transition Director, America Makes
Ben DiMarco is the Technology Transition Director at America Makes, where he leads efforts to industrialize additive manufacturing (AM) with a focus on DoD and industry applications. With over 15 years in advanced manufacturing, he works to accelerate the advancement and adoption of AM to enhance defense readiness and sustainment. Previously, Ben was the Additive Manufacturing Technology Leader at Ohio State’s CDME, overseeing $3M+ in research and expanding the lab’s metal AM capabilities from five to 14 printers. Before that, he spent nine years at Honda R&D Americas, where he established Honda’s first U.S.-based metal AM facility and developed laser powder bed fusion strategies for nickel superalloys.
A user of additive manufacturing since 2009, Ben holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, a M.S. focused on Additive Manufacturing, and finishing his Ph.D. in Manufacturing Engineering at night (expected 2026) from Ohio State.
Michelle Sidwell, Chief Revenue Officer, Velo3D
Michelle Sidwell is the Chief Revenue Officer at Velo3D, where she leads global revenue strategy for the company’s fully integrated metal 3D printing solutions serving the aerospace, defense, and energy industries. With over two decades of experience scaling high-growth companies, Michelle has held senior leadership roles at Salesloft, Adobe, Yext, and Persado, where she consistently drove outsized results, including doubling revenue, growing ARR by 10X, and earning multiple honors. Her expertise spans enterprise sales, go-to-market strategy, customer success, and marketing, with a proven ability to build and align cross-functional teams around a customer-centric approach.
Hugo Sistach, Additive Manufacturing Materials and Processes expert, Safran
Initially an engineer trained at ENSEM – INPL (France, Nancy) in 2013, specialized in mechanics with an international exchange program at Polytechnique Montréal (Canada, Montréal) to be specialized on aeronautic.
Design office engineer at Airbus Helicopters (ex-Eurocopter, France, Marignane) on Marignane from 2013 to 2014, in charge of the engine installation and fuel systems design and methods for helicopters with some works on metal Additive Manufacturing.
Additive Manufacturing (AM) and Metal Injection Molding (MIM) Materials and Processes engineer from 2014 to 2017, specialist from 2017 to 2021, and expert since 2021, at Safran Aircraft Engines, to develop and support the industrialization of these processes.
EASA delegated Compliance Verification Engineer (CVE) for metal M&P for Safran Aircraft Engines since 2020. Nadcap AM Task group member for Safran since 2023. Safran coordinator of metal AM/MIM M&P group since 2023. Safran Aicraft Engines, coordinator of the processes engineering group.
Karl Littau, Chief Technology Officer, Sakuu
Sakuu CTO Karl Littau, PhD, possesses rare expertise at the confluence of chemical and materials science application — and core manufacturing industry insight — that makes him uniquely well-suited for his role at Sakuu enabling battery manufacturing innovation at commercial scale. Dr. Littau received his BS in Chemistry at UC Berkeley and his PhD in Physical Chemistry at Stanford. His previous professional experience includes work on film and vacuum technology at Applied Materials, additive manufacturing and printed electronics at Xerox PARC, solid state lithium batteries at Intermolecular, and innovation in significant materials science pathfinding and manufacturing technologies throughout his career.
Ryan Kirby, Partner, Alderman & Company
Ryan Kirby is a Partner at Alderman & Company, where he advises aerospace and defense companies on middle-market sell-side mergers & acquisitions, valuations, and sale preparation. He has led and supported engagements across the aerospace and national security sectors.
Ryan serves on the Emerging Professionals Board of Vertical Aviation International and the Young Alumni Board of the O’Malley College of Business at Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University.
He has been quoted as an industry expert by Aviation Business News, Octus, Homeland Security ScaleUp (FedTech), VERTICON, T-Minus Space Daily, and other industry organizations and media.
Ryan holds his Securities Industry Essentials, Series 63, and Series 79 FINRA certifications.
Ryan completed his BS in Business Administration, concentrating in Accounting and Finance at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. He went on to complete his MBA at Embry Riddle, concentrating in Finance, graduating summa cum laude.
Alison Wyrick, Founder, Managing Director, Outlook Lab
To summarize my core strength: Strategic synthesis. Someone who can take tech, policy, behavioral science, communications, and commercial strategy and make them talk to each other in a way that moves people and organizations forward.
I have led multi-billion-dollar strategic initiatives while maintaining entrepreneurial agility and rapid execution. I consistently deliver by identifying high-value opportunities and building the frameworks needed to capture them.
Randy Emert, DIRT Lab Manager, Civil Military Innovation Institute (CMI2)
Randy Emert is the Design, Innovation, Research, and Technology (DIRT) Lab Manager for the Civil Military Innovation Institute at Fort Stewart, Georgia, Marne Innovation Center, which supports the US Army DEVCOM Pathfinder program.
Since May of 2022, Randy has worked closely with the 3rd Infantry Division Innovation Team to stand up a makerspace that develops Soldier ideas. Projects are spread across the division and Army-wide. This work involves close interaction with Allied Trades Soldiers to transition long lead parts directly to the tactical edge in the Metal Working Machine Shop Set.
Randy brings 30 years of engineering design and manufacturing experience from industry as well as academia to this role. In industry, he worked with truck chassis, pistons for diesel engines, street sweepers, and turbines. In academia, he founded and directed the Kennesaw State University 3D Center and developed a university-wide 3D printing network that reached multiple colleges and campuses.
James Ashby, Additive Business Development Manager, Addlab – part of Koso Kent Introl
I describe myself as a Rolls-Royce-trained ‘dirty fingernail’ engineer.
Experienced in the practical application of additive technologies (polymer and metals) into industries including Automotive (race, niche vehicles, F1 and mass-market), Medical (prosthetics and orthotics), Military (Land, Sea and Air), Consumer goods, and Research.
Mainly interested in the real-world application of Additive for process simplification and simplification, tooling, lightweighting, cost reduction, and speed.
Julian Wright, IP Officer, Theta Technologies
Julian is IP Officer at Theta Technologies, responsible for the generation and protection of IP and for liaison with ISO and ASTM Standards Committees. He is an acoustics engineer by education and training, and a Fellow of the [British] Institute of Acoustics and a Member of the British Institute of NDT.
Fabio Sant’Ana, Director, Farcco
Sant’Ana is a Brazilian specialist in Additive Manufacturing with over 15 years of experience in metal 3D printing, powder metallurgy, and advanced manufacturing systems. He currently serves as Sales & Applications Expert for the biggest AM suppliers, supporting the adoption of additive manufacturing technologies across Latin America. He plays a key role in standards development and regulatory advancement for additive manufacturing in Brazil, leading national initiatives under ABNT and contributing to international committees such as ASTM F42 and ISO/TC 261.
Fabio also collaborates with universities, research centers, and regulatory agencies like ANVISA, promoting safe and effective integration of additive manufacturing in the medical device industry. A passionate advocate for technological innovation and education, Fabio actively works to connect academia, industry, and government to strengthen Brazil’s position in the global additive manufacturing ecosystem.
Who should attend AMAA 2026?
AMAA 2026 is designed for engineers, executives, program managers, procurement leaders, and technical specialists working at the point where additive manufacturing must move from promising capability to dependable production infrastructure. It will be particularly relevant for aerospace, space, defense, eVTOL, and organizations evaluating metal AM, WAAM, EB-PBF, advanced alloys, qualification pathways, and distributed manufacturing models.
The event will also be valuable for OEMs, Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, contract manufacturers, materials companies, software developers, standards bodies, government agencies, research organizations, and investors seeking a clearer view of where additive manufacturing is becoming operationally significant. For those responsible for certification, sustainment, supply chain resilience, part qualification, or production scale-up, the programme offers direct insight from organisations already working through these challenges.
Whether the objective is to understand the latest qualification strategies, assess emerging materials, identify production partners, benchmark aerospace and defense adoption, or connect with the AM community, AMAA 2026 provides a focused forum for separating practical progress from technical noise.
Register online here.
Interested in speaking at future Additive Manufacturing Advantage events? Our call for speakers is open.
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