ARL Recognized for Electronics Manufacturing Excellence with $50M Navy Award | So Good News

FREEPORT, Pa. — Penn State’s Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) has been designated a Navy ManTech Electronics Manufacturing Center of Excellence (EMC) by the US Navy Office of Naval Research (ONR). five years The $50 million award recognizes ARL as a Navy ManTech Center of Excellence, one of only seven in the nation, each focused on a specific competency.

Centers in the program are industrial; Serve as key points for the development and transformation of new manufacturing processes and equipment in a collaborative environment with academics and naval research. Each center must complete a rigorous proposal process and demonstrate quality standards that emphasize transitioning affordable technologies to the fleet. Receiving the designation of the Navy ManTech Center of Excellence demonstrates ARL’s technological excellence; It recognizes the expertise and experience of its principal investigators and its capabilities not only in the laboratory but also in the Penn State community.

EMC will leverage Penn State’s well-recognized electrical engineering expertise and knowledge base. [department] and affiliated colleges,” said Kenneth Freyvogel, EMC technical director. “These colleges have strong competencies in electromagnetics, electronics and devices, integrated circuits and systems, signal processing, and power and energy systems.”

The growth potential and diversity of future projects serve as strengths for ARL and the US Navy. ARL has a long-standing partnership with the Office of Naval Research, serving as a trusted agent and critical partner in the pursuit of national security missions. As part of its mission, EMC will develop naval platform-related manufacturing technologies and transition those technologies for implementation in electronics manufacturing and other industrial facilities.

Through cutting-edge technology and research, EMC helps reduce costs for naval platforms; It aims to build a wealth of organizational knowledge that will help accelerate the pace of the Navy’s transformation and improve overall operational efficiency. EMC will draw on its broad portfolio of electronics-related competencies and experience: equipment and devices; integration, packaging supply chain engineering; position and navigation systems; signal processing; sonar radar guidance and control systems; Piezo devices and transducers; Energy storage and power systems.

ARL’s EMC joins two other Penn State-based ManTech Centers of Excellence: the Institute for Manufacturing and Sustainable Technologies and the Electro-Optics Center. All three centers operate as part of the ARL Materials and Manufacturing Office. Electro-Optics and Electronics Division Chief Jason Hunnell noted, “We have supported ONR for over 20 years with their ManTech Center of Excellence for Electro-Optics. We are proud to extend our services to ONR by leveraging Penn State’s expertise in the broad areas of electronic technology.”

EMC Director John Mazurowski added, “The field of electronics is changing rapidly in many ways right now.” “It is a privilege to use our skills and experience to contribute to our country.”

About the Applied Research Lab at Penn State

The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State was established in 1945 at the request of the US Navy. ARL is an educational, scientific discovery; Education through successful transition to technology demonstration and application; As part of the ARL, Materials and Manufacturing Office is responsible for materials design, repair of materials; component design; production system Offers advanced expertise in logistics and sustainability. The Materiel and Manufacturing Office is home to three outstanding Navy ManTech Centers: the Manufacturing and Sustaining Technology Institute; Operates Electro-Optics Center and Electronics Manufacturing Center.

About the Naval Manufacturing Technology Program

The Navy Manufacturing Technology (ManTech) program is focused on the development of key acquisition platforms and affordability for capability acceleration as defined in the Navy ManTech Investment Strategy. The main platforms currently targeted are: CVN 78 Class carrier; DDG 51 Class destroyer; FFG(X) guided missile frigate; VIRGINIA-class submarine / OHIO replacement plan; and Joint Strike Fighter; ONR ManTech helps these Navy programs achieve their respective affordability goals by transitioning developed manufacturing technology that results in cost reductions or cost avoidance needed when implementing them. Accelerating efficiency means getting new technology to ships faster. The problems addressed must be related to production or production technology.

The work described in this release will be supported by the Office of Naval Research under Contract No. N00014-21-D-7003. Opinions expressed in this content; The findings and conclusions or recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office of Naval Research.