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ATDM & AM CoE Summit Bolsters Defense Manufacturing Workforce and Partnerships

ATDM & AM CoE Summit Bolsters Defense Manufacturing Workforce and Partnerships

Leaders from across the defense and manufacturing sectors came together in Danville, Virginia, for the fourth annual joint summit hosted by the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program and the U.S. Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM CoE). Held at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR), this year’s event, themed All Hands on Deck, focused on addressing workforce and manufacturing shortfalls in Navy shipbuilding and repair.

2025 ATDM & AM CoE Summit

One of the summit highlights was a keynote address from Admiral James Kilby, USN, Vice Chief of Naval Operations, who spoke to the deep investment the Navy is making in workforce development and innovation as the pillars of our maritime strength.

“This Summit extends far beyond a two-day gathering—it’s strengthening America’s maritime industrial foundation,” said Matthew Sermon, direct reporting program manager for the Maritime Industrial Base. “With over 450 participants sharing insights and solutions, the ATDM Maritime Training Center is creating a pipeline of skilled workers, while the Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence is revolutionizing how we produce critical components, reducing production timelines from years or months to weeks or days. Both are gamechangers….and together, these complementary initiatives address both the human talent and technological capabilities needed to build and sustain the fleet our nation requires.”

The summit highlighted the growth and momentum of the ATDM program. Earlier this year, the new 100,000-square-foot ATDM Maritime Training Center opened at the IALR campus, expanding the program’s capacity to train more students in its 16-week accelerated program. The ATDM Maritime Training Center provides the space needed for the program to graduate up to 1,000 students per year to meet industry demand, a target it is on track to achieve.

“At IALR, we’re pioneering new accelerated training methods while building the future workforce for defense and maritime manufacturing,” said Telly Tucker, president of IALR. “The new ATDM Maritime Training Center is a vital step in growing the talent pipeline, and by hosting the Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence on our campus, we’re integrating emerging technologies directly into the hands-on training process. This model ensures our graduates are equipped to meet challenges in shipbuilding and advanced manufacturing.”

Alongside workforce training, the co-located AM CoE continues to push the boundaries of additive manufacturing for Navy applications. The center is actively reducing production timelines for complex parts and exploring how advanced processes can support both new builds and fleet sustainment. The AM CoE is also providing connective tissue for ATDM students as they gain experience in additive manufacturing.

Throughout the summit, attendees heard from defense contractors, technical experts and government officials about the real-world impact of programs like ATDM and AM CoE. Representatives from major shipbuilders and supply chain companies discussed how the ability to hire ATDM graduates has shortened ramp-up times and helped meet production schedules.

The summit wrapped up with a clear sense of shared purpose and momentum. By combining accelerated training with cutting-edge innovation, ATDM and AM CoE are shaping a model for how public-private collaboration can secure the future of U.S. maritime power.

About ATDM

Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) was created to teach the skills needed to increase military equipment production in the United States. The program is located at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, Virginia. Students at ATDM are trained in the skills needed to repair, upfit and build submarines, and these skills are transferable to other defense industry companies. Students earn the skills needed to secure great-paying, in-demand defense industry jobs in these skilled trades: additive manufacturing, CNC machining, non-destructive testing, quality control inspection (also known as metrology) and welding.

Visit the ATDM Website 

About IALR

The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research serves Virginia as a regional catalyst for economic transformation with applied research, advanced learning, manufacturing advancement, conference center services and economic development efforts. IALR’s major footprint focuses within Southern Virginia, including the counties of Patrick, Henry, Franklin, Pittsylvania, Halifax and Mecklenburg along with the cities of Martinsville and Danville. 

 

The U.S. Navy Opens Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville

The U.S. Navy Opens Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville

Joint Navy-OSD Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing Program to Benefit from new Multi-Million-Dollar Training Facility

The U.S. Navy is launching its Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence (AM CoE) within the State of Virginia’s Center for Manufacturing Advancement (CMA) on the Danville Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) campus. The creation of the AM CoE marks the first project partnership for the CMA. It demonstrates the Navy’s commitment to investing in and delivering the skilled workforce necessary to strengthen and expand the Navy’s industrial base to achieve the Nation’s strategic defense objectives.

A first for the Navy, the AM CoE will provide a platform for training a skilled additive manufacturing workforce through partnership with the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program, a rigorous, focused 24/5 training schedule that graduates student cohorts every four months in multiple disciplines critical to the defense industrial base (DIB). Industrial manufacturing partners include major shipbuilders like General Dynamics Electric Boat, Huntington-Ingalls Newport News Shipbuilding, Austal USA as well as key industry experts like Phillips Corporation, Industrial Inspection and Analysis, FasTech, Mitutoyo, and Master Gage & Tool, to bring multiple processes utilized by the DIB under one roof to improve efficiencies and reduce barriers to entry for manufacturers hoping to enter additive manufacturing.

Utilizing three full bays dedicated to accelerating and scaling additive manufacturing parts and qualification processes, the AM CoE’s principal functions will be to:

  • Promote adoption of mature industrial qualification processes and data to earn technical warrant holder approval for additive manufacturing production;
  • Enable scale and speed to address material readiness challenges and critical fragilities in the castings/forgings market space;
  • Pave a path for sustainable and scalable additive manufacturing production capability in the submarine industrial base.

“Building and sustaining the Navy’s defense industrial base workforce has become a national security imperative, and the demonstration of partnership and collaboration that is represented here in Danville, Virginia today is part of the ‘Whole Government, Whole of Industry’ approach that must be in place to ensure the domestic manufacturing capacity that is required to maintain the Navy’s maritime edge, and surge to meet a dynamic threat environment,” said Matt Sermon, Executive Director, PEO Strategic Submarines.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the AM CoE was held during the second annual ATDM Summit where the U.S. Navy, Office of the Secretary of Defense, and additional federal, state and local government officials joined with partners from defense industry and academia to convene topics pertaining to closing skills and workforce gaps within the naval defense industrial base.

During the ceremony, the announcement was also made that the ATDM program, which aims to provide 800-1,000 qualified candidates to fill critical vacancies in the DIB annually by 2024, will expand with the creation of a regional training facility adjacent to the CMA. The multimillion-dollar investment into over 100,000 square feet of dedicated training capability, capacity, and infrastructure will enable ATDM to rapidly scale up to its full potential and add to the economic momentum in Southern Virginia. The Danville and Pittsylvania County Regional Industrial Facility Authority provided land for the initiative.

“The launch of the AM CoE and the announcement of scale-up potential for ATDM go hand-in-hand with IALR’s approach to support the technological and workforce development needs of Industry. We are excited to leverage our new Center for Manufacturing Advancement and work with the Navy and other partners,” said Telly Tucker, President, IALR. “ATDM is one of the strongest examples of what full integration of industry in the training process looks like, by bringing key partners together to be vested in the time-to-talent process and ensuring the unique requirements of shipbuilders and suppliers are achieved quickly to meet the demands of our nation’s defenses.”

“The events we celebrate today – centered on workforce, technology, and the space where those two priorities must meet – are game changing. The scale and urgency needed in these areas is a fundamental differentiator in our Navy’s ability to preserve peace, and when necessary, compete and win,” added RADM Scott Pappano, PEO Strategic Submarines.” 

Danville’s DoD-Funded Training Program Graduates Third Cohort in Shipbuilding and Ship Sustaining Skilled Trades

Danville’s DoD-Funded Training Program Graduates Third Cohort in Shipbuilding and Ship Sustaining Skilled Trades

35 workers from 14 states rapidly trained for employment in defense industry

As a high-performance manufacturing hub, Danville offers an innovative training model that more recently includes a federal pilot project attracting participants on a national scale to defense industrial base trades. The third cohort of students, including 35 adult learners from 14 states, graduated from the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) program on Aug. 5. This 16-week, hands-on curriculum rapidly develops skilled workers with industry recognized credentials for employment in the defense industry.

Dr. Debra Holley, ATDM Director at IALR, and Dr. Jerry Wallace, Danville Community College President, award certificates to completers of the third cohort of the DoD initiative to prepare workers for skilled trades positions in the defense industry – the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing Program. Thirty-five individuals from 14 states finished the 16-week program on Aug. 5 and have already received job offers from Newport News Shipbuilding, Electric Boat and BWX Technologies.

ATDM trains workers in key trades to fill skill gaps in welding, CNC machining, quality control inspection and additive manufacturing. The program was developed as a public-private consortium between the U.S. Department of Defense, Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR), Danville Community College (DCC), Phillips Corporation and The Spectrum Group, in coordination with maritime defense industry partners and Navy stakeholders. Scaling the ATDM program is a priority effort planned in the Submarines Industrial Base budget, and a key enabler in the Navy’s ability to reach and sustain the required submarine production cadence, deliver on the construction of the Navy’s number-one priority Columbia Class submarine, and ensure sustainment of existing platforms. This program is also positioned to have a significant impact across all maritime programs and platforms, and includes addressing workforce constraints at shipbuilders, shipyards and the sub-tier supply chain.

“At every level in our industrial base, manpower readiness is not a choice, it is an absolute requirement for success. The people graduating from the ATDM program are how I know our Navy and Nation will continue leading in the maritime domain,” said Admiral Scott Pappano, Program Executive Officer, Strategic Submarines. “There is nothing more important than ensuring we have the workforce to lead, innovate, and execute our Navy’s programs and platforms, and this pipeline provides these men and women with an incredible opportunity to join our mission in family-sustaining careers that are in critical demand.”

IALR is leading the multi-year pilot project to test and evaluate ATDM as a training platform for regional training centers supporting the defense industrial base. The pilot project is funded through the National Imperative for Industrial Skills initiative which was launched in 2020 by the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program Office (IBAS) in the office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment.

“IALR continues to serve as a leading model of intentional, effective workforce development initiatives to generate a sustainable pipeline of work-ready talent for high-performance manufacturers and other target sectors,” said Telly Tucker, president of IALR. “We thank our ATDM partners and congratulate these students on their accomplishments; knowing that we played a role in securing a high-quality job for these men and women while also helping our nation’s defense manufacturers is extremely fulfilling.”

The ATDM curriculum is customized to the skills and training needs of the naval shipbuilding and sustainment sector of the defense industrial base. Training takes place in Danville on the campuses of IALR and DCC, and DCC serves as the curriculum provider.

“We’re incredibly proud of the DCC Knights who have completed the ATDM training,” said Dr. Jerry Wallace, president of Danville Community College. “Thanks to our strong partnership with the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research, access to this unique, specialized training is available right here in Danville. These students have mastered skills over the last four months that will propel them forward into high-paying careers, impacting the defense manufacturing industry for years to come. We cannot wait to see where their hard work and dedication leads them.”

Phillips Corporation serves as the technology provider for the ATDM training program, and provides the latest equipment for high-quality, industry-focused training.

“Phillips Corporation is very pleased to continue our training and advanced manufacturing roles with IALR’s ATDM program,” said Rick Morgan, Director, Phillips Corporation. “A terrific example of success related to the mission of this program is that Phillips has hired a recent ATDM graduate of one of the four training programs, in this case a member of the additive manufacturing training cohort. Our new employee, a Marine Corps veteran, will be living and working in Danville for Phillips Corporation on additive and other advanced manufacturing projects as part of Phillips’ continuing commitment and dedication to ‘Team Danville’ programs.”

IALR hosted an ATDM completion ceremony on Aug. 5. Dr. Debra Holley, ATDM Director, and Dr. Jerry Wallace, DCC President, awarded completion certificates. Commissioner Daniel Gade with the Virginia Department of Veterans Services served as keynote speaker. Students hailed from Hawaii, California, Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts. Of the 35 graduates, two are Navy veterans, two are active Navy personnel, and three are Afghan allies. Fourteen of the students were incumbent workers, sponsored by their employers to advance and expand their skills; sponsoring industry partners included Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Curtiss-Wright (New York), Bearon Manufacturing (Pennsylvania), and others. The remaining graduates are working with ATDM placement staff to gain employment; to date, students have received offers from Newport News Shipbuilding, Electric Boat and BWX Technologies.

The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research serves Virginia as a regional catalyst for economic transformation with applied research, advanced learning, economic development, manufacturing advancement and conference services. IALR’s major footprint focuses within Southern Virginia, including the counties of Patrick, Henry, Franklin, Pittsylvania, Halifax and Mecklenburg along with the cities of Martinsville and Danville. For more information, visit www.ialr.org.

Danville Community College is a two-year institution of higher education under the state-wide Virginia Community College System. DCC’s service area includes the City of Danville, Pittsylvania County, and Halifax County. For more information about the college’s more than 100 programs of study, visit www.danville.edu.

Completers of the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) Additive Manufacturing program receive their completion certificates and are accompanied by DCC additive manufacturing instructor Eric Collie (left).

ATDM CNC Machining participants pose with their certificates of completion, along with DCC precision machining instructor Justin Owen (left) and DCC machining technician Wesley Cifers (right).

DCC welding instructor Brian Penny (front, center) celebrates with completers of the ATDM Welding cohort as well as DCC welding technician Darrell Buchanan (second from right).

Completers of the ATDM Quality Control Inspection (metrology) program celebrate receiving their certificates with DCC dimensional metrology instructor Josh Worthley (right) and DCC metrology technician Jacob Corvin (left).
ATDM Summit Tackles Skill Gaps in Defense Industrial Base to Support U.S. Navy

ATDM Summit Tackles Skill Gaps in Defense Industrial Base to Support U.S. Navy

 

U.S. Senator Warner serves as keynote speaker for inaugural event

The Department of Defense’s (DoD) Office of Industrial Policy, through its Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment (IBAS) Program, welcomed key stakeholders to the first Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) Summit at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) in Danville, Va., on August 25. IALR is leading a three-year pilot project to develop, exercise and evaluate ATDM as a potential training platform for a network of regional training centers across the United States.

The ATDM Summit’s theme was “Workforce Challenges in Defense Manufacturing: ATDM – Meeting the Demand for Scale and Velocity.” The event introduced ATDM and discussed how this new program contributes to closing skills and manpower gaps that are impacting the ability of the defense industrial base to support America’s Navy. U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) delivered the keynote speech.

“For years, I’ve been talking about the importance of addressing our nation’s chronic underinvestment in workers. Today, it’s more clear than ever that to maintain the capability of our military, and chart a strategic path forward, we will need to invest in the people who are going to make that possible. That’s our men and women in uniform as well as the civilians and industrial base who support them,” said U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA). “We need innovative approaches to workforce development – like IALR, like the ATDM program – to help make that happen.”

Other ATDM Summit presenters included Jesse Salazar, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy; Rear Admiral Scott Pappano, Program Executive Office, Columbia class submarine program; Adele Ratcliff, Director of Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program; and Troy Simpson, Director of Advanced Manufacturing for IALR.

“As we continue to ensure our national security objectives are met, and that our warfighters have the platforms and systems they need to maintain free access across the maritime domain, I cannot overemphasize the significance of our defense industrial base workforce,” said Rear Admiral Pappano. “We have to demand the same levels of scale and urgency across our shipbuilding and ship sustainment trades as we do our Naval capability, capacity, and readiness…that is exactly what this program is designed to achieve.”

“The advances here in Danville have resonance far beyond shipbuilding and will enable the future of American production by cultivating the people who will build our country back better,” said Jesse Salazar, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy. “The ATDM model, led by Team Danville, will help the DoD scale American capacity to manufacture the exceptional parts, machines, and resilient supply chain materials our warfighters need.”

“The need for the level of training offered by ATDM has been clearly defined, especially in light of the country’s defense industrial base workforce needs,” said Mark Gignac, Executive Director of IALR. “We appreciate the support of Sen. Mark Warner and our other stakeholders which, in addition to support from the U.S. government, will be critical to scale the ATDM program model as we move forward. Much appreciation also goes to our partners, Danville Community College, Phillips Corporation, The SPECTRUM Group, and to funding provided by the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program.”

“The ATDM Summit showcases the power of a strong, rebounding community with great leadership,” said Dr. Brian Jackson, Vice President of Workforce Services for Danville Community College, the instructional provider for ATDM. “There are outstanding opportunities in Danville, and it was great to see leadership from around the country focusing on our community and our success.”

“Phillips Corporation is proud to participate with Team Danville in its quest to scale ATDM from its present Pilot stage to a national training program,” said Rick Morgan, Director of Phillips Corporation, the technology partner for ATDM. “We are convinced that ATDM will be a vital resource in addressing the widening gap of advanced manufacturing workers required to support the extensive supply chain needs of our nation’s Defense Industrial Base. The Summit demonstrated that we have achieved a strong alignment of local and national political and industry leaders in support of Team Danville’s ATDM initiatives.”

“ATDM demonstrates the power of public-private partnerships. It is a high-impact program at many levels,” said Charlie Dale, Partner, The SPECTRUM Group. “While addressing critical skill shortages in the defense industry, it provides extraordinary opportunities for a diverse group of women and men to begin careers in advanced manufacturing. Every ATDM student is a true pathfinder in the rebirth of manufacturing in America. SPECTRUM is very proud to be a member of Team Danville and passionate about ATDM’s mission to advance and grow America’s skilled workforce.”

In March 2020, the DoD launched the National Imperative for Industrial Skills (NIIS) Initiative to catalyze coordinated, multi-level public and private efforts across the nation’s industrial skills workforce development ecosystem. NIIS aims to close defense-critical workforce gaps, expand national production capacities, and improve U.S. industrial resiliency. ATDM is the flagship program in NIIS for training skilled workers for America’s defense industrial base in critical trades such as welding, CNC machining, metrology and additive manufacturing.

About ATDM

Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing is a prototype training platform for rapidly training skilled workers in key trades for employment in the defense industry. ATDM was developed as a public-private consortium between the DoD, the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR), Danville Community College (DCC), Phillips Corporation, and The SPECTRUM Group in consultation with the defense industry. IALR is leading a multi-year pilot project to test and evaluate ATDM as a training platform for regional training centers supporting the defense industrial base. The pilot project is funded through the National Imperative for Industrial Skills initiative which was launched in 2020 by the Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment Program Office (IBAS) in the office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. All training is conducted in Danville, Va. For more information, visit www.atdm.org.

See the following Flickr album link for images from the ATDM training facilities open house, the ATDM social and the ATDM Summit: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmWv2ova

 Visit https://youtu.be/egldO2Feeck for the ATDM overview video that was shared at the ATDM Summit.

Students, defense manufacturers, educators and supporters attend the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing (ATDM) open house on Aug. 24 at Danville Community College, the instructional provider for ATDM. Stakeholders also participate in an evening social and the inaugural ATDM Summit the following day at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research, the ATDM project leader. Sen. Mark Warner served as the keynote speaker at the summit, which focused on “Workforce Challenges in Defense Manufacturing: ATDM – Meeting the Demand for Scale and Velocity.”