The Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute has announced a new initiative aimed at enhancing the construction of submarines by seeking mature technologies that can be integrated into the marine industrial base (MIB). This project, known as the Tech Project Call, is specifically designed to address the unique challenges faced by the MIB and facilitate the acceleration of submarine production.
Project Call Details
Proposals for this project call must be submitted by November 21 at 5:00 p.m. ET through the ARM member community. Although the call is publicly accessible, only ARM members are eligible to submit proposals.
Challenges Facing the Marine Industrial Base
The MIB is currently grappling with a variety of significant challenges that impact the United States’ capability to fulfill its defense requirements, particularly the “1+2” requirement, which involves the development of one Columbia-class submarine and two Virginia-class submarines. Some of the key challenges include:
- Shortages in the current and expanding workforce
- Loss of critical master-level knowledge
- An unstable and overburdened supply chain
- Technical difficulties that could be alleviated through automation and artificial intelligence
Collaboration and Innovation
The ARM Institute emphasizes that its project calls are intended to stimulate collaboration among industry, government, and academic institutions. This initiative aims to foster the development of robotics and AI technologies that will not only enhance U.S. manufacturing capabilities but also secure national defense and the organic industrial base.
By providing a platform for innovation, the ARM Institute seeks to create a consortium that can tackle funding limitations and technical obstacles, thereby promoting the successful launch of new systems.
Mature Technologies for Production Environments
This particular project call, in collaboration with the BlueForge Alliance, aims to identify and advance existing technologies for production environments. The solutions proposed should correspond to at least one of the following three areas of interest:
- Automation and monitoring of welding processes
- Metrology and in-process inspection
- Automation of casting processes
Technologies submitted for consideration must be mature, exhibiting a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 7 or higher, and should be either ready or nearly ready for production applications. Competitive solutions will be evaluated based on factors such as rapid scalability, availability of commercial products, and comprehensive integration and maintenance plans.
Demonstration Requirements
The ARM Institute expects that the technologies presented will display their effectiveness in environments that accurately represent shipyard conditions by the conclusion of the projects. Proposers are required to clarify how their technologies relate to the specified areas of interest and how they address the broader requirements of the MIB for submarine development.
Webinar for Interested Parties
To provide further insights and allow for questions about the project call, the ARM Institute will host a public webinar on October 23 at noon ET. This session aims to engage the community and encourage participation in the initiative.
Future Project Calls
This initiative is part of a broader agenda of project calls that the ARM Institute is set to release this fall. Currently, members have access to two other draft project calls, which will be made publicly available after the exclusive member access period. Overall, the ARM Institute anticipates issuing approximately five project calls between October 2025 and January 2026. In the spring of 2025 alone, three project calls were issued, resulting in ARM members securing roughly $4.5 million in funding, contributing to a total investment of about $8.8 million across those projects.
About the ARM Institute
Based in Pittsburgh, the ARM Institute is a consortium comprising over 450 members from industry, academia, and government sectors. In May, Jorgen Pedersen, an industry veteran, was appointed as the CEO of the Institute. The organization is committed to making robotics, autonomy, and artificial intelligence more accessible to U.S. manufacturers, regardless of size. Through these efforts, the ARM Institute aims to empower the manufacturing workforce, bolster the economy, enhance global competitiveness, and promote national security and resilience.