Lockheed Martin taps Machina’s robots for mission-critical missile parts

Machina has been awarded a qualification contract from Lockheed Martin in support of the JASSM program. | Credit: Machina Labs

Advanced manufacturing and robotics pioneer Machina Labs has secured a landmark qualification contract from Lockheed Martin to support the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, or JASSM, program, marking the first time a component built using the company’s robotic “RoboForming” technology has advanced to qualification for a U.S. defense missile system.

“The defense industrial base is under pressure to scale faster than legacy manufacturing allows,” said Edward Mehr, co-founder and CEO of Machina. “Missile programs are not constrained by design. They are constrained by production. Machina’s factory is built to address that constraint, forming and assembling complex metal structures directly from digital design with dramatically shorter lead times.”

Mehr was on a recent episode of The Robot Report podcast , where he explained the growth and evolution of the company. On the episode, he noted that Machina is uniquely configured to support defense clients.

“We are excited about this opportunity to support a vital weapon system for the United States and its allies,” said John Borrego, president of Machina Bellator . “This selection underscores the importance of advanced, agile manufacturing in strengthening defense readiness and delivering capability at speed.”

The company was a 2023 RBR50 Robotics Innovation Award winner for its novel use of industrial robots to pound metal into precise shapes. The robots form complex parts from exotic materials such as titanium.

Machina’s workcells consist of two industrial robots arranged on opposite sides of a vertical sheet of raw material. Through coordinated interactions on opposite sides of the material, the robots form a part, just like a blacksmith would. The latest version of the workcells includes the capability to drill holes into parts as well as laser cut or engrave.

Unlike a stamp-and-die production line, which is expensive to create and set up, a Machina workcell can produce high-quality parts in lot sizes as small as one unit. The workcell is suitable for low-volume production or for parts that have a short lead time, the company said.

Machina Labs Factory 3 will be dedicated to the production of defense systems. | Credit: Machina Labs

Machina doesn’t sell its metal-forming workcells. Instead, the company serves as a contract manufacturer, fulfilling its clients’ production needs. To that end, the company is opening a new facility, Machine Factory 3, to exclusively serve the needs of Lockheed Martin and other defense contractors.