US Army aspires to create Indo-Pacific manufacturing hub in Korea

In the Pacific, a single bolt can become a giant headache and the source of months of delay. The bolt that Col. Scott Carpenter held up Monday during the Association of the United States Army’s annual meeting belonged to a Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station turret, and it is back-ordered until February 2027.

At U.S. Army Materiel Support Command — Korea, the unit Carpenter commands, soldiers built the bolt through the drill-out process of subtractive manufacturing for a cost of $1.27, avoiding months of delay and saving more than $300 in the process.

As the Eighth Army in Korea builds out its logistics capability, it’s investing in advanced manufacturing with an eye to supplying spares, not only to local Army forces, but also to troops across the Pacific region .

“I want to be the advanced manufacturing center for INDOPACOM,” Carpenter said at an engagement with reporters at the AUSA meeting. “That’s my goal.”

Eighth Army officials spoke earlier this year about how establishing a Korea-based regional sustainment hub, or center for logistics, maintenance and supply, could cut down the burden and cost of long-distance sustainment. At a roundtable event Monday, Eighth Army Commander Lt. Gen. Joseph Hilber indicated the force was moving out to build that sustainment hub.

“Now, rather than taking equipment that might need a major overhaul and send it back to the United States, we’re looking at ways that we can overhaul it there in Korea and keep it in the fight longer. Keep it west of the [International Dateline] longer,” Hilber said. “That’s going to involve everything from some added manufacturing capabilities to additional repair capabilities that we’ve got in there in terms of being able to fabricate parts, being able to fabricate materials, and then being able to return that equipment back into the fight.”

The Eighth Army has already resourced maintenance support teams that cross service and regional boundaries, departing the Korean Peninsula to support the III Marine Expeditionary Force in Okinawa, Japan, and to Hawaii to support Army rotational units, Carpenter said.

Through additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, and subtractive manufacturing, or cutting a part out of a solid block of metal, the Eighth Army is manufacturing an increasing number of critical parts, Carpenter said. The materiel support command recently acquired a metal 3D printer and is now building out infrastructure to house it.

“But we think come January, February, the metal 3D printer [will be] in, and my goal is … I would like to get to a point where I can 3D print the bolt,” Carpenter said.

U.S. Army officers tour a South Korean navy shipyard to examine 3D printers used for their equipment on March 25, 2026. (Spc. Keli Luangrath/U.S. Army)

By next summer, he said, the Eighth Army is set to receive $3 million worth of advanced manufacturing machines, with some $10 million worth of additional machinery set to be requested in the Army’s fiscal 2028 budget.

“I’ll be able to print bumpers; I’ll be able to print doors,” Carpenter said. “These are not just desktop printers.”

Recently, he said, a Guam-based military unit requested an assembly that would have cost $36,000. The Korea-based team built it through subtractive manufacturing for $82.

Through a request system, Carpenter said, any joint forces member can now request a part and get routed to the Army’s logistics hub in Daegu, South Korea.

“If you’re the Marines operating in Okinawa and you need this bolt … I get this bolt back over to the Marine at a fraction of the cost, and a lot quicker than if they were to order through the supply system,” he said. “So again, we’re maintaining combat power inside the First Island Chain.”

Hilbert said some hurdles remained for the Eighth Army, including intellectual property restrictions with manufacturers; data-sharing to ensure the advanced manufacturing processes deliver components that are up to spec; and seamless connection into existing Army logistics systems not designed for these new modes of parts production.

“We’re continuing to work through those pieces to enable us to fix faster,” Hilbert said.

在太平洋战场，一颗小小的螺栓就能引发巨大的麻烦，导致数月延误。斯科特·卡彭特上校周一在美国陆军协会年会上展示的那颗螺栓，属于通用遥控武器站炮塔，目前已订购，要到2027年2月才能到货。

在美国陆军物资支援司令部——韩国，卡彭特指挥的部队中，士兵们通过减材制造的钻孔工艺制造出螺栓，成本为 1.27 美元，避免了数月的延误，并在此过程中节省了 300 多美元。

随着驻韩美军第八集团军不断提升其后勤能力，它正在投资先进制造业，旨在不仅向当地陆军部队，而且向整个太平洋地区的部队提供备件。

“我希望成为印太司令部的先进制造中心，”卡彭特在AUSA会议期间与记者交流时说。“这是我的目标。”

今年早些时候，第八集团军官员曾讨论过，在韩国建立一个区域后勤保障中心（即后勤、维护和供应中心）可以减轻远程后勤保障的负担和成本。周一的圆桌会议上，第八集团军司令约瑟夫·希尔伯中将表示，该部队正在着手建设这个后勤保障中心。

希尔伯说：“现在，我们不再把可能需要大修的装备运回美国，而是想办法在韩国进行维修，延长它们的作战寿命，让它们在国际日期变更线以西的地区服役更长时间。这需要我们利用现有的制造能力和维修能力，包括制造零部件、材料，最终让这些装备重新投入战斗。”

卡彭特说，第八集团军已经配备了跨军种和地区界限的维护支援小组，这些小组从朝鲜半岛出发，支援驻扎在日本冲绳的第三海军陆战队远征军，并前往夏威夷支援陆军轮换部队。

卡彭特表示，第八集团军正通过增材制造（即3D打印）和减材制造（即从整块金属中切割零件）技术，制造越来越多的关键零部件。该军需保障司令部最近购置了一台金属3D打印机，目前正在建设相应的配套基础设施。

“但我们认为到一月、二月，金属 3D 打印机就能到位了，我的目标是……我希望能够 3D 打印螺栓，”卡彭特说。

2026年3月25日，美国陆军军官参观韩国海军造船厂，考察用于其装备的3D打印机。（美国陆军下士凯利·卢昂格拉特摄）

他表示，到明年夏天，第八集团军将收到价值 300 万美元的先进制造设备，并且预计在陆军 2028 财年预算中还将申请价值约 1000 万美元的额外设备。

“我可以用这些打印机打印保险杠，也可以打印车门，”卡彭特说。“这些打印机可不仅仅是桌面打印机。”

他最近表示，关岛的一个军事单位要求组装一个价值 36,000 美元的部件。而韩国的团队通过减材制造技术，仅花费 82 美元就完成了组装。

卡彭特表示，通过申请系统，任何联合部队成员现在都可以申请零件，并将零件送往位于韩国大邱的陆军后勤中心。

“如果你是驻扎在冲绳的海军陆战队员，需要这个螺栓……我可以以远低于他们通过后勤系统订购的成本，快速地把螺栓送到他们手中，”他说。“所以，我们再次确保了第一岛链内的作战能力。”

希尔伯特表示，第八集团军仍面临一些障碍，包括与制造商之间的知识产权限制；数据共享以确保先进的制造工艺能够交付符合规格的零部件；以及与现有陆军后勤系统无缝连接，而这些系统并非为这些新的零部件生产模式而设计。

希尔伯特说：“我们正在继续努力解决这些问题，以便更快地进行修复。”