Quickparts lifts space & defence investment to USD $6m

Quickparts has increased its investment in space and defence manufacturing to nearly USD $6 million, including new 3D printing systems across four countries.

The move marks Quickparts' second major capacity investment in 18 months. It expands the company's Seattle Aerospace & Defence Centre of Excellence and adds 12 Stratasys NEO systems across sites in the United States, France, Italy and the United Kingdom.

The new equipment will modernise production at all four locations and replace older machines. Quickparts said the upgrade will increase large-format throughput by 40 per cent and establish a common production standard across its North American and European operations.

For space and defence customers, that standardisation means a part qualified in Seattle can be produced to the same standard in Europe. The company said this gives buyers another option if tariffs, export controls or regional disruption affect supply arrangements.

Seattle focus

A large share of the spending is directed to the Seattle site, which Quickparts has positioned as a centre for aerospace and defence work. The facility is intended to support crewed deep-space programmes and national security space projects, where delivery schedules and process control can matter as much as price.

The investment follows a Seattle expansion announced in late 2025 and the introduction earlier this year of DuraKor and ThermaKor materials. Quickparts said the decision reflects its view that manufacturers serving defence and space customers need to expand capacity ahead of demand rather than wait for programmes to mature.

The group operates a hybrid model that combines its own plants with a certified network of manufacturing partners across North America, Europe and Asia. That approach allows it to shift work between internal production and external suppliers, but some space and defence contracts require direct control over production and full chain-of-custody for each part.

In those markets, Quickparts is increasing the share of work it can handle in-house. It said schedule certainty has become a central factor as launch activity and defence production increase.

"Reshoring and industrial resilience are usually discussed as policy. We're treating them as a balance-sheet decision," said Avi Reichental, Chief Executive Officer of Quickparts.

"Anyone can buy the same machine we just bought. What they can't buy quickly is a qualified capability delivering to the same standard across four countries, at a scale that took us years to build. That's the difference between renting machine time and owning a position in this market that's genuinely hard to take away, and it's the business we've built," Reichental said.

Broader market

Quickparts said the same production setup also supports specialist industrial work in Europe, including motorsport aerodynamics and high-end vehicles. Those programmes rely on short lead times and firm delivery dates, making manufacturing reliability an important commercial factor beyond the defence sector.

Founded in 1990, the company provides on-demand manufacturing services from prototype work to larger-scale production. It has in-house operations in the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Italy, alongside a wider partner network.

Stratasys, which is supplying the new systems, said the order reflects broader use of large-format additive manufacturing in aerospace, defence and space projects. The company linked the expansion to rising demand for parts that require consistent production methods and approved materials.

"Quickparts' investment reflects the growing role large-format additive manufacturing now plays in critical applications across aerospace, defense, and space," said Dr. Yoav Zeif, Chief Executive Officer of Stratasys.

"We're proud to partner with them as they scale their ability to support the world's most demanding programs with proven industry-leading additive manufacturing technologies, materials, software, and services," Zeif said.

Deployment of the new systems began in August and is due to be completed across all sites by October.