Kratos buys AMCM M 8K to expand additive capacity in Indiana

Kratos expands Indiana AM capacity with an AMCM M 8K system

The machine is slated for the WestGate site and is planned for hypersonic applications in the defense sector.

AI Newsroom 2 min readPublished on this site: 03 Nov 2026, 03:18Original publication: 30 Oct 2026, 12:30Updated: 03 Nov 2026, 11:21

Large-format industrial metal additive manufacturing system in an advanced production setting

Illustrative · AI

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Confirmed by multiple independent sources

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Three key points

01Kratos Defense has bought an AMCM M 8K system for its WestGate operations in Indiana.
02The company plans to use the machine for hypersonic applications.
03The move aligns with growth in Kratos’s defense rocket activities and broader defense-space manufacturing demand.

Why this matters · AI editorial analysis, not reported fact

The purchase shows how large multi-laser LPBF systems are moving beyond limited demonstration use into production-oriented defense applications. For fabricators, machine shops and sourcing teams, it points to rising demand for complex metal parts, qualified local supply chains and industrialized additive processes.

Kratos Defense has purchased an AMCM M 8K to increase its additive manufacturing capacity in Indiana. Based on the source material, the machine is intended for WestGate, within the industrial cluster tied to NSWC Crane, Indiana University Bloomington, WestGate@Crane Technology Park and the American Center for Manufacturing and Innovation (ACMI).

The move comes as Indiana continues to build its profile as a manufacturing base with growing defense relevance. The source says defense investment in the state has risen by more than $2 billion since 2020, and points to the presence of NSWC Crane as a key factor in the development path of the state’s southwestern region.

Kratos plans to use the M 8K for hypersonic applications. The source frames this as consistent with ACMI’s approach of helping tenant companies adopt manufacturing processes that matter for US military programs more quickly. In the same context, the material notes that ACMI was the first organization to acquire an AMCM M 8K, purchasing the machine for applications such as rocket chambers and fuel tanks.

The investment also fits into Kratos’s current growth trajectory in defense rocket systems. The source states that this business is among the company’s fastest-growing segments, with year-over-year growth of 46% in the first quarter of 2026 and 50% in the second quarter of 2026. According to the same material, Kratos’s ability to respond quickly to shifting demand is supported by its experience with enabling technologies, including additive manufacturing.

The article also points to possible implications for distributed manufacturing. Because Kratos operates close to NSWC Crane, the source suggests that the company and the US Navy could integrate the M 8K into distributed manufacturing workflows, referencing the Navy’s August announcement on Project Peculiar Document. That point is presented as a potential development rather than a confirmed deployment plan.

Beyond defense, the system could also support Kratos programs in space, where the company’s activities overlap significantly with its defense work. The source notes that earlier this year Kratos received a US Space Force contract worth up to $446 million for missile defense satellite ground system architecture, and more recently a $33.6 million NASA contract for the power conversion system of the Space Reactor-1 Freedom program.