The following article appeared in The Guam Daily Post:
Thursday’s benedición and groundbreaking for the Guam Additive Materials and Manufacturing Accelerator, or GAMMA, at the Pacific Industrial Park in Dededo, was far from just another ribbon-cutting event.
It marked Guam’s entry as a supplier of manufactured submarine parts to the U.S. Navy and the potential start of a new economic pillar for the island beyond tourism and military construction.
“Today is the day Guam joins the ranks of all 50 states, establishing a supplier of manufactured submarine parts to the United States Navy,” said Neal Orringer, president and CEO of ASTRO America, the nonprofit bringing the facility to life.
The ceremony drew Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero, Lt. Gov. Josh Tenorio, Del. James Moylan, Vice Speaker Tony Ada, Sen. Telo Taitague and several other senators, alongside Navy representatives.
Leon Guerrero, who championed the initiative during the COVID-19 pandemic, said the facility will serve needs far beyond defense.
“How many times do our ambulances go down and we can’t get the parts quick enough for those ambulances to get back on the streets,” she said. “This is the value of what this industry is going to bring to our island.”
From Willy Wonka to reality
The governor recalled her initial skepticism about additive manufacturing, a range of advanced fabrication techniques often associated with, but not limited to, 3D printing.
“My only understanding of additive manufacturing is you put all these ingredients in this big machine. The machine, you know, like a Willy Wonka kind of thing, goes through and then out comes the gears. Out comes the parts. Out comes the tools,” she said.
When Orringer proposed a feasibility study years ago, Leon Guerrero asked about the cost. Expecting millions, she heard $250,000.
“I said, never mind, the military will give it to you. You come to Guam, do the feasibility study,” she said. “Through many, many, many complicated challenges, here we are today.”
The facility is backed by the Navy’s Maritime Industrial Base Program Office in partnership with BlueForge Alliance.
Strategic value for Pacific operations
Virginia-class submarines operating in the Pacific are massive vessels with tens of thousands of parts. When components fail, waiting weeks or months for replacements from Hawaii or the mainland compromises readiness.
“At any point, a Navy material officer or technician may determine that he can’t wait for that ship to go all the way to Hawaii for repairs,” Orringer said. “And that’s why we come in, right here in Dededo.”
In an interview following the ceremony, Alex Benham, GAMMA’s director and general manager, told The Guam Daily Post officials met with the Navy on Wednesday to identify initial production targets.
He said the team is prioritizing parts that aren’t technically complex but would have immediate, significant impact on Navy operations.
Fire pump impellers exemplify the approach. Benham described them as common yet difficult-to-manufacture components critical across naval systems.
“Motors are probably the most common thing in existence from an engineering standpoint across the world. The second closest thing are those impellers that move fluids,” he said. “Nobody recognizes it. The normal population doesn’t recognize it. But they are a huge, huge application.”
He recently reverse-engineered an impeller from a 2D picture with basic measurements in 40 minutes, demonstrating the technology’s potential.
Timeline and workforce
The facility remains largely empty, but equipment shipments are scheduled to arrive soon. Benham said some production capability should be available by mid to late January, with full initial operating capacity targeted for March 2026.
“We actually have one piece of equipment here,” he said, pointing to a corner of the facility.
By March, all necessary equipment should be installed, including metal 3D printers, robotic welding systems, computer numerical control machines and inspection equipment like microscopes and X-ray systems.
The first hires are already working. They are five University of Guam students who spent about 18 months training at the Accelerated Training in Defense Manufacturing, or ATDM, facility in Danville, Virginia. Two of the students began working a week ago, while the other three started Thursday.
“They are our first hires,” Benham said.
The workforce will expand as equipment arrives. Applications engineers and manufacturing engineers will come next, followed by machine operators. The partnership with UOG and the Colorado School of Mines aims to create a pipeline of locally trained talent.
Tenorio highlighted the opportunity for students educated off-island to return with valuable skills.
“We get to do this by integrating the need for national defense with the need to establish and showcase the capabilities of our island,” he said.
He recalled Guam’s history with Navy ship repair facilities and supply depots that helped establish a middle class before geopolitical changes led to their closure.
“We can now plan for the future and ensure that we make strategic decisions that are going to be sustainable,” Tenorio said.
Commercial applications ahead
While Navy needs come first, GAMMA won’t be limited to defense work.
“They also recognize at the end of the day, to make sure this is going to be sustainable, to meet their needs, we also need to ensure their alternative revenue sources as well,” Orringer told The Post.
By the end of next year, he hopes to begin commercial orders, potentially serving the Guam Power Authority, Guam Waterworks Authority, emergency response agencies and private sector clients.
“As long as it’s not interfering with our Navy mission, and as long as it’s not diverting resources and personnel, as soon as these machines are up and running, we’re ready to take some use case examples from others if there are some interesting opportunities,” Orringer said.
Establishing a facility for industrial-grade metal inspection could be equally valuable.
“If we get to the point where we can have an industrial-grade metal inspection house here in Guam, we’ll be the only industrial inspection house for thousands of miles,” said Orringer. “You can imagine people making parts all over Asia coming here for inspection, not just 3D printing.”
One challenge involves working with original equipment manufacturers to ensure replacement parts don’t void warranties, whether for submarines, ambulances or civilian vehicles.
“We are not interested in making temporary structures, just band-aids that can get you from point A and point B and then you switch it out,” Benham said. “We’re interested in making final use parts.”
Economic diversification realized
Moylan called the facility a strategic asset that also represents the beginning of a high-tech economic future for Guam.
“It ensures our children can be trained in cutting-edge STEM careers through local institutions, earning good wages without having to leave the island,” he said.
Ada had one request: make sure finished parts carry a “Made in Guam USA” tag.
“It would just show the capabilities that our island has in providing these critical parts that are needed, not just for our nation’s military, but also for our island,” he said.
Orringer acknowledged challenges ahead, including building the workforce, creating shipping channels for materials and working out agreements with manufacturers. He expressed confidence in Guam’s readiness.
“We gain more and more experience here at Guam, and we’ll be ready to take on new potential customers seeking parts, not only the military, but commercial automobiles, airlines, emergency response, fire department, even medical devices,” he said.
Leon Guerrero said the investment validates the administration’s vision.
“I think this is a very exciting capability for Guam… this is an industry that’s going to go way beyond just the military vendors, but also into the automobile, into our need for parts and supplies for our emergency response, even medical parts,” she told The Post.
“This is a very phenomenal industry that is worth the investment that we made,” she added.