DoD, AFRL Invest $154M to Help Drive NextFlex’s Hybrid Electronics Manufacturing Efforts

NextFlex, a consortium focused on flexible hybrid electronics production, has received $154M in funding from the Department of Defense to support the latter’s efforts to expand the domestic FHE manufacturing ecosystem.

NextFlex said Wednesday the funding covers a seven-year period and comes as part of a cost-sharing agreement with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory.

The investment will support a manufacturing technology program under the Office of the Secretary of Defense and prioritize the DoD’s technology transition and production efforts for capabilities intended for military applications.

The institute additionally secured $10M from the DoD’s Defense-wide Manufacturing Science and Technology Program to help accelerate FHE-based projects throughout NextFlex’s network of over 100 manufacturers.

Eric Forsythe, government program manager at NextFlex, said the institute has been working with the DoD to demonstrate FHE-based prototype development procedures over the past five years.

“Today these technologies are not only providing component solutions to our current platforms but are revolutionizing our design concepts for future transformation capabilities for 2030,” noted Richard Vaia, chief scientist for AFRL’s Materials and Manufacturing Directorate.

NextFlex is a research and development organization headquartered in San Jose, Calif., that offers FHE workforce training programs to federal customers. The institute’s members include representatives from industry, government and the academe.