2017 will be an important milestone year for AFRL as it celebrates its establishment via the creation of the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate (AFRL/RX). The Directorate was established in 1917 as the Materials Section of the U.S. Army Signal Corps at McCook Field in Dayton, Ohio. From those early years of plywood and cloth to current initiatives in additive manufacturing, the Materials and Manufacturing Directorate’s dedicated team of scientists and engineers continue to advance warfighter technologies.

Today, the directorate leads a comprehensive research and development program with nearly 1,000 full-time scientists and engineers operating more than 300 laboratory modules at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Their world-class workforce ensures the Air Force is the leader in materials applications and manufacturing processes to defend the United States against all adversaries today and tomorrow.

As part of a yearlong celebration the Air Force Research Laboratory Materials and Manufacturing Directorate (AFRL/RX) has partnered with renowned military publisher Faircount Media Group, publisher of DefenseMediaNetwork.com, in the production of a special commemorative publication, Celebrating a Century of Scientific Excellence, a high quality publication in print and digital format that tells the story of the esteemed history of the directorate, highlights the history of materials manufacturing and the impact on the world today, looks at 100 of AFRL/RX’s greatest accomplishments, and reviews the many partnerships over the century with business and academia and, what the future holds.