Future Platform Materials Program

The objective of the Future Platform Materials (FPM) Program is to advance the Technical Readiness Level of advanced ferrous alloy systems identified as candidates for transition to future naval platforms. The primary role of this program is technical: to collaborate with entities within the government and in industry to plan, generate, and provide data necessary to evaluate ship impacts of new structural materials, provide data necessary to fulfill material certification requirements, and evaluate the trade space for materials in various applications both shipboard and for application to other stakeholder platforms.

In pursuit of these goals, the joint mission of the FPM program participants is to evaluate and characterize production scalability of next-generation structural steel systems, identify industrial production gaps for each alloy system that will need to be addressed to initiate certification activities and inform follow on prototyping efforts, and develop draft procurement specifications for applicable product forms including castings, forgings, plate, and welding consumables.

Colorado School of Mines
January 2026

The Colorado School of Mines started in 1874, before Colorado was incorporated as a state in 1876, and has developed into a world-renowned institution that continually enhances its leadership in education and research to serve and advance industry, government agencies and communities around the world. The university offers primarily STEM degrees, with a strong emphasis on engineering including the Metallurgical and Materials Engineering department, which has a significant focus on physical metallurgy, extractive metallurgy, and ceramics amongst many other areas. The department and university houses several industry-focused research centers including the Advanced Steel Processing and Products Research Center (ASPPRC), the Center for Welding, Joining, and Coatings Research, the Center for Advanced Non-Ferrous Structural Alloys, and the Alliance for the Development of Additive Process Technologies. The ASPPRC has 28 sponsors who are producers and users of steel products, working in products related to defense, transportation, energy, etc., and is helping organize the Future Platforms meeting.