What is biomanufacturing?

Biomanufacturing is defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as “the use of biological systems to produce goods and services at commercial scale” [1] and by the United States Code Title 42 Chapter 163 Section 18901 as “the utilization of biological systems to develop new and advance existing products, tools, and processes at commercial scale” [2].

Biomanufacturing is a growing field of interest that leverages the innate capabilities of a biological system to produce a target compound outside of the system’s typical environment [3]. Synthetic biology (the engineering of biological systems – typically, genetic) enables biomanufacturing by providing organisms or biomolecules that can function in new contexts [3]. Biomanufacturing systems normally use fermentation within highly controlled bioreactors to produce material [4]. Fermentation attempts to create and optimize conditions experienced by the microorganism that maximize product output (or minimize byproduct development) [4]. After fermentation (often referred to as upstream processing), the products must be separated from irrelevant and undesirable material. This operation or set of operations is called downstream processing [5]. Successful biomanufacturing hinges on factors like feedstock availability, energy requirements, and capital investment, which can be barriers to a new technology [6].

Relevant Applications to the U.S. Department of War (DoW)

Point-of-Need Manufacturing

Biomanufacturing has the potential to reduce logistics challenges of transporting supplies to deployed units. Point-of-need manufacturing increases access to critical materials directly on-site without the need to rely on fragile supply chains that may break down in contested or austere environments [7]. Biomanufacturing has a broad span of potential applications for producing necessary materials in a forward-deployed environment.

Supply Chain Resiliency

Supply chain resiliency, or the ability to maintain production continuity despite unforeseen events, is a key concern to the DoW [8]. Global instabilities and environmental disasters often result in disrupted supply chains that inhibit access to critical materials for defense-related manufacturing, such as recent conflicts in the Middle East that have constricted the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz [6]. Biomanufacturing provides an avenue for resource diversification, preventing manufacturing disruptions when precursor materials are difficult to obtain or supply is volatile.

Industrial Sovereignty

Similar to supply chain resiliency, industrial sovereignty calls for “deglobalization” of manufacturing, which ensures self-sufficiency and resource independence in critical industries [9]. Industrial sovereignty is particularly relevant to the DoW; the need to rely on adversary nations for essential defense materials leaves military manufacturing susceptible to embargoes [9]. Biobased materials can reduce reliance on foreign manufacturers for key defense materials and bolster domestic supply chains [8].