Big Ideas Lab podcast examines collaborative manufacturing at Polymer Enclave

The latest episode of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL) Big Ideas Lab podcast explores how engineers and scientists are reducing the time it takes to design and deliver critical components for the U.S. nuclear deterrent — by rethinking how design and manufacturing teams work together. Listen here on Spotify or Apple.

The episode features LLNL’s Polymer Enclave, a 15,000-square-foot facility and collaborative production environment where multidisciplinary teams rapidly develop polymer-based components — such as seals, shock absorbers and thermal barriers — that are engineered to operate under the extreme conditions found in nuclear weapons systems.

“These parts are custom made to meet specific engineering and physics requirements,” said Robert Maxwell, program director for Manufacturing and Materials Transformation at LLNL. “There is no commercial, easily manufacturable option to do this.”

Established in 2021, the enclave represents a shift in how LLNL collaborates with the Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC), which is responsible for production. Rather than handing off completed designs, the two sites now work in parallel using mirrored tools and processes. The result is a faster, more responsive pipeline for national security manufacturing.

“In the past, it could take up to eight years to go from a concept to a usable part,” Maxwell said. “Now, we’re doing that work in a matter of months for some components.”

Speed, integration and shared insight

Historically, nuclear weapons design and production are handled by separate agencies — with significant delays between design and manufacturing. The Polymer Enclave was created to close that gap, enabling collaboration in real time, both on-site and through identical systems between Livermore and Kansas City.

The episode details how the enclave model was designed to address those challenges. At the Polymer Enclave, teams work side by side — physically or virtually — enabling faster iterations, shared visibility into technical hurdles and improved design agility.

Jessica Bailey, director of Advanced Manufacturing Engineering at KCNSC, said the model is helping both sites better understand each other’s constraints while reducing delays and improving coordination.

“Twenty or thirty years ago, once a design was done, it was thrown over the wall, so to speak, and the production agency had to figure it out on their own,” Bailey said. “With the enclave, we’re working together from the beginning. This integrated approach creates shared visibility into design challenges and speeds up decision-making.”

An early test under pressure

That collaboration was tested early in the enclave’s existence. In one case, the team was given 18 months to produce a complex component that had never been made using additive manufacturing. At the time, only flat, 2D parts had been developed.

“One of the designers said, ‘I need this in 18 months, and we don’t know how to make it,’” Maxwell said. “Normally that would take three to five years. But we succeeded.”

To meet the deadline, the team developed new capabilities for multi-material 3D printing and built out the necessary infrastructure, ultimately delivering the part and executing the test on schedule.

A culture of collaboration

To ensure consistency, LLNL and KCNSC implemented mirrored setups with identical tools, processes and materials across both locations. This approach reduces uncertainty, supports continuous learning and allows both sites to make informed decisions from shared data.

Bailey and Maxwell emphasized that the Polymer Enclave is as much about collaboration as it is about technology.

“The enclave isn’t just a building,” Bailey said. “It’s a mindset. It’s about breaking down silos and learning from each other. The spirit of the enclave is still alive. It’s in how we approach problems together, how we move faster and how we support national security.”

“The most important thing is the people — the chemists, the designers, the engineers — all working together from the beginning,” Maxwell said.

The episode is available on Apple and Spotify.