On October 21, 2026, Weld Australia announced it has joined the Additive Manufacturing Cooperative Research Centre (AMCRC) as an associate partner, connecting the nation's welders and manufacturers to the next-generation manufacturing technology network. CEO Geoff Crittenden framed the move as "additive manufacturing is the next chapter of welding," making clear that wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) and welding share the same metallurgical, process and skills foundations. Under the partnership, Weld Australia contributes welding engineering, qualification and certification, training and standards development capabilities to the AMCRC, supporting metal additive manufacturing's transition from prototyping to volume production in safety-critical sectors such as defence, maritime, infrastructure, resources and energy. Member companies gain access to an innovation ecosystem worth AUD 57.5 million, including joint R&D projects, research partners and skills training channels. AMCRC Managing Director Simon Marriott stressed that the welding industry's decades of accumulated materials, process and standards expertise are a critical foundation for scaling metal AM. The shared skills base between WAAM and welding is becoming the underlying logic for expanding metal additive manufacturing capacity: Australia is converting its existing welding workforce directly into AM productivity. This "skills reuse" pathway offers a reference point for major manufacturing nations and implies that the capacity bottleneck for metal AM may shift from equipment to process qualification and personnel certification. Value for powder buyers: (1) As WAAM scales, demand will be structured primarily around wire with powder as a supplement, so powder suppliers can position themselves across both wire and powder lines; (2) Australia's sovereign manufacturing build-out in defence and maritime will create incremental demand for titanium alloy and nickel-based superalloy powders and wires; (3) SME pilot projects within the AUD 57.5 million ecosystem offer a low-barrier channel for domestic powders to enter the Oceania market.