Understanding Your ATR Chassis Manufacturing Options

This white paper examines ATR chassis manufacturing options for rugged deployed defense systems and explains how different production methods affect environmental performance, cost, schedule, thermal performance, and design flexibility.

Atrenne compares three manufacturing approaches: aluminum brazed construction, bolted and bonded construction, and aluminum 3D printed additive manufacturing. Brazed ATR chassis provide proven rugged performance but can involve lead times of 26 weeks or more. Atrenne’s bolted and bonded approach significantly reduces lead time and rework risk while maintaining thermal characteristics similar to a brazed chassis. Aluminum 3D printing provides the greatest design flexibility and can produce a custom chassis in approximately six weeks, making it especially useful for prototypes, fit checks, one-off designs, and low-volume programs.

The paper also reviews ATR form factors, cooling approaches, relevant military and industry standards, and the design trade-offs that program teams should consider when selecting the manufacturing process best suited to their requirements.