Drukarmija: 3D printing aid for Ukraine from Germany

Printing instead of hesitating Ukrainian Volunteers Print Critical War Components in Germany

2026-05-26 Source: dpa | Translated by AI 3 min Reading Time

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Ukraine also has an army based in Germany. The Drukarmija (Print Army) is a volunteer organisation that uses 3D printers to produce large quantities of small plastic parts ...

These components are used in drones. Drones are an inexpensive weapon that the Ukrainian military also uses in large quantities. Who would have thought that a volunteer group called Drukarmija in Germany would additively manufacture important components for this? ...(Source: Teresont) — These components are used in drones. Drones are an inexpensive weapon that the Ukrainian military also uses in large quantities. Who would have thought that a volunteer group called Drukarmija in Germany would additively manufacture important components for this? ...
(Source: Teresont)

The additive manufacturing systems of Drukarmija in Germany print almost everything that soldiers and emergency responders in Ukraine currently need for defence in the war. This naturally includes drone accessories, but also closure caps, tablet holders, battery and lamp housings, as well as medical supplies, which are additively manufactured from plastic, as reported. In Germany, volunteers take on the printing orders to support their compatriots in the war against Russia from here. Four devices, for example, operate around the clock in his garage. Those who produce a lot process between 10 and 15 kilograms of plastic per week, as reported. This does cost 400 to 500 euros (approx. 465 to 580 USD) per month, but they want to contribute to helping.

Ukrainian soldiers order their supplies online

Drukarmija is not the only 3D printing initiative in Ukraine, but according to its website, it is the largest, with almost 3,000 printing activists and about 7,000 3D printers. Around 600 people also participate from abroad. From a bunker in Kyiv, the printer army is managed, functioning like an online shop—and the whole process is free of charge. Soldiers at the front, paramedics, or firefighters report their needs. So-called curators upload the print orders online, and volunteers download the data for their printers and begin the additive manufacturing process. The parts are then sent to the curators, inspected, and finally forwarded to the front. From Germany, the plastic parts mostly travel to Ukraine as additional loads on small transporters or shared taxis. About 1,500 individual parts are available.

An unfairly belittled form of support

Drukarmija is one of thousands of civil society organisations whose voluntary efforts aim to ensure Ukraine's survival in the war. However, it is also part of a novel armaments industry with a start-up character. The head of the German defence company Rheinmetall recently dismissed this support as a group of Ukrainian housewives producing drone parts on 3D printers in their kitchens. Yet, the organisers of Drukarmija also laughed, as the war in Ukraine has shown that relatively inexpensive systems, such as drones, can easily destroy devices and systems worth millions and stop the Russian advance—comparable to the German Panzerfaust in World War II or the Exocet missile against ships. However, one must also be cautious about what is being printed.

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