Aerospace
Aerospace additive manufacturing has taken off. This industrial segment largely skipped the prototyping “era” and jumped right into researching AM for part production. The advantages of weight optimization for any object that leaves the ground are such that the benefits from topology optimization and generative, optimized lattice geometries, made possible by AM, were crystal clear from the very beginning. This is even truer for objects that need to reach orbit, as the space vehicle manufacturing industry shapes up to become a giant industrial segment over the next ten to twenty years.
AM for aerospace has seen some serious growth in adoption over the past decade. Everyone expected this segment to continue on its booming growth path over the next twenty years, driven by factors such as economic growth, rapidly expanding middle classes in emerging economies, liberalization of trade, and increasing tourism. The COVID-19 crisis dramatically modified this scenario and it appears clear that, while general aviation will eventually return to growth, other ongoing trends – such as the sustainability of air travel and more efficient production workflows- have been significantly accelerated.
Today, even as general aviation experiences one of the biggest crises in its century-long history, new segments of aviation and aerospace are expected to experience growth. Electric flight, new supersonic flight, VTOL‘s, personal fight devices, commercial aviation, drones, defense and space travel are going to change the way we experience flying. All these segments of the aerospace industry share very heavy use of AM for rapid prototyping of new parts, tooling, or optimized final parts.
Manufacturing of civil aircraft – that is planes for commercial and general aviation – emerged as the first industry sector where 3D printing was an established manufacturing modality. Important new opportunities will continue to emerge in this area in both metal AM and polymer AM, used for metal replacement and composites. Advancements in CAD, CAE, CAM and PLM software are driving the need for AM in general and commercial aviation manufacturing. More optimized, complex shapes and the need for a more automated production process make AM ideal for a growing number of production requirements.
The new aerospace industry does not have to wait for new, higher speed AM technologies. The productivity offered by current polymer powder bed fusion and even thermoplastic filament extrusion systems – as well as metal powder bed fusion and directed energy deposition systems- is already enough to meet demand. And the extensive range of high-performance materials now supported by these technologies is an ideal fit for many advanced flying parts.
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An Duong (MoreThan3D) publishes 1/48 scale 3D printed Starship model
An Duong is a Rolls Royce aerospace engineer and a great fan of SpaceX. On top of a great talent for designing 3D printable parts, he has a real passion for sharing 3D printing knowledge, awareness and educational projects. As a hobby, to both build on these passions and support…
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The Orion spacecraft is ready for its Moon Mission
NASA’s Orion spacecraft is ready for its mission to the Moon. Lockheed Martin has completed assembly and testing of the Orion Artemis I spacecraft and has transferred possession to NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) team today. Assembled at Kennedy Space Center, the EGS team will then perform final preparations on…
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Challenging titanium parts for XB-1 aircraft get 3D printed on VELO3D Sapphire system
Having established a relationship with VELO3D on some trial parts in 2019, the Boom Supersonic team chose the company’s next-generation laser powder-bed fusion (LPBF) technology to produce a number of printed titanium parts for XB-1 aircraft tests (a right and a left version for many of them), located in critical…
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Norsk Titanium delivers Boeing 787 3D printed components to Leonardo
Norsk Titanium delivered new Boeing 787 Dreamliner components to Leonardo’s Grottaglie Plant, based in South Italy and part of Leonardo’s Aerostructures Division. Norsk is a Norwegian-American firm providing additive manufacturing of aerospace-grade titanium components (using proprietary RPD technology). This delivery adds a third production customer to Norsk’s growing commercial aerostructures…
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NASA JPL releases spectacular trailer for Perseverance’s upcoming Mars landing
NASA’s Perseverance rover, which is scheduled to land on the Red Planet on Feb. 18, 2021, carries 11 metal parts made with 3D printing (some of which were produced by Carpenter Technology as we reported in this exclusive interview for 3dpbm’s AM Focus 2020 Service Providers eBook). In anticipation of…
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Aerojet Rocketdyne to be acquired by Lockheed Martin for $5.0 billion
AM adopting rocket engine manufacturing company Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AJRD) has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) in an all-cash transaction with a total equity value of $5.0 billion. Under the terms of the agreement, which has been unanimously approved…
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3D printed satellite deployer AlbaPod V2 set to take off on Space X Falcon 9 rocket
The European Space Agency (ESA) recently highlighted Alba Orbital’s cutting edge 3D printed satellite dispenser, AlbaPod V2, manufactured by CRP Technology using laser sintering technology and the proprietary, patented Windform XT 2.0 Carbon-reinforced composite material. AlbaPod V2 is currently the only operational, flight-proven PocketQube Deployer on the market. In a…
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