Arconic, Airbus Reach Agreement to Make, Qualify Large Airframe Components

Arconic has announced a multi-year cooperative research agreement with Airbus to advance metal 3D printing for aircraft manufacturing. Together, the companies will develop customized processes and parameters to produce and qualify large, structural 3D-printed components, such as pylon spars and rib structures, to 3 ft. long. The deal combines Arconic’s expertise in metal additive manufacturing (AM) and metallurgy with Airbus’s design and qualification capabilities, building on its experience with regulatory agencies for certification.

Under this agreement, Arconic will use electron-beam high-deposition-rate technology to 3D print parts. This technology is ideally suited to produce larger aerospace components, according to Arconic officials, because it prints them as much as 100 times faster than technologies used to produce smaller, more intricate parts.