Page 45 - MetalForming July 2019

SmartRunner technology by Pepperl+Fuchs combines light-section technology, 2D vision sensors with inte- grated LEDs and a vision camera, for demanding detection tasks, such as distinguishing grey rivets on grey, stamped airplane parts.
ity, and bigger parts.
At Whitcraft Group, whose fabricat-
ing business is 95-percent aerospace with a customer list that includes Pratt Whitney, GE and Rolls Royce, CEO Doug Folsom believes that 3D printing has the potential to change his busi- ness. “The change will be more of an evolution, rather than a revolution, but we want to be proactive, which led us to acquire the Form 3D Solutions,” he says. Whitcraft uses metal 3D printing
for weld fixtures featuring inlet tubes to enable precision welding. “With 3D printing,” Folsom explains, “you have the ability to add inlets and holes where needed.”
Whitcraft’s bread and butter, for now, continues to be traditional metal
stamping and fabricating. With 20-plus years’ experience with GE Aviation before becoming Whitcraft CEO in 2018, Folsom knows a thing or two about meeting the needs of aerospace customers. A Tier-One airframe part requiring forming finesse serves as an
Viewpoint: Sourcing Trends, Tariffs and More
As president and CEO of Thomas, provider of product sourcing, supplier selection and marketing solutions for industry, Tony Uphoff stays abreast of global trends, issues and policies affecting aero- space. MetalForming recently asked Uphoff for his insights on the supply chain, tariffs and the future of aerospace.
MetalForming: When it comes to aerospace, what are you tracking and what are your data showing?
Uphoff: We look at a broad set of categories to determine aero- space-industry sourcing trends. Our eight most active aerospace- related product/service categories are contract manufacturing, machining, fasteners, heat treating, painting, welding, CNC machin- ing and composite structures. Our data show that these categories collectively have seen a 1.3-percent increase in sourcing activity year-over-year. However, over the past 12 weeks (as of this writing), sourcing activity for these categories is 10 percent above its histori- cal average. After a strong 2018 for the industry, analysts expect growth to continue through 2019, led by growing commercial-air- craft production and continued strong defense spending. At least as far as Q1, our data seems to bear out analysts’ predictions.
MetalForming: Please comment on the Boeing 737 Max trou- bles and its impact on the aerospace supply chain.
Uphoff: In April, Boeing began cutting its production down to 42 airplanes per month, after expectations called for 57 per month. This will affect suppliers up and down its supply chain. While it would be reasonable to expect Boeing’s main competitor, Europe’s Airbus, to pick up new orders in the wake of this, in the short term Airbus may not have the capacity to push its output higher, with Boeing and Airbus accounting for 99 percent of the global market for large commercial aircraft. Whether Boeing successfully addresses the 737 Max issues and continues long-term produc- tion, or replaces it with a new design, remains unknown. Meanwhile, Airbus also faces its own challenges and recently announced that it is abandoning production of its A380 in 2021, citing a lack of customers for the superjumbo jet. While the Boeing and Airbus scenarios will affect their respective companies and suppliers in the supply chains for those specific aircraft, the indus-
try as a whole still expects a strong year driven by increasing pas- senger travel demand.
MetalForming: What is your ‘crystal ball’ telling you about tar- iffs and aerospace?
Uphoff: The escalating trade war with China grabs most of the headlines, but something else to keep an eye on is the saber rat- tling between The Trump Administration and the European Union (EU). In retaliation for what it deems to be unfair subsidies the EU gives to Airbus, which the World Trade Organization ruled to be accurate, the United States is threatening to impose tariffs on aero- space-related items such as non-military helicopters, aircraft, air- craft fuselages and aircraft undercarriages from EU countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Spain. While the impact of the China metal tariffs have left an impact on the industry since last summer, creating both winners and losers among domestic suppliers, should these new EU tariffs come into play, we could be looking at a significant amount of work in the aforementioned aerospace-related categories coming back to U.S. manufacturers and suppliers. Ultimately, whether it is China, the EU or America, our economies are largely interdependent, so the hope should be that all sides work out agreements that keep a level play- ing field and benefit all involved.
MetlForming: What does the future of aerospace look like?
Uphoff: A growing percentage of metal forming for aerospace applications involve metal 3D printing, as opposed to traditional machining or stamping processes. We are already seeing it, and in fact, a recent study by Research and Markets forecasts a growth rate of 23 percent between 2017 and 2021 for the AM market applied to the aerospace sector. As advancements in 3D printing and materials continue, suppliers will be able to create incredibly strong yet lightweight structures for aircraft manufacturers, who always look for every possible way to reduce weight and minimize the space required by components. I, along with other aerospace- industry analysts, expect continued growth, at least in the short term, as commercial-passenger demand and global defense spend- ing remain strong.
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