For two days in December, 150 peers from the aerospace and defense industry gathered at the American Aerospace and Defense Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona. Here, they heard first-hand case studies and strategic insights from some of the most prominent manufacturers in the industry, including Airbus, Northrop Grumman, GE, United Technologies Corporation, Raytheon Missile Systems, Triumph Aerospace Structures, and Meggitt. Perhaps unsurprisingly, some of the key lessons delegates took away from the event were around lean deployment, how to embed a customer focus into every aspect of your business and, above all, organizational culture.
Read More →Additive Manufacturing in the Aerospace Industry
“With 3D printing, the old rules of how we design things are out the window,” said Terry Woychowski, VP, NA Test Operations at LINK in his talk on “The Brilliant Machine Age” at the American Automotive Summit. “You can now create a component exactly how you want it, without excess material.” The result is lighter, more cost-effective parts. The opportunities this presents are endless. We have previously covered additive manufacturing in the automotive industry, but the aerospace industry is another place we are seeing the effects of this new technology today. Despite the tremendous opportunities additive manufacturing presents, it is still a time-consuming process, and therefore best suited for high-end components used in low-volume products, such as aircraft. According to a recent study by ABI Research, due to the sheer size of the American aerospace industry and its defense budget, the U.S. aerospace and defense industries will drive much of the growth in additive manufacturing over the next ten years, producing additive manufactured parts and products with a value of US$17.8 billion in 2026.
Read More →