Leverage the benefits of 3D printing
The aerospace and defense sectors have been leveraging the benefits of 3D printers for many years now. As such, additive technologies have already changed the way the sector thinks and operates.
Additive technologies enable innovation and experimentation. At the same time, additive manufacturing provides a competitive edge for advanced space and flight platforms by allowing for faster, cheaper and lighter production with chemically-resistant, high-strength and heat-resistant polymers, materials and resins. Advances in materials sciences have also enabled an explosion in real world and potential applications.
Example Applications:
Repair and Maintenance, Prototyping, R&D, Production Parts, Jigs, Fixtures, Tooling, Bridge / Gap Production, quality assurance (QA), Quality Inspection, on / off flight fabrication.
Example Benefits:
Consolidation of Bill of Materials (BOM) through part simplification
Design Freedom
Just-in-Time (JuT) Manufacturing
Distributed Production
Accelerated maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO)
Supply Chain Consolidation
Lightweighting for fuel consumption / costs / emission control
Reliable validation and QA processes
Tooling cost reductions
In house production of functional prototypes
Further Reading:
https://www.jabil.com/blog/3d-printing-in-aerospace-and-defense-manufacturing.html
https://www.3dsystems.com/industries/aerospace-defense
https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/14/tech/3d-printer-plane-airbus/index.html
