Additive manufacturing applications and implementation in aerospace

Abstract

Many aerospace companies are turning to additive manufacturing solutions to stream-line current production processes and open opportunities for on-demand producibility. While many OEMs are drawn to the appeal of the benefits that additive manufacturing brings, they are beginning to understand the difficulties in what it takes to realize those benefits. This paper analyzes additive manufacturing from an industry perspective down to a company perspective to develop a deeper understanding of the practical use cases as well as the various challenges a company faces should they choose to enter this market. This study begins with market research on the additive manufacturing and aerospace industry before honing in on a several use-case parts from rotary aircraft. Selection criterion were created and applied to analyze the value that additive manufacturing would bring in comparison to that of conventional methods, ultimately determining its feasibility for additive manufacturing.

This study applied the selection criterion to various parts of differing functions among the aircraft, resulting in a group of candidate parts. An evaluation method was created and applied to provide an objective assessment on the candidate parts. Initial insights show that additive manufacturing favor casted parts with features that can be optimized to increase performance and reduce costs and weight. In addition, aerospace has the best product mix of low volume parts that are advantageous to the economies of scale for additive manufacturing. Additionally, this study analyzes a company's organization and previous additive manufacturing efforts to propose ways to approach future development. Venturing through the various road maps that lead to the final goal of certification and addressing organizational barriers generate momentum for continuous development.

These road maps, selection criterion, and evaluation method can be applied through many applications within the general aerospace industry.