Ahead of TCT 3Sixty, Matthew Bailey, Lead Technologist – Structures, Manufacturing & Materials at the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) discusses growing the number of flying AM parts designed and manufactured by a UK-based supply chain. Catch Matthew at TCT 3Sixty on the Insights Stage on June 4th at 10:30.
Matthew Bailey
Since 2014 the ATI has been working with the UK Government, industry and academia to support the development of advanced technologies for civil aerospace – focusing on technologies in which the UK already has a global lead, as well as new technologies for which the UK needs to develop a capability to meet future market demand, and backing this up with a funding programme that has invested 3.64 billion GBP to date.
Published in September 2024, the ATI’s Additive Manufacturing (AM) Strategy & Roadmap set out a bold vision for 2030: to realise an order of magnitude growth in the number of flying AM parts in civil aerospace, designed and delivered by a fully-capable end-to-end UK supply chain.
Anticipating that the next generation of civil aerospace programmes will launch towards the end of this decade, technologies such as AM need to be mature and ready, and with a capable supply chain, in order to secure their position in the manufacturing of future aircraft. If this window of opportunity is missed, there is a real danger that AM could be locked out for a generation of aircraft, meaning that the UK continues to miss out on the potential benefits.
It was clear, from the consultation that led to this strategy, that there is a level of established capability in AM in the UK aerospace sector, and yet only a handful of critical flying components are in service. This is despite the fact that there have been significant investments into AM through both the ATI Programme (in excess of £120m) and beyond.
The reasons behind this are numerous and varied: from lack of clarity about future products to a perception of stagnation as we’ve advanced through the technological hype curve; from confusion about which of the myriad of solutions is best, to a lack of critical experience to qualify, certify and manufacture in the supply chain.
However, the purpose of the Additive Manufacturing Strategy & Roadmap was to focus the efforts of the ATI AM Community of Practice (CoP). This group, co-ordinated by the ATI and National Centre for AM (NCAM) at the MTC, brings together leading aerospace organisations that are highly active in AM in the UK, spanning both civil and defence. The aim of the group is to work together to enable the widespread adoption of AM in the UK aerospace sector.
The strategy has two major streams: utilising the technology that we have today and focusing on maturing the next generation of technologies. On the first point, it’s about building the skills, capability and capacity to deliver AM parts. But it’s also around how we optimise the entire end-to-end process and streamline the qualification and certification processes. The major aerospace OEMs can certify AM components, but how do we do this as efficiently as possible? The second theme, with one eye on the future, focuses on the next generation of AM machines and further optimisation in the end-to-end process to continue to drive down the cost of production – as well as unleashing the full potential of AM and the fundamentally digital nature of the process.
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Exhibit at the UK's definitive and most influential 3D printing and additive manufacturing event, TCT 3Sixty.
Having established a strategy, the group focus is now on delivery. Through the group we are agreeing the initial focus areas and looking at how we can deliver collaborative programmes. Unsurprisingly, the initial focuses are expected to be around Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) & metrology, post-processing optimisation, enabling larger part manufacturing and next generation materials. But this AM CoP group can’t deliver in isolation and the engagement of organisations along the length and breadth of the supply chain will be critical to successful delivery. Therefore, we welcome your engagement if you believe you can support us in the delivery of our vision.
More widely, the ATI’s funding programmes remain open to supporting innovations and developments in AM and on the back of the AM strategy there has been a healthy level of interest in new funded projects to supplement the existing portfolio.
Additive manufacturing has many potential benefits for a future aerospace sector that is more sustainable. However, we are at a critical juncture and the developments and scaling we do now will help ensure that AM truly takes off with the next generation of civil aircraft programmes.
TCT 3Sixty will take place on 4-5th June at the NEC Birmingham. Register for your free ticket and start planning your agenda with the TCT event app.
This article originally appeared inside TCT Europe Edition Vol. 33 Issue 3. Subscribe here to receive your FREE print copy of TCT Magazine, delivered to your door six times a year.
