GE Additive
Additively manufactured sump cover for the F110 engine.
GE Aviation has received Engineering Change Proposal approval from the US Air Force (USAF) for an F110 additively manufactured sump cover.
It is the first engine component designed for and produced with metal 3D printing technology to be qualified by any US Department of Defence organisation. A GE Additive Concept Laser M2 machine at the GE Additive Technology Center in Cincinnati was used to produce the sump cover in cobalt-chrome material.
Having successfully qualified the part, the US Air Force has commended GE’s deep metal additive manufacturing expertise and its ‘in-depth knowledge’ of commercial aerospace engine airworthiness for flightworthy 3D printed metal parts. The organisation has said that this expertise has proved instrumental in the establishment of robust process validation and certification processes. A close collaboration and strategy of knowledge sharing, the Air Force says, has helped in continuously identifying, reverse engineering and developing technical data packages for large and complex parts that are suitable for metal 3D printing.
“Much like the GE90 T25 sensor that was an FAA certification pathfinder for metal additive manufacturing for GE Aviation in commercial aerospace, the F110 sump cover sets a solid foundation for many more additively manufactured component qualifications with GE’s military customers,” commented Matt Szolwinski, Chief Engineer and Leader of GE’s Large Military Engineering team.
The airworthiness qualification of the printed component brings an end to the Pacer Edge Phase 1a programme to an end, less than a year after it started. Phase 1b of the programme is already underway and is focusing on an out-of-production sump cover housing on the TF34 engine, which has been in service for more than 40 years. It has been said that subsequent phases of the Pace Edge programme will see the development of a metal additive manufacturing supply chain which will be capable of producing airworthy components in support of the DoD’s sustainment needs at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma.
“The Pacer Edge programme is an important initiative for reducing risk and showcasing the application of additive manufacturing in aerospace,” offered Nathan Parker, Deputy Program Executive Officer for the USAF Rapid Sustainment Office. “The ability to additively manufacture an aircraft engine part and gain military airworthiness is a significant step forward in growing the adoption of additive manufacturing in the Air Force.”
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