The markets: Aerospace (2021)
The coronavirus pandemic, a once-in-a-millennia global catastrophe, has depressed commercial air travel in unprecedented and disastrous ways. Implications start with the airlines themselves and trickle down to major airframers and the entire tier structure of the aerospace supply chain.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
Teijin Carbon Europe, UK NCC strengthen carbon fiber partnership
As a Tier 2 partner, Teijin Carbon Europe plans to provide carbon fiber non-crimp fabrics, thermoset and thermoplastic prepreg materials.
Narrow UD tapes to bridge the ATL-AFP gap
Automated tape laying and automated fiber placement are similar, but not the same. Can narrow tapes provide a middle ground with advantages of both processes for next-gen aircraft?
Reading tea leaves: The outlook for aerospace
The coronavirus pandemic promises to wreak havoc on the aerospace composites supply chain, but it’s not too soon to start thinking about how a post-pandemic commercial aerospace market will evolve.
GKN, Eviation collaborate on Alice all-electric aircraft
GKN Aerospace will be involved in the design and manufacture of the aircraft’s wings, empennage and electrical wiring interconnection systems (EWIS).
The black swan events hitting the composites industry
From the Boeing 787 to COVID-19: When the out-of-the-ordinary becomes ordinary — and affects the manufacturing supply chain.
National Composites Centre unveils digital composites technologies
The U.K.’s National Composites Centre unveils new composites manufacturing technologies, marking the culmination of a two-year, £36.7m digitization project.
Update: Lower wing skin, Wing of Tomorrow
Airbus is evaluating several advanced composites technologies as part of its Wing of Tomorrow program. Among these is liquid resin infusion of the lower wing skin, being developed by Spirit AeroSystems.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
Advancing thermoplastic composites and RTM for Clean Sky 2 in Spain
EURECAT leads projects for TPC keel beam, window frames and thermoset RTM fuselage frames with TPC shear ties for next-gen aircraft.
The markets: Aerospace (2020)
Despite the 737 MAX groundings, several new programs on the horizon portend increasing use of composites in commercial aerostructures for several decades.
Top composites news stories of 2019
The top 10 most viewed composites news stories of 2019.
Albany Engineered Composites to work on Wing of Tomorrow program
Albany has signed a two-year agreement with Airbus to apply its 3D reinforced composites technology to next-generation wing substructure applications.
AMRC Cymru research facility opens in North Wales
Among other projects, the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre Cymru will support the Airbus Wing of Tomorrow program.
Composites 2020: A Multitude of Markets
The manufacturing world likes to think of composites fabrication as a single, global entity that operates to serve its customers’ needs with a variety of highly engineered parts and structures.
Webinar presentation: Next-Generation Composites Materials and Processes (July 2020)
CompositesWorld hosted on July 28, 2020, a webinar titled, “Next-Generation Composite Materials and Processes.” If you missed the live webinar, you can watch the recording or download a PDF of the presentation.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
GKN Aerospace delivers RTM demonstrator tool for Wing of Tomorrow
The 4-meter mid-scale tool enables large-scale use of resin transfer molding to manufacture a composite wing spar with reduced costs and weight.
FACC receives Airbus "Innovation Award"
The award was presented to FACC for its contribution to composite components for the Airbus Wing of Tomorrow program.
Toray Advanced Composites, NCC sign R&D partnership agreement
As a Tier 1 member of the National Composites Centre, Toray Advanced Composites will collaborate with the the NCC on automotive and aerospace R&D programs.
GKN Aerospace breaks ground on UK Global Technology Centre
Twenty-five partners will also collaborate on the center, which will focus on research for additive manufacturing and advanced composites for aircraft.
2019 Paris Air Show: Highlights
The 2019 Paris Air Show may have lacked the glamour of a new aircraft program announcement, but the composites industry represented is clearly gearing up for next-generation aerospace manufacturing.
Spirit AeroSystems collaborates on Wing of Tomorrow program
Spirit emphasizes use of modeling and simulation software for composite resin infusion technology.
