BigRep and Etihad Airways Engineering have announced plans to collaborate to define a roadmap for the development of the next generation of additive manufacturing (AM) solutions for the aerospace industry.
The companies aim to employ new approaches to realize the full potential of AM technology, also known as 3-D printing, for the production of cabin parts. The goal of the partnership is to accelerate the use of AM equipment in the aviation sector with a focus on cabin interior parts for new aircraft, as well as for the retrofit market.
Berhard Randerath, Vice President Engineering, Design & Innovation at Etihad Airways Engineering, commented on the strategic partnership. "Etihad Airways Engineering and BigRep share a vision to bring the 3-D-printed cabin into production, together with our partners. Our goal is to enable 3-D-printing technologies for cabin parts - be it on new aircraft programs or for retrofit installations - to serve our airline customers with innovative and smart solutions."
Stephan Beyer, CEO (interim) and CFO of BigRep GmbH, said, "We believe that Etihad Airways Engineering, with its expertise, is the perfect fit to cooperatively shape the industrialization of AM for the aviation industry. We believe that we offer the best AM solutions today with our BigRep equipment, but to unfold the full potential of our technology for the aerospace sector, we have to jointly certify new aviation materials and establish specific AM design and engineering guidelines in parallel."
The partners agree that there is a need for a wider spectrum of AM-suitable polymer materials that can pass the aerospace certification process. At present, one of the main factors prohibiting a breakthrough of AM for aircraft cabin interiors is the absence of a broader variety of high-performance materials that are EASA and FAA-certified. Both parties have agreed to jointly develop and test new material grades in accordance with EASA and FAA criteria.
For more information contact:
Etihad Airways Engineering
etihadengineering.com
BigRep
https://bigrep.com/events/