dc.description.abstract | Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies have a profound impact on the aviation industry,
they are continuously expanding their share in the aerospace supply chain, providing better
revenues, turnaround times, and lower CO2 emissions. Despite the huge expansion that has
taken place over the last decades, it seems that the aerospace industry has barely scratched
the surface of the enormous potential AM has to offer.
At the beginning of their use in the aerospace industry, additive technologies were used for
nonfunctional parts (e.g. rapid prototyping), rapid tooling (e.g. molds), and non-critical parts
such as assembly jigs, testing equipment, fixtures and accessories in the airplanes. Now, AM is
used for the fabrication of some of the most critical aircraft components with high structural
demand such as jet engine turbine blades and combustion chambers, wings and fuselages of
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), etc. As the aviation industry continues to embrace AM, the
technologies are used in a variety of ways that were unthinkable just a few years ago, and new
uses that could not have been imagined before are appearing almost daily.
As the safe operation of aerospace products is of utmost importance, standards and
regulations have a critical role in the aerospace industry. AM technologies, while still in its
infancy, made such a fast and extensive impact on the aerospace industry that the aviation
authorities were not been able to provide adequate standards infrastructure and
recommended practices for the design, build, and safe operation of AM parts in such a short
period. This is one of the biggest challenges for wider use of the AM, and a large amount of
research and effort is invested so that standardization of AM for aerospace progresses at the
right pace.
This keynote, will present the current status of AM technologies in the aerospace industry,
give an overview of different AM technologies in use and point out their advantages and
disadvantages. Additionally, it will discuss problems with the developments of standards and
recommendations for this application. | sr |