A collaboration led by the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS) is working on a Hybrid Direct Energy Deposition (DED) project with key aerospace businesses to improve its sustainability.
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The ‘Hybrid Direct Energy Deposition (DED) Sprint’ project, which includes Airbus and Safran Landing Systems as collaborators, aims to reduce costs while also reducing lead times and improving sustainability in critical component manufacturing through a combination of forging, forming, and additive manufacturing.
The project’s partners include NMIS Digital Factory, Cranfield University, and the Northern Ireland Technology Centre (NITC) based at Queen’s University Belfast, as well as an industry steering group of 13 companies. It is funded by the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) and supported by the High Value Manufacturing Catapult.
The group is developing a novel hybrid DED technique to help manufacturers overcome present issues related to the costly and time-consuming process of producing crucial components required to operate in severe environments.
In order to’streamline and future-proof production,’ the approach combines forging’s cheap prices and flexibility, forming’s high production rates, and additive manufacturing’s design adaptability (AM). It also contains the advantages of parallel kinematic machine (PKM) approaches, which combine robot dexterity with machine tool precision.
Traditionally, important aerospace parts, such as those found in an aircraft’s landing gear, are forged and then machined, but employing Hybrid DED techniques can eliminate the need for tooling, forging, and machining.
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Using AM to add features directly to forged and formed substrates results in a more efficient production process with reduced material waste. This also opens the door to novel repair and remanufacturing processes.
While the team is presently focusing on the aerospace industry, the technology will be relevant across a wide range of industries, including oil and gas, defense, space, and automobiles.
Cranfield University and NMIS, which is run by Strathclyde University, are in charge of the first two project stages. They are now working on delivering a demonstration component later this year.
The NITC will lead the third phase, which will focus on PKM machining, while the final proof-of-concept phase will compare traditional and alternative production approaches.
“This project has the potential to deliver more efficient alternative manufacturing routes for aerospace companies, as well as key industry drivers such as reduced embodied emissions, remanufacturing, and more resilient supply chains,” said project principal investigator Stephen Fitzpatrick, additive manufacturing and machining lead at the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland.
NMIS, Cranfield University, and the NITC are collaborating closely with the steering committee to ensure that project outputs are in line with industry standards, reducing the risk of future steps such as qualification and certification of Hybrid DED components.
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