Advancements in Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Technologies for Aerospace Structural Spares

As aerospace and defense assets continue to age and exceed the lives they were expected to be in service, the need for spares and repairs continues to increase.  Advanced manufacturing concepts such as Additive Manufacturing (AM) are required in order to reduce spare part lead times and the need for costly, long lead tooling.  This presentation will walk through the AM technologies that are being used on Boeing aircrafts today.  A focus will be on the push towards larger and more structural applications that are being enabled by rapid advancements in Additive Manufacturing technologies and available materials.  Key technologies of interest are Additive Friction Stir Deposition (AFSD), Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), Large Scale Cold Spray, and Large Scale Directed Energy Deposition (DED).  The ability to print 7000 series aluminums, Ti-6Al-4V, and various steel forgings is now a reality. Following heat treat these materials have been proven to meet or beat traditional plate and bar stock forging ASTM and ASM standard properties.  This has resulted in a game changer for Additive Manufacturing insertion possibilities.