GKN Aerospace to Lead Research Collaboration in Additive Manufacturing
ATI Program will potentially create structures with 50 percent lighter geometries than existing structures.
GKN Aerospace will lead a consortium of UK companies in a research and development program called Horizon (AM), building on its additive manufacturing capabilities. The Horizon (AM) team includes GKN Aerospace, Renishaw, Delcam and the Universities of Sheffield and Warwick, and is backed by the UK’s Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI).
Horizon (AM) will take a number of additive manufacturing techniques from R&D through to viable production processes. Its goal is to develop processes capable of producing near-net components as much as 50 percent lighter than their conventional counterparts, with complex geometries not cost-effectively manufactured yet. It is expected that the new processes will lead to innovations in low-drag, high-performance wing designs and lighter, more efficient engine systems.
