CW Blog
Battle of the composite wings
A closer look at the wings of the Airbus A350-1000 and the Boeing 777X.
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Automated preform process boosts properties and cuts cycle time
Fiber Patch Placement (FPP) achieves optimized fiber orientation for up to 150% increase in stiffness and reduced cycle time, weight and material waste.
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Looking to lighten up aircraft interiors? Try natural fibers!
Aircraft OEMs are striving to make their products more efficient, with improved engines and ever-increasing use of composite materials, including in aircraft interiors.
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Large-format CNC routing for large CFRP parts
5-axis CNC routers can provide fast, precision machining of increasingly larger parts, but also rapid payback.
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New tornado panels made from composites
The UAB panels were approved by the National Storm Shelter Association to hold up against an EF5 tornado.
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Structural health monitoring: NDT-integrated aerostructures
SHM moves from structural testing to an FAA-qualified inspection alternative, to reduce cost, streamline operations and mature toward lighter, more robust smart structures
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Aeroengine Composites, Part 1: The CMC invasion
As pressure for commercial aircraft fuel efficiency continues to mount, ceramic matrix composites evolve as they battle metals for application in the engine hot-zone and elsewhere.
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Additive manufacturing: The past, present — and future — of composites
A regular CW columnist and the chief commercialization officer for the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), Dale Brosius offers this insightful look into why it's unwise to use the terms "3D printing" and "additive manufacturing" interchangeably.
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Composites lighten driving simulator dome
A first for its codevelopers, Pagnotta Engineering Inc. (PEI, Exton, PA, US) and JRL Ventures (Cape Coral, FL, US), this low-mass enclosure spawned a new product venture for the pair in research-oriented driving simulation systems.
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IP vigilance: Good business?
CW editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan observes that in the composites industry, where much of what is considered to be trade secrets and proprietary knowledge really isn't, a better course might be to share that knowledge and, thus, advance the industry as a whole.
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Designing with composites: Optimizing for performance and manufacturing
David Leigh Hudson, the director of product and market strategy for the Fibersim product portfolio at Siemens PLM Software (Waltham, MA, US), the need in the field of composite part design for a serious commitment to what he terms "concurrent engineering" processes.
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