Flying High with Airbus

Materialise, in partnership with EOS, has become the first supplier to qualify to provide Airbus with a new material - EOS PA 2241 FR – which can be used to create 3D printed, flight-ready parts.

The newly approved material is a flame-retardant Polyamide12-based material which is used for processing in laser sintering systems. Due to its high refresh rate, it enables cost-effective production while meeting the strict quality standards required of flight-ready parts. Typical aerospace applications include aircraft interior parts such as air ducts and brackets. The material is suitable for parts which must fulfil fire, smoke and toxicity requirements, without use of a primer and top coating. The announcement marks a significant milestone for the wider adoption of polymer 3D printing in aerospace.

Materialise currently prints around 100 different part numbers for the Airbus A350, some 26,000 parts per year across the A350 ecosystem. The company is also set to supply parts for other Airbus aircraft platforms including the A320, A330, and A340.

“This achievement consolidates our long-term partnership with Airbus, and it also opens up additional 3D printing applications to Airbus and its suppliers. Laser sintering is one of the most widely used 3D printing technologies and enables complex design features such as interlocking mechanisms. It’s an honour for Materialise to be Airbus’s first manufacturer for the technology,” commented Bart Van der Schueren, Materialise CTO.

Southampton Science Park is proud to be home to Materialise in the UK.