For the first time, Airbus used 3D printing to mass produce a component. After 3D printing, the weight of the part is reduced by 45% and the cost is reduced by 25%.
For the first time, Airbus used 3D printing to mass produce a component. On Friday, Airbus Helicopters, an Airbus subsidiary, announced that the locking shaft of the Airbus A350 passenger cabin door may soon be mass-produced using a metal 3D printer. The locking shaft parts will be manufactured layer by layer in titanium in professional EOS printers. After the part is 3D printed, the weight can be reduced by 45%, and the production cost can be reduced by 25%. Eventually, the weight of the A350 aircraft will be reduced by more than 4 kg. In aviation, airplane weight plays an important role, because airplane weight determines the amount of kerosene consumed.
Under conditions of high-speed production, Airbus Helicopters plans to complete Airbus' orders for 2,200 locked shafts each year. 3D printing production is expected to begin next year. Luis Martin Diaz, the head of Airbus Helicopters, said that plans to start preparing 3D printed production of helicopter parts in 2018.
It is generally believed that 3D printing technology is particularly suitable for flexible production (referring to the highly flexible manufacturing equipment mainly based on computer numerical control machine tools to achieve multi-variety, small batch production). In this way, parts can be produced in small quantities in a customized way. So far, 3D printing technology has rarely been used for large-scale mass production, because as the number of production increases, the cost will hardly decrease, and 3D printers are usually relatively time-consuming.