{"id":3375,"date":"2020-01-20T18:00:40","date_gmt":"2020-01-20T23:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/thought-leadership\/?p=3375"},"modified":"2026-03-26T12:09:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T16:09:24","slug":"building-the-future-of-aerospace-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/thought-leadership\/building-the-future-of-aerospace-part-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Building the future of Aerospace Part II"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In yesterday\u2019s blog<\/a> I talked about the unusual trends driving 6,000 startups to enter the aerospace and defense industry. Digitalization and a new era of mobility and space exploration are pushing us at an innovative pace I haven\u2019t seen in my 30+ years in the industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re in an amazing period of transition lead by such\nadvancements in digital twin and digital thread capabilities. I encourage you\nto read my blog \u201cBuilding the future of Aerospace Part I if you haven\u2019t\nalready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog, I\u2019ll talk about some examples of how the digital\ntwin is going beyond product design and enhancing the production and\nperformance of the product itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The future of\nproduction \u2013 additive manufacturing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Additive manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, is revolutionizing how parts are designed, built and assembled. This technology paves the way to implement new materials and manufacturing technology. For instance, the geometry of a part can change when not constrained by a typical design or manufacturing process and enable putting the materials only where they are needed. A major benefit: weight and cost reduction, which are huge issues in aerospace. (Figure 1)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 1: This simplified example of additive manufacturing shows the changes of the original design of a landing gear so that it\u2019s lighter weight but maintains its strength.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Additive manufacturing goes beyond making individual parts \u2014\nit\u2019s also enhancing products by unitizing more structures in ways we could\nnever imagine. Light weighting of structures and additive manufacturing is one\nway our customers can obtain the results they need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh, and here\u2019s a wild approach that some companies are\nworking on: within space exploration, additive manufacturing has the capability\nof moving the factory from the Earth into space where products can be printed\non-demand.  This enables much lighter\nstructures since they aren\u2019t subjected to loads seen during launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AR\/VR \u2013 changing people,\nprocesses and tools<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are two\nexciting advancements that are going to change how people work, both\nindividually and collaboratively, to design products. This technology will give\nusers a true sense of scale and proximity, so they have a better understanding of\nthe design early in the product lifecycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Imagine having the capability to \u201cwork inside\u201d your vehicle as you design it and locate features and components in a way that mimics how you might install or maintain the actual component.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The 3D capabilities of this technology strengthen the\nlinkage between the virtual design world and augmented reality on the shop\nfloor. 2D drawings and work instructions are replaced with 3D augmented\nreality. From there, users can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n