The key to CNTs: Functionalization
An emerging supply base is integrating carbon nanotubes into commercial products that enable composites manufacturers to optimize part performance.
Read MoreThe cost equation
Keynote speakers at CompositesWorld Expo 2009 delivered news both sobering and encouraging to those who are trying to predict what the future holds for composites in the postrecession manufacturing economy.
Read MoreFine-tuning the F-35
The composites community looks to be a major partner for the life of the F-35.
Read MoreSkinning the F-35 fighter
Fastening the all-composites skin on the Lightning II requires machining and drilling technology that is optimized for cost-efficiency.
Read MoreThe new carmakers
A host of new carmakers is using composites to build vehicles designed specifically to help us be less oil-dependent.
Read MoreIBEX 2009 Show Preview
As they weather the continuing recessionary storm, boatbuilders will dock in Miami to chart a course for the opportunities that await them in the storm’s wake.
Read MoreGearing up for the new economic normal
In late July, as my family and I raced home from our vacation along Interstate 80 in northern Nevada, we found ourselves quickly overtaking a large flatbed tractor trailer. Strapped onto the bed and covered with a massive tarp was a very large … something, about 15 ft long and 8 ft in diameter.
Read MoreCounseling patience
HPC editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan cautions patience in the wake of the Air France 447 incident.
Read MoreWinds of change
It’s not hard, in this down economy, to get excited about the wind energy industry.
Read MoreWindpower 2009 highlights
The show confirmed wind energy’s status as a recession-proof market for composites, but blade manufacturers were put on notice about the need to automate.
Read MoreThe half-full glass
During a recession — and I’ve only known relatively mild downturns until now — an editor always heads off to a trade show with, at best, some hesitancy and, at worst, gloomy pessimism.
Read MoreAFP/ATL design-to-manufacture: Bridging the gap
Managing production of a structure made via fiber or tape placement often requires software-aided manipulation of the subtle differences between that which is designed and that which can be manufactured.
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