Braiding
Thinking outside the prepreg box in aerospace
A challenge to “outside the box” thinking about prepreg.
Read MoreComposite musings
How do we generate pull from consumers rather than depend on push through builders and contractors?
Read MoreEpisode 4: Pam Schneider and Mike Braley, A&P Technology
Pam Schneider and Mike Braley with A&P Technology talk about how far braiding has come and what’s on the horizon.
Listen3D TPC structural preforming process lightens car doors
Automated cell manufactures and pre-impregnates continuous-fiber 3D preforms for injection/compression overmolding of parts with complex shapes, and tailored structural properties.
Read MoreAn aerocomposites wish list
Boeing R&T fellow Tom Tsotsis offers his vision of how design and manufacture of composite parts and structures might evolve in the aerospace industry.
Read MoreComposites recycling is gaining traction
Although CW’s coverage of composites recycling dates back over a decade, informal statistics still show that only ~2% of composites-related companies are active recyclers. That said, three years since our most recent feature on the subject, there is demonstrably greater interest and activity, and real applications of recycled fiber are growing.
WatchAutomated Preforming, Part 1: Numbers and Landscape
CW’s multi-blog series on preforming begins with an overview and quick look at the numbers: 1-minute take time, 10-15 seconds per layer, 490-kg/hr and 3.5 million parts/year. Are you ready for serial CFRP production?
Read MoreComposites recycling: Gaining traction
Recycling of carbon fiber, glass fiber and — at last — resins, is growing as new players enter the space.
Read MoreAnother opportunity to meet, and learn, in Paris
At the JEC World 2017, improvements in materials and processes were present at nearly every stand, with the emphasis on automotive-capable production speeds.
Read MoreSMC: Old dog, new tricks
A sheet molding compound renaissance highlights new reinforcements, new fillers, new matrices, new opportunities.
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