Installation of this equipment will contribute to NIAR’s technology development efforts in the area of 3D thermoplastics automation and will allow NIAR to advance the state-of-the-art in thermoplastics through collaborative projects with industry.
With more than 60 machines installed worldwide, Coriolis Composites is in the business of building robots that build aircraft. Most of these robots are used for rate production of FAA and EASA certified commercial airplanes such as the Airbus A320, A350, and A220 (formerly known as Bombardier’s C Series).
“We are very excited to add NIAR to our customer list as our second US customer,” said Clementine Gallet, president of Coriolis Composites. “Coriolis Composites has been championing the use of industrial robots to lower the cost of airframe production for quite some time, and now we see that this message is resonating more and more with the industry and academia.”
Thermoplastic composites, the next generation of advanced composite materials to be used in the aerospace industry, offer better mechanical properties, are recyclable and more environmentally friendly. Coriolis Composites is a member of the ThermoPlastic Composites Research Centre (TPRC) in Enschede, Netherlands, and through its involvement with the TPRC the company has been accelerating the development of thermoplastic composites technologies for aircraft applications worldwide.
“An advanced composites research centre with state-of-the-art thermoplastic technologies is highly valuable to NIAR researchers and our industry and government partners,” said John Tomblin, WSU vice-president for research and technology transfer and NIAR executive director. “The Coriolis Composites thermoplastic AFP system at NIAR will help advance multiple aircraft research and development programmes.”