A Special Report
Additive Manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, has captured the nation's attention and was mentioned in the President's State of the Union address.
achieved by ever-shrinking sizes. IDA predicts Moore’s Law will reach “its anticipated limit by 2020,” leading to new innovations in this area. That includes develop- ment of so-called system-on-chip (SoC) technology, which integrates computer components onto a single chip; and research on emerging devices and materi- als, focused on a new switch that will supplement and perhaps replace the current complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS).
• Advanced Materials. Integrated computational ma- terials engineering holds the potential to continue to develop new materials or enhance existing ones.
• Additive Manufacturing. Although IDA says that addi- tive has relatively low levels of global R&D, it has “the potential to become a platform to shift the entire manu- facturing enterprise” in a way that is highly custom- ized, decreases waste and provides design freedom.
• Biomanufacturing. This is an emerging, multidisci- plinary technology area that uses living systems to produce desired products in different ways.
Industry-Specific Manufacturing Outlooks
Aerospace & Defense
One of the healthiest parts of the global economy, the aerospace industry was largely unscathed by the Great Reces- sion and continues to register healthy annual growth. Aircraft sales are on the upswing, and delivering planes fast enough has been a challenge that is leading to increased automation in aerospace. Aided by advanced metrology tech- nology, flexible robotic automation is gaining preference over stationary “monument” equipment. Composite lightweight materials also continue to make inroads in the sector.
For Boeing and its innovative 787 Dreamliner, which in- corporated many new technologies, the year has gotten off to a rough start, however. Several incidents tied to its lithium-ion battery grounded the aircraft model and started a global inves- tigation that has reached deep into supplier companies, even in other countries, such as Japan. Fair or not, the problems with the aircraft model have cast an eye of suspicion over the entire supply chain and Boeing’s unprecedented level of outsourcing parts and risk.
AEROSPACE& DEFENSE 2012
MANUFACTURING
Given that Boeing jets represent 2% of all US exports, recovery from this crisis is important
Supplement to Manufacturing Engineering
not just to Boeing, but to legions of manufacturing suppliers. In fact, Boeing (Chicago) and Lockheed Martin (Bethesda, MD) maintain a healthy share of the nearly $200 billion global aircraft market, of which about 60% is commercial aircraft, followed by business aircraft and rotorcraft. Much of the growth in the jet business has been in
the upper, larger part of the market, or jets costing $25 million or more, Richard Aboulafia, vice president, analysis, Teal Group Corp. (Fairfax, VA), wrote in a recent Manufacturing Engineering article. The lower end of the market, dominated by Cessna and Hawker Beechcraft, has suffered losses. And Embraer has entered this segment, taking aim at the legacy players.
On the defense side of AeroDef, the good times of the past decade may be slowing down. With a record national debt and ongoing political fights over cutbacks, the industry is bracing for change. Europe has already been aggressive about cutting its military spending, but there has been great resistance in the US.
Aboulafia forecasts that the defense procurement budget will remain flat and signals other changes that may be of interest to manufacturers, such as changing contract terms. “The accepted weapons acquisition contracts model—cost- plus contracts for full production—is giving way to a differ-
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