Aerospace manufacturing’s digital future
A digital transformation is underway. Emerging digital technologies promise to bolster aerospace and defense design and manufacturing systems to enable fast, high-volume delivery.
Aerospace manufacturing’s digital future will be shaped by several key, disruptive innovations and technologies.
This white paper examines these factors and what it takes to transform current aerospace and defense manufacturing operations into future-proof factories. Download the paper to learn more.
Connecting aerospace design and manufacturing
Innovations in the aerospace and defense sector will revolutionize the way we live and travel. Connecting aerospace design and manufacturing in a digital ecosystem is imperative to the development of a future-proof factory.
To connect design and manufacturing for maximum benefit, a digital thread must run through the process that provides one ecosystem in which everything exists. This includes the process from model-based systems engineering through to program planning, product design and engineering, verification management, supplier management, intelligent manufacturing and product support (maintenance, repair, and overhaul).
Trends in aerospace manufacturing
It is necessary to weave the digital thread to disrupt manufacturing in a way that is timely, cost-effective and sustainable in relation to trends in aerospace manufacturing. A digital ecosystem that connects people, systems and data is needed. This connectivity is what creates the intelligent factory capable of driving, not simply keeping up with, advancements in the industry.
Important trends and developments impacting aerospace digital manufacturing include artificial intelligence, automation, simulation, big data, Internet of Things (IoT), augmented reality, additive manufacturing, the cloud, and horizontal/vertical software integration. All of these are either being introduced into existing aerospace and defense programs or are in themselves facilitating the development of new capabilities that will change the way we move into the future.
Digitalization of the aircraft manufacturing process
At a time of unprecedented innovation and ambitious undertakings, systems will need to be produced quicker, more efficiently and be easily customizable in terms of design changes. To meet increased demands on development, digital technologies need to be exploited to ensure the process is as seamless as possible from the initial design phase through to mass production.
Digitalization of the aircraft manufacturing process is revolutionizing all aspects of aerospace and defense. While it is an exciting time as these technologies offer new opportunities, their introduction also leads to new challenges.
Achieving intelligent manufacturing in aerospace
The days when the design of a system took years if not decades to complete are just not viable anymore. Now, with a robust digital thread and comprehensive digital twin, achieving intelligent manufacturing in aerospace is enabled by a closed-loop manufacturing environment where design, engineering, production, operations and maintenance are linked through a single source of truth.
Solutions for intelligent manufacturing are available now to help aerospace and defense companies digitalize production and critically prepare for the future. Download the white paper to learn more.