AIRLIFT Additive Manufacturing

CFMS is responsible for multiple facets of the project, including defining and developing the private cloud-based digital twin, Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT) platform and IT system, interfaces to sensors on factory assets as part of the data acquisition system, and developing a digital twin of the system to predict the performance of different print configurations.

As a digitalised process, AM generates the data necessary to produce a digital twin. CFMS is involved in developing a digital model to mirror all stages in the AM process. This digital model involves the development of novel multi-scale, multi-physics models to accurately capture the wide range of physical phenomena that contribute to the final printed aerospace component. By combining this model with machine-captured data, the aim is to gain a deeper understanding of the manufacturing process and optimise it accordingly. The result will be a tool which can be used to predict and track the entire flow of the material and all activities required to deliver a consistent, high quality additive manufactured component.