GE Aviation Engine Services Singapore (GE AESS) first MRO approved to use metal AM for commercial jet engine component repair.
As metal additive technology continues to gain momentum in the design and industrial production of new aerospace components, GE Aviation’s Loyang facility is the first maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility worldwide that has been approved to use metal additive manufacturing (AM) for commercial jet engine component repairs.
GE Aviation Engine Services Singapore (GE AESS) currently employs more than 1,700 employees in the city-state and accounts for more than 60 percent of GE Aviation’s global repair volume. GE Aviation continuously innovates in the MRO sector, and GE AESS recently announced that it is the first MRO facility in the world approved to perform metal additive repairs on jet engine components.
3D-printed parts are typically printed using STL files generated from CAD drawings. However, this works only for new-make production where the goal is to produce identical parts conforming to the blueprint. When repairing used parts, however, the repair must be customized for each individual part because each part wears differently during service.
Additive technology in repairs also offers the possibility of embracing complexity, rather than shying away from it. Chen Keng Nam, executive manufacturing leader at GE AESS in Singapore, has also been involved in the metal additive roll-out.
“This disruptive technology can be used for lots of applications, not only in aviation. When I see beyond the realm of repair into new-make, it’s mind-blowing to see the parts that we can design and print using additive. Now designers are making use of the ability to produce new designs that couldn't be imagined or manufactured before with traditional methods.”
Iain Rodger, managing director at GE AESS, also sees the potential for metal additive technology in MRO.
“In this part of the supply chain our customers truly value faster turn-around time, and that’s what we are achieving. Using our GE Additive Concept Laser M2 machines typically halves the amount of time it takes us to repair these aircraft parts.”
Rodger says his teams are already using additive technology to repair parts in GE Aviation’s CF6 engines used on wide-body aircraft. The next goal is to include parts on the widely used CFM56 commercial aviation engine.
One example is the repair of high-pressure compressor (HPC) blades that run at high speeds and tight clearances within aircraft engines. They face regular erosion and wear that, in time, demand continuous repair and replacement. Repairing these blade tips used to require a long process of cutting, welding and grinding to create the proper shape.
GE Aviation has established an automated AM process to repair the HPC blade tips, saving time and costs associated with labor and machining. The team created image-analysis software that maps the shape of a used blade and creates customized instructions for the Concept Laser M2 machine to build a new tip with precise alignment and profile.
The 3D-printed part is near-net shape and can be finished with minimal additional processing.
“Productivity has increased with our employees able to repair twice as many parts in a day compared to the conventional repair process. Less equipment is also needed for post-processing, so the floor space required is reduced by one-third,” says Rodger.
“We are currently assessing what we are going to do in turbine parts and other components beyond compressors. Day-to-day, working with customers, they will know that there's a difference as they will be seeing their parts return to them more quickly.”
Beyond the much faster turn-around times possible with metal additive technology in aircraft part repairs, Rodger sees another significant win for GE Aviation, for customers, and for the aviation industry more broadly.
“To me one of the significant advantages of additive is its sustainability. This is going to allow us to repair more parts and throw fewer parts into the bin, use less energy, generate less waste, and have a smaller footprint. Repair capability is a big part of the sustainability journey. As the industry expands and new technology is developed, that will only increase.”
As part of its national high-tech strategy, Singapore’s Economic Development Board supported the initial development trials and training for the introduction of metal additive technology for aviation maintenance into the country.
Shih Tung Ngiam, a senior engineering manager at GE AESS, was involved in the project from its inception. He acts as a bridge between the local team and the wider additive community across GE Aviation and GE Additive to industrialize the process.
“While teams at the GE Aviation Additive Technology Center in Cincinnati and GE Additive Lichtenfels in Germany worked on developing printing parameters for the Concept Laser M2 machine, our team here in Singapore focused on the modifications needed to make the process robust and production-friendly in a high-volume repair process,” Ngiam explains.
The Singapore team designed tooling to prepare and print parts efficiently and fine-tuned the repair process, including printing, pre- and post-processing, and inspection. Extensive trials and tests were conducted to ensure the quality and safety of the parts before the repair was substantiated.
In 2020 Ngiam and the team also designed a pilot production line, including an automated powder recycling system, to streamline the repair operation. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the approach for a while; however, by 2021 the team in Loyang was ready to go live on its full-scale production line.
“Additive gives us speed and productivity with less floor space required. We gave a lot of careful consideration to how best to integrate the M2s into the rest of the repair line. We completed an assessment of which parts of the repair we should leave alone, which ones could benefit from additive, and what other changes we needed to make to the repair process for it to make sense,” says Ngiam.
The two big advantages that metal additive provides the site are speed and the near-net-shape product. This allows the team to increase productivity and reduce floor space required. The traditional methods for repairing HPC blades involves a lot of effort to weld the blade and then a lot of additional effort to remove the excess material. By using the Concept Laser M2 metal 3D printers, the repaired blade is very close to the final shape when it comes out of the machine, so it takes much less labor and equipment to achieve the finished profile.
Given the critical nature of aerospace components, extensive analysis and testing are required before any repair can be approved, even more so when new technologies such as AM are involved. GE AESS worked closely with GE Aviation Engineering to produce parts for testing and to establish a robust quality-assurance process before the process could be approved. As the aerospace industry becomes more familiar with additive, the approval process can be streamlined.
Back on the ground, as GE AESS starts to scale metal additive technology for aircraft part repairs, a real consideration is the talent that will be needed to implement ambitions.
“Singapore’s universities and polytechnics are training a healthy number of students in AM, but the pool of experienced graduates is still quite small. As the industry matures and these graduates gain experience, we expect that Singapore’s pool of additive talent will grow accordingly,” says Chen Keng Nam.
And this feeds into a blueprint for the future, where AM is a mainstay of the aircraft repair supply chain.
“The great dream of additive is to print spare parts on demand without even needing to have an inventory. It’s true that it’s a few years away, but it will happen. But we must also recognize that change can take time, especially in our highly regulated industry, and we have to make efforts to prove that our new methods are as good, if not better, than what has gone before,” Ngiam concludes.
Collaboration will lead to robotic autonomy solutions to support low earth orbit (LEO), lunar, and deep space missions.
Robotics software and engineering services company PickNik Robotics is collaborating with the team at Sierra Space to explore implementation of robotic autonomy and controllability for autonomous maintenance of space habitat environments.
The companies anticipate that the robotic autonomy solutions developed with this collaboration will significantly improve the ability to support low Earth orbit (LEO), lunar, and deep space missions. PickNik Robotics’ expertise in robotic manipulation paired with Sierra Space’s Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFETM) habitat product lines will extend mission durations that benefit from remote-controlled automation.
Sierra Space is creating infrastructure to support the LEO ecosystem, led by LIFE and its Dream Chaser® spaceplane. LIFE is a modular, three-story commercial habitation and science platform with applications in LEO, Mars transport, and lunar/Mars surface habitation. It will provide opportunities for multiple businesses, including manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, and other sectors, to optimize the zero gravity benefits of space.
PickNik Robotics will provide technical expertise to Sierra Space for further developing supervised autonomy solutions for robotic technologies on space stations, including requirements gathering, workspace analysis, and hardware selection. The company will also support Sierra Space in developing concept simulations of robotic assets for use on space stations. In addition, PickNik will provide software engineering to implement Space ROS and MoveItTM Studio to support Sierra Space’s flight-hardened software needs.
“At Sierra Space, our mission is to build a platform in space to benefit life here on Earth. To fulfill that mission, we wanted to collaborate with a leading robotics company that has deep expertise working in complex environments. PickNik Robotics fits those criteria,” said Steve Lindsey, chief strategy officer at Sierra Space and former astronaut who has flown five missions for NASA. “We anticipate that PickNik will make a strong and positive impact on our ambitious goals in space.”
“Sierra Space’s vision and progress toward creating a commercial platform for space manufacturing and other applications is really exciting, and we look forward to contributing to those meaningfully with our robotics expertise and software,” said Dr. Dave Coleman, CEO of PickNik Robotics. “We are honored to be working with them to support their robotics development.”
Will design integrated Brayton cryocooler for LOx and LH2 applications.
Concepts NREC has received a Phase II SBIR award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to design affordable and robust cryogenic cooling solutions for use in space applications.
In support of the Artemis program, NASA seeks innovative integrated refrigeration cycles for use in liquefaction of hydrogen and oxygen from the lunar surface. Concepts NREC is working toward the demonstration of two high-capacity helium-based reverse-Brayton cryocoolers and plans to leverage these cryocoolers to develop a novel integrated two-stage helium system capable of supporting both oxygen and hydrogen liquefaction needs on the moon.
Concepts NREC will leverage turboalternator powertrain technology it developed during a previous phase of this program to handle larger thrust loads at higher rotational speeds at lunar surface ambient conditions. The expanded capability of the newly developed compressor powertrain will increase the current state-of-the-art in cryogenic cooling by an order of magnitude and is another step by Concepts NREC to support NASA’s goal of establishing a long-term presence on the lunar surface and beyond. Results from this study will also provide valuable input into NASA’s on-going cryogenic fluid management directives.
“Concepts NREC is honored and excited to continue our work with NASA in support of the Artemis missions,” comments Mark Anderson, chief technology officer. “In collaboration with commercial and international partners, our innovative cryocooler solutions will allow NASA to establish the first long-term presence on the moon and to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before. Then, NASA will use what they learn on and around the moon to take the next giant leap: sending the first astronauts to Mars.”
“Artemis is the first step in the next era of human space exploration,” Anderson continues. “The team at Concepts NREC is proud to play a role in the development of key systems and technologies to allow astronauts and robots to conduct ground-breaking lunar research and to set the stage for space exploration to Mars and beyond for decades to come.”
For 65 years Concepts NREC has been a strategic partner to many of the world’s leading turbomachinery companies. It offers in-house turbomachinery solutions from initial concept through design, manufacturing, and test, as well as integrated CAE and CAM software packages.
Will produce equipment for the Sikorsky CH-53K helicopter.
Triumph Group’s Actuation Products & Services operating company has secured a multi-year contract with Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, to produce equipment for the Sikorsky CH-53K helicopter. Triumph will provide all equipment for the Main Rotor Blade Folding System, Main Rotor Lag Damper System and Main Rotor Brake System.
This strategic follow-on contract will contribute significant work for Triumph's Seattle, Washington location, the company's focal point for innovation. Sikorsky is ramping production to deliver 200 aircraft under the CH-53K program of record. With this multi-year contract, Triumph will provide continuous and increasing equipment deliveries through the production ramp up.
"This new contract reflects Triumph's systems and engineering expertise, which were critical in the development of these complex systems and detail components," said William Kircher, executive vice president, Triumph Systems & Support. "Sikorsky is a valued, long-term customer and we're pleased to extend our partnership into the next phases of production. Triumph's substantial shipset content on the CH-53K reflects the trust that Sikorsky places in us to deliver quality hardware on time."
Triumph's Actuation Products & Services provides design, manufacturing and MRO services for products and systems including hydraulic pumps and motors, actuators, fuses, accumulators, valves and manifolds, and carrier launched aircraft holdback bars. Triumph Actuation Products & Services maintains a unique capability for systems engineering and integration, as well as hydromechanical and electronics in-house development. It also serves as the integration focal point for Triumph, specializing in motion, control and power systems for commercial, military and rotorcraft aircraft.
NASA selects research proposals from Colorado School of Mines, Missouri Science & Technology.
Engineers from global terrestrial engineering, construction, and project management firm Bechtel will join with researchers from two U.S. universities to develop technologies for living and working on the moon.
NASA announced the research awards to Colorado School of Mines and Missouri S&T on Feb. 18, 2022.
"Bechtel started as a frontier company more than 120 years ago," said Mike Costas, general manager of Bechtel's Defense and Space business line. "Now, we're thinking about the next frontier. What will it take to build permanent infrastructure on the moon? What an exciting time."
The selected projects will receive up to $2 million over two years to develop their technologies. Bechtel will serve as an industrial partner to both teams.
• Autonomous Construction - Humans living on the moon will need structures for habitats and landing pads, which can be made more efficiently if they're constructed autonomously by robots. Colorado School of Mines, led by principal investigator Christopher Dreyer, will develop tools and methods for autonomous landing pad construction on the moon's surface.
• Extracting Resources - Supplies for lunar astronauts could be created from what's already on the lunar surface, a process called in-situ resource utilization. Missouri S&T, led by principal investigator Leslie Gertsch, will use magnetic and electrostatic technologies to more efficiently separate calcium- and aluminum-containing minerals from the moon's soil, called regolith, to extract materials suitable for construction on the lunar surface.
"Tackling the challenge of building on the moon will require the know-how of what's already been done in Earth's harshest environments – extreme cold, extreme dust, higher radioactivity – combined with new thinking and approaches," Costas said. "This is a perfect opportunity to collaborate."
The grants were awarded as part of NASA's Lunar Surface Technology Research (LuSTR) solicitation.
Read more about Costas' thoughts on supporting the new frontier on Bechtel's blog.