Renishaw and ITP Aero advance AM for aerospace with certified parts
Renishaw, based in Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, UK, and aircraft engine manufacturer ITP Aero, Zamudio, Spain, recently highlighted the progress made on their journey towards using Additive Manufacturing to process nickel-based and lightweight alloys, as well as high-temperature materials.
Working together since 2016, the companies’ original knowledge and resource-sharing agreement evolved into a strategic technological alliance that focuses on the development of processes, standards and certified components.
“Renishaw has always shared with us its experience accumulated with other customers and sectors, understanding the particularities of each alloy and thus enabling us to accelerate the development process,” stated Fernando Lartategui, Associate Researcher in Additive Layer Manufacturing at ITP Aero.
According to the companies, this transfer of knowledge has been essential for developing components such as the Tail Bearing Housing (TBH), one of the two joining elements between the aircraft and the Rolls-Royce UltraFan engine — reportedly the largest in the world. The engine, scheduled for launch at the end of the decade, is intended to be compatible with 100% sustainable aviation fuels and reportedly offers a 25% fuel efficiency improvement compared to the original Trent 700 model.
Certified components
ITP Aero has produced the TBH using Laser Beam Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) Additive Manufacturing. Renishaw’s Solutions Centre in Barcelona contributed its experience in build preparation and execution, including scanning strategies, parameter development and layout optimisation.
The collaboration between Renishaw and ITP Aero has also contributed to the manufacture of already certified and in-production aerospace components, such as the TP400 engine vanes of the rear engine structure. According to the companies, these were the first structural components produced by PBF-LB Additive Manufacturing to be certified by both the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Spanish Aviation Safety and Security Agency (AESA).
Working alongside Renishaw has also enabled ITP Aero to establish its own internal Additive Manufacturing standards, including specifications and process regulations. This standardisation provides technical consistency and traceability.
€24 million for advanced manufacturing
ITP Aero has also created a new advanced manufacturing centre inaugurated with an investment of €24 million In February 2025. Located at the company’s headquarters in Zamudio and using AM as one of the four pillars of R&D activity, the centre aims to develop solutions for more sustainable aircraft engines and improve manufacturing process efficiency amongst other goals.
Precise tuning of laser parameters
In an effort to further improve AM, Renishaw has developed Libertas, a flexible framework that gives freedom to precise tuning of laser parameters, tailored to the requirements of individual applications.
“Traditionally, support structures are required for surfaces with a critical angle of 45º or more from the horizontal. With the Support Reduction Package, this threshold has been extended—reducing the critical angle to as little as 5º in certain cases,” explains Benjamin Díaz, Additive Manufacturing Product Manager at Renishaw Ibérica. “Beyond reducing support requirements, this approach also enhances surface finish and mitigates thermal stress by intelligently regulating energy distribution during the build process.”
At Formnext, Renishaw will present a preview of Libertas at its Hall 11.0, C11 booth alongside a complete end-to-end AM cell, a new long-life filtration system for the RenAM 500 series, and Argive’s high-performance microturbine.
www.renishaw.com
www.itpaero.com
