Norsk and Airbus partner to advance Rapid Plasma Deposition technology
Norsk Titanium and Airbus have signed a collaboration agreement to jointly develop Directed Energy Deposition (DED) Additive Manufacturing process for Norsk Titanium’s Rapid Plasma Deposition (RPD) technology. As part of the collaboration, Norsk Titanium will install one of its Merke IV RPD machines at an Airbus production facility in Varel, Germany.
“This agreement marks a milestone in the long-standing technical partnership between Norsk Titanium and Airbus, supporting the adoption of Additive Manufacturing technologies at Airbus,” stated Fabrizio Ponte, Chief Executive Officer of Norsk Titanium.
The partnership will focus on the joint technical evaluation of RPD manufacturing processes, controls and validation data to support a transition from part-specific qualification to broader process-based qualification methodologies for selected titanium components.
By installing a Merke IV machine at the Varel site, the companies intend to generate the technical data and documentation required to assess the industrial application potential of the Rapid Plasma Deposition process. The work forms part of Airbus’s broader strategy to evaluate multiple Directed Energy Deposition solutions within its manufacturing operations.
“With a standardised process, it will be easier to transition parts to RPD and to bring many more parts into scope over time. This will support Airbus’ work to implement DED in a wider range of applications,” Ponte explained. “We are still early in the industrialisation process, but we are confident that RPD technology can offer the aerospace industry significant savings in cost and lead time.”
