Northrop Grumman speeds up additive manufacturing process for advanced weaponry

Northrop Grumman is accelerating the development of additive manufacturing materials ‘to support emerging hypersonic and high-speed weapons’, the company announced on 8 September.

With its Scalable Composite Robotic Additive Manufacturing Carbon/Carbon (SCRAM C/C) system, the company is ‘pioneering a rapid fabrication process that does not require tooling to manufacturing aerospace-grade, continuous fibre integrated composite structures,’ said Dan Olson, VP and GM of weapon systems for Northrop Grumman. ‘This manufacturing advancement will deliver capability to the field much faster than traditional methods.’

SCRAM is an industrial-grade fibre-reinforced 3D printer for the fabrication of integrated composite structures.

Historically, C/C manufacturing techniques have been labour-intensive. By introducing process automation, Northrop Grumman claimed, manufacturing time and cost can be reduced by up to 50% compared with traditional methods, ‘delivering capability to the field faster’.