We have many things to celebrate this week!
First, this past Saturday, August 19th, was National Aviation Day. Established in 1939 by President Franklin Roosevelt on the birthdate of Orville Wright, this annual observance is a call to the country to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions aviation provides to our daily lives.
As NASA highlighted on Saturday, the aviation industry is entering a new era that demands bold, pioneering, and innovative achievements by researchers and industry everywhere to achieve next-zero aviation carbon emissions by 2050. Aviation is one of the hardest industries to de-carbonize because of high safety and performance standards that cannot be compromised. NASA is leading the aerospace industry in the commitment to reaching these emissions goals and fundamentally transforming air transportation for the benefit of humanity.
Which, brings us to Composites Week, August 21st – 25th. Composites are key to reducing emissions and reaching the zero carbon by 2050 goal. ATC Manufacturing is proud to be participating in the Hi-Rate Composite Aircraft Manufacturing (HiCAM) project, which seeks to reduce the cost and increase the production rate of composite structures made in the U.S. With more lightweight, composite airframes in service, airlines will save fuel and reduce emissions, making commercial aviation more sustainable. Through partnership in the Advanced Composites Consortium, the aircraft industry is working with NASA to share investments, ensure relevance, and increase the likelihood of technologies being adopted for next generation U.S. transports.
Thermoplastic Composites, what we do, are also recyclable and parts can be produced in 20-30% of the time than out of other composite materials. This is why we have joined Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Blue Origin, Gonzaga, The University of Washington, and nearly 50 organizations in applying for an Inland Northwest aerospace technology hub.
“As NASA has highlighted with their HiCAM program, we must speed up the development of affordable, high-rate composite manufacturing technologies, both to meet the production needs of Boeing and other U.S. aircraft manufacturers and to have any hope of achieving the goals for the US Aviation Climate Action Plan and Net Zero 2050 Goal. The ability of composites to reduce weight and therefore fuel consumption is what makes them key to this effort; thermoplastic composites – what we do at ATC – are highly important because parts can be manufactured in 20-30% of the time compared to other materials AND they are recyclable.” – says David Leach, Thermoplastic Composites Expert and Director of Business Development at ATC Manufacturing.
Want to learn more about thermoplastic composites (TPC’s)? Watch some of our videos below to see some parts made from TPC’s, meet David Leach, a key figure in developing modern thermoplastic composites, and learn more about our mission as a company:
Jason Merrifield Shows Demonstrator Ribs & Explains How They Were Made
David Leach Explains His & ATC’s Contributions to Thermoplastic Composites Development
Learn More About ATC & Why The Future is Thermoplastic
