Airbus & Farsoon Technologies in Collaboration to Develop High-Performance Polymers for Additive Manufacturing

Front (left to right): Dr. Xu Xiaoshu, Founder and Chairman of Farsoon, Michel TRAN VAN, General
Manager of Airbus Beijing / Back (left to right): Bo Yuan, Don Xu, Jack Cheng, Zhixing Lu, Ming Lei, Miguel L. San Gregorio, Li Chen

European aerospace giant Airbus ( via its Beijing Engineering Centre Co., LTD subsidiary) and China-headquartered Farsoon Technologies have just announced they will work together in research and design of polymer additive manufacturing solutions for civil aircraft. Upon signing this deal for collaboration in civil aviation, Airbus will mark their first R&D partnership with a company from China in the 3D printing/additive manufacturing sector.

Moving forward to create high-performance polymers, the two global manufacturers will turn to Farsoon’s AM technology for further development. The Farsoon team will be responsible for refining and optimizing new material parameters on their open platform which offers their users full access to processing requirements. On the Airbus side, industrial production experts will assess both properties and performance in relevance to civil aviation requirements.

Airbus has had a presence in China since 1994 in many different sectors related to aerospace. (Photo: Airbus)

“We are very excited to start this R&D collaboration with Airbus. As a leading industrial AM solution provider, Farsoon has been pushing towards the transition of AM applications from prototyping to manufacturing.” said Dr. Xu Xiaoshu, founder of Farsoon Technologies. “We believe AM technology will be increasingly used in aerospace & aviation manufacturing. In the future, by joining hands with Airbus, Farsoon will be able to contribute to the full workflow for AM production in civil aviation.”

“It is the first time for Airbus to cooperate with Chinese company in polymer AM industry. Airbus has been keep toned with the development of the AM technology, and we are impressed by Farsoon’s capability of innovation and industrial focus.” commented Michel Tran Van. “Airbus is looking for more than the performance of new material. We need to keep in mind what industrializing AM needs, including workflows development, cost management, industrial manufacturing capabilities and speed. With the same goal of industrialization, I look forward to the R&D results of this collaboration, and I believe we will carry out more cooperation in the future.”

While this is the first foray for Airbus in terms of a collaboration on AM materials in China, the aerospace pioneer has been a presence there since 1994 with over a thousand jetliners delivered there each year (and a goal of delivering 2,000 by 2020). Airbus has also been engaged with China regarding development of helicopters, defense systems and contracts, space and the distribution of satellite imagery and software, and far more. Find out more about Airbus in connection with China here.

In 2017 Farsoon released the first of a new series of machines under the revolutionary Continuous Additive Manufacturing Solution (CAMS-Continuous Additive Manufacturing System) systems, and established Farsoon Technologies-Americas in Austin, Texas, USA. In 2018, Farsoon Europe GmbH was established in Stuttgart, Germany to expand direct operations to Europe. Farsoon is committed to developing AM towards its true manufacturing potential and providing customers with best-in-class systems, materials, software, applications and services.

Airbus is a global leader in aeronautics, space and related services. In 2017 it generated revenues of €59 billion restated for IFRS 15 and employed a workforce of around 129,000. Airbus offers the most comprehensive range of passenger airliners from 100 to more than 600 seats. Airbus is also a European leader providing tanker, combat, transport and mission aircraft, as well as one of the world’s leading space companies. 

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Airbus (Beijing) team visits Farsoon 3D printing showroom and takes a group photo