US-based Oxford Performance Materials (OPM) has won a deal to produce 3D-printed structures for the Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft.
As part of the deal, OPM has already begun shipping its OXFAB production parts for installation on Starliner, which has been designed to transport up to seven passengers, or a mix of crew and cargo, to low-Earth orbit destinations such as the International Space Station.
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Boeing and Nasa’s commercial crew programme are currently developing the spacecraft.
OPM aerospace and industrial president Lawrence Varholak said: “From our earliest discussions with Boeing, they stressed the need to see significant reductions in weight, cost and lead times in order to consider replacing traditional metallic and composite parts with a new technology for their space programme.”
The company further noted that its OXFAB components for Starliner employ OPM advanced materials science and high-performance additive manufacturing (HPAM) technologies.
The OXFAB components have been verified in a B-Basis database, which was developed in collaboration with Nasa.
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By GlobalDataOPM’s HPAM technology and other 3D printing technologies are also capable of providing fully functional end-use products to the biomedical, aerospace and industrial markets.
In addition, the company announced that it has received a second round of strategic investment from Hexcel.
The $10 investment from Hexcel would bring the total equity investment from the company to $25m, after it made an initial $15m strategic investment last May.
