Albany International Corp. (Rochester, N.H., U.S.) announced on Dec. 6 that its subsidiary, Albany Engineered Composites, has signed a two-year Collaborative Research Agreement (CRA) with Airbus (Toulouse, France) on the Wing of Tomorrow program, to apply Albany’s 3D reinforced composites technology to next-generation wing substructure applications.

 

Albany’s 3D composite technology, used extensively today in the CFM LEAP Engine, will be adapted to meet the requirements of Airbus’s next-generation airframe and production system. Albany says its innovative resin-infused dry 3D fiber preform technology will deliver a cost-effective, out-of-autoclave (OOA) wing substructure solution to Airbus that achieves superior damage tolerance and resistance to out-of-plane loads, and is more scalable to desired production rates for next-generation, single-aisle aircraft.

 

“We are very pleased to collaborate with Airbus to apply our 3D design and manufacturing know-how to their next generation aircraft,” says Olivier Jarrault, Albany International president and CEO. “We believe Albany provides unique design and production capabilities to Airbus, and this agreement marks an exciting and important next step in our relationship.”（來源：ALBINT）