Source | ZAL

The ZAL Center of Applied Aeronautical Research (Hamburg, Germany) and Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Québec (CRIAQ, Canada) have formed a partnership to implement joint research projects in advanced technologies and to support international talent mobility. 

CW readers will recognize ZAL as the current home for the completed Multifunctional Fuselage Demonstrator (MFFD), a thermoplastic composite fuselage produced within the EU-funded Clean Sky 2/Clean Aviation’s Large Passenger Aircraft (LPA) Innovative Aircraft Demonstrator Platform (IADP). Meanwhile, CRIAQ has been involved with developing thermoplastic composite aerostructures for decades — including a helicopter tail boom — and is now seeking partners for the HAUTE project (High-rate manufacturing of Aerostructures Using Thermoplastic composites and adaptive Equipment).  

Under the new partnership agreement, ZAL and CRIAQ will collaborate on key enabling technologies, especially in the areas of advanced digital solutions such as AI and future-oriented propulsion systems aimed at improving the sustainability of aviation. The focus lies on fostering innovation and promoting the international exchange of expertise and builds on existing agreements and previous collaborations, including successful projects such as “Lightweight Bionic Aircraft Interior” in the field of 3D printing and “New Acoustic Insulation meta-Material Technology for Aerospace” in the field of acoustics.