Northrop Grumman Company (NYSE: NOC) and the U.S. Air Drive unveiled the B-21 Raider to the world. A marvel of superior digital manufacturing applied sciences throughout the whole spectrum, the B-21 joins the nuclear triad as a visual and versatile deterrent designed for the U.S. Air Drive to fulfill its most complicated missions. It’s no secret that Northrop Grumman has put additive manufacturing on the prime of its checklist of key enabling applied sciences. It’s on the coronary heart of the corporate’s superior manufacturing technique and its investments within the AM discipline have continued to develop, topping $70 million only for elements acquired from exterior suppliers.
The B-21 program is tremendous secretive. Because the contract award in 2015, Northrop Grumman has assembled a nationwide staff to design, take a look at and construct the world’s most superior strike plane. The B-21 is a product of Northrop Grumman’s pioneering digital engineering practices and superior manufacturing strategies along with breakthrough stealth expertise.
“We’ve got been flying additive[ly] manufactured elements since 2005. We’ve got round 5,000 3D printed elements altogether in our air automobiles”, mentioned Eric Barnes, Northrop Grumman Fellow for Additive Manufacturing, not way back. Throughout his 32 years tenure on the firm, Mr. Barnes has led the event, implementation and technique for polymer and metallic additive manufacturing on a number of air and house automobiles, leveraging over 36 years of expertise in supplies, processes and manufacturing analysis and growth, implementation, design, and manufacturing help with specific experience in Composite constructions for aerospace purposes.
We’ve got been flying additive[ly] manufactured elements since 2005. We’ve got round 5,000 3D printed elements altogether in our air automobilesEric Barnes, Northrop Grumman Fellow for Additive Manufacturing 
The Raider was developed to offer the US Air Drive with long-range, excessive survivability and mission payload flexibility. So as to take action, the B-21 Raider may have to have the ability to penetrate the hardest defenses for precision strikes wherever on the earth. These superior stealth capabilities are made potential by superior manufacturing as Northrop Grumman is constantly advancing expertise, using new manufacturing strategies and supplies to make sure the B-21 will defeat the anti-access, area-denial techniques it is going to face
Superior manufacturing, entails supplies which have been designed to fulfill particular aims. For instance, in some conditions, you could want a sturdy materials, whereas in others, you could prioritize flexibility. In aerospace, engineers consider supplies primarily based on many components, akin to the flexibility to deal with excessive temperatures and electrostatic discharge.
“We are actually utilizing 5 totally different additive manufacturing supplies in our merchandise – extra when contemplating tooling,” says Barnes. He added that they’re investigating further supplies that may’t but be introduced. These supplies embrace ESD PEKK, 3D printed through HexAM, a modified SLS expertise on EOS machines, made obtainable by Hexcel. ESD PEKK allows the manufacturing of electrically dissipative elements with discontinuous carbon fibers, one thing that’s significantly helpful in plane that can’t dissipate electrostatics into the bottom.
Engineers have a wide range of choices relying on their program’s necessities. “The selection of fabric will depend on the necessities and the cost-benefit,” Barnes says. He additionally defined that polymers are a cheap choice for a lot of purposes, however in eventualities akin to supersonic plane that get hotter than 300 levels Fahrenheit, a steel akin to titanium is usually the best alternative.
One other essential side of superior manufacturing is the digital part. The B-21 is taken into account a “digital bomber”. To construct it, Northrop Grumman makes use of agile software program growth, superior manufacturing strategies and digital engineering instruments to assist mitigate manufacturing threat on the B-21 program and allow trendy sustainment practices. Six B-21 Raiders are in varied phases of ultimate meeting and take a look at at Northrop Grumman’s plant in Palmdale, California, which implies they’re manufactured on US soil.
“The Northrop Grumman staff develops and delivers expertise that advances science, seems into the longer term and brings it to the right here and now,” mentioned Kathy Warden, Chair, Chief Government Officer and President, Northrop Grumman. “The B-21 Raider defines a brand new period in expertise and strengthens America’s function of delivering peace by deterrence.”
From 3D printing rocket motors to utilizing superior supplies to supply plane elements, the corporate makes use of AM throughout the enterprise, having invested greater than $70 million in AM with greater than 5,000 AM elements presently built-in into the corporate’s aeronautic platforms, all produced by small- and medium-sized suppliers and companions. The corporate additionally presently collaborates with a number of universities and faculties.