YG-1’s Tooling Solutions for Aerospace Industry

The article was sourced from: YG-1 Corporate Magazine Vol. 59, 2024

The aerospace industry is a dynamic industry which has grown rapidly thanks to the significant technology development in the last several years. With the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the aerospace industry has rebounded speedily with the demand for commercial aircraft that has reached an all-time high. With the recent emergence of the Green Deal and global ESG issues, the development of eco-friendly aircraft is in full swing. The industry’s effort to realize carbon neutrality such as seeking sustainable alternative fuels instead of fossil fuels, and introducing aircraft made with eco-friendly, lightweight and highly efficient new materials has accelerated.

The European Environment Agency (EEA) says that aircraft are the prime carbon emitters that emit twice as much CO2 as cars among any other transportation types. Due to the notorious reputation of the aerospace industry as the biggest carbon emitter, the competition to develop lightweight tools for fuel consumption reduction and the improvement of efficiency and cost reduction in the cutting tool industry has gotten fierce. In order for the sustainable future of the aviation industry, the cutting tool industry requires drastic innovation to machine new lighter and stronger materials and difficult-to-cut materials. Mr. Yair Bruhis, Industry Project Manager for Aerospace, Power Generation and Medical shares his ideas about YG-1’s technology trends and future development strategy which specializes in the industry.

The Key Words in the Aerospace Industry are ‘Weight Lightening’ and ‘Efficiency’

For the last 10 years, the aerospace and cutting tool industries have changed and grown together. With new high-tech materials emerging one after another for the introduction of eco-friendly aircraft, the cutting tool industry has changed and innovated constantly to develop cutting tools to realize weight reduction and fuel efficiency. For weight reduction and engine efficiency improvement, aircraft bodies use high strength materials which include composite materials such as Aluminum Alloys, Titanium Alloys and CFRP. Due to such materials’ physical characteristics which are different from conventional metals, their machining is known to be the most fastidious processing among all manufacturing processes in all industries. The innovation in lightweight and strong materials has led to the improvement of special tools and solutions for high quality and production efficiency, which is the result of customers’ needs to realize stable machining, precision and production time reduction for maximized manufacturing efficiency. Innovative tooling solutions for aerospace parts that contribute to the safety and performance of aircraft are the prerequisite to secure a competitive edge.

In accordance with the market, YG-1 has improved its key technologies such as new materials, shapes, edge preparation and coating to support the best aviation component manufacturing for aircraft and space modules. Furthermore, it has targeted the global aviation engine component market with expanded special tools including seven flute end mills to process Titanium and Heat-Resistant Alloys and six flute end mills, and Alu-Power HPC three flute Ball Nose End Mills to respond to the fragmenting customers’ needs for the purpose of use and special tooling conditions. Last year, we were asked by a customer to participate in an Integrally Bladed Rotors (IBR) project, a key component of aircraft engines, and recognized by our unique technology and quality. Since we reflected the need of the customer’s which had a processing time issue with grinding, the move received a reputation that we provided a tailored solution to reduce machining time with increased productivity. Currently, we are working on the development of a form tool with a special CBN material to cut the cycle time by half.

YG-1’s Tooling Solutions to Process Aviation Materials

Since an aircraft consists of numerous components such as engines, landing gear and airframe parts that need complex and delicate materials and requirements, it demands tools and tooling solutions for each material.

Quick Responses to Environmental Changes to Secure Future Competitiveness

Entering the new space area, it is expected that the global space industry could generate revenue of $1 trillion in 2040. With the exponential surge of the recent aircraft demand and accumulating order backlogs, aircraft manufacturers are failing to meet the demand. From the prime contractors which produce airplanes to Tier 2 and 3 companies, most companies are experiencing problems in production due to the lack of production manpower with skill. YG-1 also has a deep understanding about the difficulties in the aerospace industry caused by the labor force shortage and endeavors to minimize supply delays. Furthermore, it has expanded not only R&D but also its engineer team to support technology to reduce cost while increasing product trust and quality in a bid to realize customer satisfaction with optimal solutions. Based on its unique technology and research know-how, it has accelerated development speed while preventing and managing various predictable issues in mass production to establish strong relationships with customers.

The key issue in the global aerospace industry in the future is Advanced Air Mobility that integrates the fourth industrial technology, a private sector-cantered new space and the normalization of passenger plane production and sales. The fact that drones and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) are gaining attention as the next generation means of transportation and Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is about to be commercialized is predicting an exponential growth of the future aerospace industry. Not only major global car manufacturers but also aircraft producers such as Airbus and Boeing are jumping into the Electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) market through self-development or investment. The use of Drones, which was used only for military purposes in the past, has grown rapidly with their expanded utilization in various sectors such as disaster relief, weather forecast, parcel delivery service and shooting. In line with the aerospace industry which has quickly expanded and diversified, YG-1 will respond pre-emptively and actively to immediate changes in the future environment to prepare a sustainable growth model in the aviation industry that covers various application areas including industrial and military purposes.