3D design software manufacturer Dassault Systèmes has long been known for their SOLIDWORKS software, a platform so big and far-reaching it has its ownthree-day conference dedicated to it. Their 3DEXPERIENCE platform, however, is no small potatoes. As companies integrate 3D printing more and more into their day-to-day business, 3DEXPERIENCE promises to help them every step of the way, from marketing to engineering.

Dassault Systèmes made a big impact with 3DEXPERIENCE at CES 2016 in January, and several major organizations have adopted the platform for a wide range of applications from consumer electronics to defense. The latest company to leverage 3DEXPERIENCE is the Airbus Group, who has been all over the headlines lately, what with their official unveiling of their 3D printed UAV this week and their recent patent application that could theoretically lead to the 3D printing of entire airplanes.

After a two-year benchmarking process, the Airbus Group is extending their use of 3DEXPERIENCE to their additive manufacturing program as part of Dassault’s Co-Design to Target industry solution experience, which is geared towards manufacturers in the aerospace and defense industries. While Airbus clearly isn’t struggling in the additive manufacturing area, their use of Dassault’s comprehensive platform will help them to optimize the development of both prototypes and end-use components.

“Numerous projects across Airbus are accelerating the use of additive manufacturing to produce prototypes as well as production components potentially delivering lighter and less expensive parts that meet technological, performance, safety and cost standards,” said Robert Nardini, Senior Vice President Engineering Airframe, Airbus. “Airbus has long used Dassault Systèmes’ simulation applications to accelerate the structural analysis and virtual testing of aircraft and now we can define a new way of designing parts by leveraging simulation-based design to better answer aviation market needs.”

While a growing number of aerospace companies are turning to additive manufacturing, perhaps no one is more serious about it than Airbus, who has already created airplanes with over a thousand 3D printed parts. It may seem completely unfeasible to 3D print an entire passenger aircraft, but if anyone can do it, it’s likely to be Airbus. They certainly have the drive and the technical resources, especially now with their expanded use of Dassault’s virtual design and simulation platforms.

 “Additive manufacturing creates new opportunities in many different areas such as remote fabrication for support and maintenance, rapid prototyping for realising new concepts and experiences and, perhaps most importantly, developing designs that were heretofore impossible to fabricate,” said Dominique Florack, Senior Executive Vice President of Research and Development for Dassault Systèmes.

“With this approach, Airbus Group will be able to take advantage of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform’s next generation automated design assistant for parts, whether they are 3D printed or not, thus accelerating a new wave of transformation in the aerospace industry. With the 3DEXPERIENCE platform we are delivering an end to end solution including all engineering parameters for the additive manufacturing of parts inclusive of material science, functional specification, generative design, 3D printing optimisation, production and certification.”

(article by by Clare Scott | Jun 9, 2016)