Meeting the Unique Challenges in Aerospace Welding and Sheet Metal Fabrication
Today’s aerospace welding and fabrication projects pose some unique challenges to manufacturers. From specialized materials such as exotic metals to highly advanced welding technologies, fabricating the complex products used in modern aviation and spaceflight requires the utmost in manufacturing experience, capability, and precision.
Below, we take a closer look at some of the biggest challenges we face in fabricating precision aerospace products. Backed by well over half a century of delivering superior quality, Snowline continues to rise to these challenges in 2024 and beyond.
Choosing the Optimum Material for Each Custom Aerospace Application
Before welding even begins, we need to ensure an optimum material for the application at hand. A wealth of information in materials science is considered to choose the best-suited material in terms of performance, longevity, ease of manufacturability, and of course cost.
In many applications, standard grades of steel and other commonly fabricated metals simply don’t offer the physical and mechanical properties that aerospace manufacturers are looking for. Careful material choice is paramount in order to produce the lightest, strongest, most efficient aviation parts possible.
A Look at the Common Aerospace Metals
Due to its high strength-to-weight ratio, along with its relatively low cost and wide availability, aluminum remains the most prevalent material in aerospace manufacturing. As virtually everyone with experience in fabrication knows, welding aluminum presents some unique challenges of its own. (More on that below.)
However, many aerospace parts demand even higher strength, a longer fatigue life, enhanced corrosion resistance, or other unique material properties that conventional aluminum simply can’t provide. In these cases, special alloys or exotic metals are used, including titanium, Inconel, and even highly specialized blends of stainless steel. Welding all of these state-of-the-art materials with precision and consistency requires a highly experienced, highly flexible industrial fabricator like Snowline.
Establishing Reliable Welding Processes for Challenging Materials
Once we’ve chosen the material, we need to match it with a suitable welding process. While the two most common welding techniques – MIG and stick welding – are still used in some aerospace manufacturing applications, many projects require TIG welding and other more advanced processes. Specialized welding techniques are often needed to work with aluminum and exotic metals, or for merely accommodating the clean precision welds and complex component designs that today’s aerospace products often demand.
TIG Welding for Complex Aerospace Parts
TIG welding is the most common aerospace welding technique due to the process’ precision, repeatability, and material flexibility. Additionally, many other welding methods are used in specific aircraft component applications, whether to achieve unique performance attributes or increased cost effectiveness. These methods include all other electric arc welding processes as mentioned such as MIG and stick welding, as well as other unique methods such as friction stir welding and electron beam welding.
By mastering a number of diverse welding processes, Snowline is able to serve a much wider range of aerospace projects without compromising on any design or performance parameters.
Complex Weldments and Precision Parts Fabricated to the Most Exacting Standards
As we mentioned, one of the major challenges in modern aerospace manufacturing is the high degree product complexity, along with the precision that must be consistently maintained. It’s often not enough to find a fabricator that can produce a one-off part, prototype, or small run of parts. Many projects demand a reliable contract manufacturer that can continuously provide critical parts built to the exact same specifications and standards.
Utilizing state-of-the-art fabrication technology – including advanced CNC systems and automation – Snowline is able to reliably produce ultra-precision parts and welded assemblies for low-volume and high-volume production projects alike.
Superior American Manufacturing for the Aerospace Sector and Beyond
Snowline is proud to serve as one the nation’s leading aerospace engineering and manufacturing providers. In addition to custom fabrication and welding, we offer comprehensive contract manufacturing services designed to streamline your project and simplify your supply chain. Based out of Sacramento, California, our company has served leading aviation and spaceflight customers worldwide since 1966.
