Aerospace Innovation Showcase: High-Rate Composites Manufacture

This event is delivered in collaboration with the High Value Manufacturing Catapult (HVMC), hosted at the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre’s (AMRC) flagship Factory 2050 facility in Sheffield.

About this event

This Showcase will present UK-leading capabilities, bringing together established experts and emerging innovators from across the aerospace composite manufacture supply chain and adjacent sectors , with the objective to push forward UK composite capabilities for aerospace.

Attendees will hear from innovative solution providers, aerospace industry leaders, the ATI and the HVM Catapult about the market opportunity, leading-edge innovation, buyer requirements and the evolving composites strategy.

Over the past ten years, UK industry and the government have invested over £800m to develop composite capability, technology and research infrastructure. Together, with a broad and proven supply chain, this puts the UK in a strong position to secure workshare on future platforms.

Published in March 2025, the ATI’s Market Spotlight: Growing UK composite capability identified that the UK aerospace sector could grow its market share in composites sixfold by 2050 through a targeted approach to technology differentiation and improving competitiveness. To maximise this growth potential in the face of increasing international competition and ambitious delivery targets for next generation single aisle platforms, the UK must strengthen its aerospace composite capability.

Informed by the strategy currently being developed with the ATI’s Composites Working Group, this Aerospace Innovation Showcase will present projects and technologies, and enable new collaborations, across two composite technology challenge themes:

• Challenge 1: High-Rate Industrial Systems
• Challenge 2: Advanced Tooling Capability

To find out more about the developing composite strategy, see the Market Spotlight: Growing UK composite capability.

Innovator Pitches

As part of the event, selected companies and projects will be invited to present their innovative technologies and capabilities in response to the two challenges set out below. To apply to for a pitching slot, please select “innovator pitch” in the registration form.

Pitches will be selected based on:

• Relevance to the Challenge Scope outlined above in Challenge 1 and/or 2
• Technology Innovation
• Aerospace User/Buyer Benefit
• Market Potential

Challenge scope

Challenge 1: High-Rate Industrial Systems

Next-generation single-aisle platforms, for which OEMs are targeting an extensive use of composite materials to drive efficiency improvement, will target a rate of 60-80+ aircraft a month with a rapid ramp-up from the start of production.

To support this rate ramp-up, manufacturing systems must undergo substantial transformation beyond traditional, primarily manual practices. Next-generation high-rate industrial systems for composites will need to integrate an array of solutions to optimise the value stream holistically, including automation, human factor, and industrialisation with the support of digital technologies.

Key technologies of interest to address this challenge include:

• Automated non-destructive evaluation and data analytics: automated defect recognition and categorisation, rapid evaluation methods and technologies
• In-line/in-process inspection and evaluation for composite processes: material manufacturing, cutting, deposition, curing, post-cure, finishing
• High-rate automated deposition technologies, including low-cost automation solutions delivering to quality for industry-wide rollout and automated deposition technologies for complex and highly contoured parts
• High-rate capable forming technologies and preform assembly for dry fibre and prepreg material formats

Challenge 2: Advanced Tooling Capabilities

High-rate manufacturing of composite components requires advanced tooling solutions. A local, integrated tooling supply chain capable of designing, manufacturing, integrating and delivering advanced right-first-time tooling solutions to the UK aerospace supply chain is critical to enabling a resilient and competitive supply chain, preserving technology differentiation.
Tooling systems required for high-rate composite processing need to be intelligent, integrating sensing, data capture capabilities and the digital backbone to enable high-quality and steady throughput of parts. Tooling must be energy efficient and integrate advanced thermal management solutions, and will need to have an increased level of complexity to support automation.

Key technologies of interest to address this challenge include:

• Tooling systems for prepreg (thermoset and thermoplastic) and liquid composite moulding (resin transfer moulding, resin infusion, etc.) isothermal and quasi-isothermal processing at high rates
• Advanced thermal management, including methods for self-heating and active cooling of tools for preform conditioning and control of the cure profile
• Novel sensing of tooling for process control, and associated digital technologies for process automation and optimisation
• Advanced methods for the design and simulation of tooling, including thermal/machining distortion compensation and tool/composite interaction
• Metallic joining and close-tolerance machining technologies (for high-integrity tools under high vacuum/pressure)
• Solutions to improve tool quality and durability (including surface finish and treatment solutions)
• Technologies to reduce material use in tool manufacture and enable alternative (from Invar) tooling materials for coefficient-of-thermal-expansion (CTE) equivalence (including metamaterials)

Who is this event for?

Organisations from across the UK with an ambition to invest nationally, and who have an interest to buy, partner, or build capability to deliver on the UK's composite opportunity as outlined in the two challenge areas above.

Companies interested in getting a deeper insight into  current state-of-the art of UK composite manufacturing and eager to progress collaborations, including  ATI funding, such as:

• Aerospace Primes and Tier 1s
• University spin-outs and startups with relevant capability
• Current aerospace SMEs/suppliers with relevant capability today or a strategic interest to build this capability in the near future
• Adjacent sector SMEs/suppliers with relevant expertise and interest in aerospace

Agenda

Subject to changes

8:30-9:15 – Arrival, networking and coffee

09:15-09:30 – Welcome and overview

09:30-10:30 – Panel: Developing a composite strategy for UK aerospace

10:30-10:45 – Coffee break

10:45-12:00 – Pitching Session Challenge 1: High-rate industrial systems

12:00-13:15 – Lunch and networking. Tour of the Compass facility

13:15-14:00 – Panel: Composite Tooling

14:00-15:00 – Pitching Session Challenge 2: Composite tooling

15:00-15:15 – Coffee Break

15:15-16:00 – Pitching Session 3: Projects and facilities

16:00-16:15 – Summary and next steps

16:15-16:45 – Drinks and close

If you would like to attend the Showcase, please register your interest below and select ‘attendee’.

To apply to for a pitching slot, please select ‘innovator pitch’ in the registration form.

Please note, places for this event are limited and we expect demand to be high. We will confirm attendance based on relevance to the outlined scope above; in case of oversubscription, we will be operating a waitlist.