As global demand surges for more efficient and scalable aircraft manufacturing, particularly for single-aisle jets, Hexcel and its Helues partners are helping OEMs address critical production challenges through new material and process innovations.
Arkema and Hexcel to pioneer a new manufacturing process using high-temperature thermoplastics
At the core of the Helues technology is a one-step forming and injection overmoulding technology that utilises HexPly® unidirectional (UD) carbon fibre-reinforced Kepstan® PEKK tapes in conjunction with Kepstan® PEKK injection moulding compounds. This integrated approach enables the rapid creation of a fully formed, structurally complex component, including reinforcing ribs and functional elements, in less than 2 minutes.
Thermoplastics technology offers aerospace OEMs 3 key advantages:
- Dramatically shortened cycle times – from hours to minutes – to meet production targets of up to 80-100 jets per month,
- Greater design flexibility and weight savings, thanks to thermoplastics’ ability to be reshaped and welded rather than fastened,
- Enhanced sustainability and recyclability, as thermoplastics can be reprocessed and reused.
The Helues demonstrator directly replaces a traditionally assembled door structure with a single, integrated part, reducing component count and assembly steps by up to 90%. Early-stage testing confirmed excellent material bonding between moulded ribs and thermoformed laminates, further supporting the part’s viability in demanding aerospace environments.
With the commercial aviation sector preparing for a future defined by high-rate production and more automated, sustainable assembly lines, thermoplastics are gaining momentum as a material of choice. By reducing reliance on energy-intensive autoclaves and enabling robotic manufacturing processes, solutions like the Helues component demonstrate how composite innovation can unlock both performance and production scalability for the next generation of aircraft.
The Helues project, funded by the German Aerospace Centre and supported by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs, brought together Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH, Neue Materialien Bayreuth GmbH, Christian Karl Siebenwurst GmbH & Co. KG, Incoe corporation.
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