Materialise, Proponent Collaborate to Transform Aerospace Aftermarket Supply Chains

Materialise and Proponent are collaborating to raise the profile of 3D printing in aerospace aftermarket supply chains. Materialise is a provider of 3D printing solutions, while Proponent is an independent distributor of aircraft parts. With the partnership, Materialise and Proponent seek to collaborate with aerospace OEMs and suppliers to offer airlines and MROs a one-stop-shop solution for aftermarket parts where 3D printing is featured alongside other manufacturing technologies.

As part of the agreement, Materialise and Proponent are exploring ways to help aerospace OEMs access the benefits of 3D printing, ultimately envisioning a digital supply chain enabling on-demand manufacturing. While 3D printing has so far been the domain of specialist engineering departments in aerospace companies, this development is designed to bring it into the procurement domain and, thus, make it increasingly accessible for MROs to source 3D printed parts, the companies say.

“Open solutions and a collaborative approach have always been crucial to Materialise,” says Bart Van der Schueren, Materialise CTO. “Today, we are excited to combine our capabilities as an EASA 21.G-certified production organization with Proponent’s reach and central position in the aerospace supply chain.”

3D printing represents an opportunity for Proponent to help OEM and supplier partners become more efficient in their supply chains and complements its stocking distribution model. “Producing customized parts or small production runs through AM gives us an opportunity to source on-demand, sustainably and avoid high minimum order quantities,” says  Andrew Todhunter, Proponent CEO. “Our customers get what they need, when they need it and OEMs avoid the cost and risks that come with manufacturing these parts.”

Proponent provides traditional distribution services to airlines, MROs and OEMs, as well as inventory management solutions. The company ships 54 million parts per year to over 6,000 aerospace customers in over 100 countries. The majority of parts serve the aftermarket, with applications spanning cabin interiors, engines, airframe and cockpits.

Materialise manufactures 700 part series per year for diverse aerospace customers, from OEMs to MROs and supplier tiers. This includes an estimated 26,000 parts per year for the Airbus A350 system alone. Materialise is also currently the only supplier to offer manufacturing services in two 3D printing technologies approved by Airbus for flight-ready parts, since becoming Airbus’s first manufacturer for the Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) technology in May this year.