Aeronautics and space: what parts are printed in metal and what is needed to be able to sell them

Aerospace is the sector most frequently mentioned when discussing additive manufacturing in metal, and also the one where adoption is slowest. Both are for the same reason: weight is very important, and mistakes are much more costly.

It is important to separate what is already routine from what remains exceptional.

Where does it fit in today

Supports, fittings, and brackets. The largest and least visually appealing family of components. These are parts that hold other parts, often machined today from a single block with extremely poor material utilization. Redesigned and lightened, this is where the cost becomes apparent most quickly: every kilogram gained on an aircraft is paid for in fuel over its entire lifespan. This is the natural case for topological optimisation, with the usual caveat: fatigue is just as important as rigidity here.

Pipes, manifolds, and fluid assemblies. Circuits made today of pipes, elbows, and fittings, which are printed as a single unit. This eliminates joints—and therefore leaks, inspections, and the weight of flanges—and allows for flexible routing to fit the available space. It's consolidating an assembly applied where it pays off most.

Rocket injectors and combustion chambers. The most mature case in the entire space sector. Geometries with regenerative cooling channels impossible to manufacture otherwise, in very short production runs, with budgets that allow for development. Much of the resurgence of the small launcher relies on this.

Plant tooling. The quietest and fastest payback option: templates, gauges, assembly tools, composite molds. They don't fly, so they don't require flight qualifications, and that's why they go from concept to finished product in weeks, not years.

Spare parts for older fleets. When the original tooling no longer exists and neither does the manufacturer. The same logic as distributed spare parts manufacturing, in a sector where a grounded aircraft costs a fortune per day.

The materials

Alloy	Purpose
Ti-6Al-4V	Structure and fittings. Strength-to-weight ratio and compatibility with carbon fiber without galvanic corrosion
Inconel 718 and 625	All hot-working parts: turbine, exhaust, combustion chambers, and nozzles
AlSi10Mg and high-strength aluminium alloys	Lightweight, lightly loaded parts, antennas, heat sinks, secondary structure
Tool steels and stainless steels	Plant tooling and non-flying parts

The comparison between the first three families is in 316L, Inconel 718 or Ti-6Al-4V.

What it really costs to get in

And here's the part that almost no one mentions when showing a beautiful part at a trade fair: the barrier isn't the machine, it's the qualification.

What you need	Why
Aerospace Quality System	AS9100 or equivalent. Without it, there's no discussion with a Tier 1 manufacturer
Frozen and Documented Process	Same machine, same powder, same parameters, same heat treatment. Any change requires requalification
Full Powder Traceability	Casting, certificate, number of reuses, and retirement criteria. It's in powder reuse
Control Specimens per Build plate	Manufactured alongside the part and tested to demonstrate that the batch complies
Non-Destructive Testing	Computed tomography for critical areas: it's the only practical way to see porosity and trapped powder
Exportable Process Data	The build record is evidence. If it stays inside the machine in a closed format, it's useless

That last point has a direct commercial consequence, and it's the reason why a machine with open parameterization and proprietary data isn't just an engineer's preference: it's what allows you to qualify without depending on a third party certifying for you and then not having to change anything tomorrow. The complete map of the standards is in ISO/ASTM standards.

How to really get in

There's one system that works and another that burns through budget:

Start with factory tooling. It doesn't fly, it doesn't require qualification, and you learn the process with real parts.
Continue with non-critical parts: wiring harnesses, interior fairings, secondary fasteners.
Then, secondary structural parts, using the frozen process and test specimens.
And only then, the critical parts, if the situation warrants it.

Those who start with step four usually end up with a two-year project and a part that is never assembled.

Space travels faster, and why

In launchers and satellites, the arithmetic changes: production runs are in units, not thousands; weight matters even more; and the operator is usually the one who designs, manufactures, and flies the product, so the approval chain is much shorter. That's why the space sector adopted this technology years before commercial aviation, and that's why it continues to be where we see the most new components.

If you have a potential part and want to start by finding out its cost, the quote calculator will give you the cost and lead time based on the geometry you already have. And the parts we've manufactured, by sector, are listed in parts.