Airbus revolutionizes aircraft manufacturing with 3D printing technology from Stratasys

Additive Manufacturing How 3D-Printed Parts are Changing Aircraft Manufacturing

2025-12-16 Source: Stratasys | Translated by AI 2 min Reading Time

Related Vendors

Airbus produces more than 25,000 flight-ready 3D-printed parts annually, changing the way aircraft are built and maintained. They are supported by technology from Stratasys. Over 200,000 certified Stratasys polymer parts are now in active use.

Over 200,000 certified Stratasys polymer parts are now in active use at Airbus.(Image: Copyright (c) 2018 Ryan Fletcher/Shutterstock. No use without permission.) — Over 200,000 certified Stratasys polymer parts are now in active use at Airbus.
(Image: Copyright (c) 2018 Ryan Fletcher/Shutterstock. No use without permission.)

Current data shows that the use of 3D-printed Stratasys components in the Airbus A350 has led to a weight reduction of 43 percent, the elimination of minimum order quantity (MOQ), and an 85 percent reduction in lead time. This has saved significant costs and several weeks of production time.

Airbus manufactures components for the A320, A350, and A400M models using Stratasys Ultem 9085 Filament Certified Grade (CG) material on several industrial FDM printers from Stratasys.

"The additive manufacturing technology from Stratasys is an essential part of our commitment to safe and sustainable aviation," said Serge Senac, Airbus Industrial Leader for Polymer Additive Manufacturing. "We can produce certified, reproducible components more quickly while relying less on complex supply chains. This manufacturing flexibility reduces costs and improves responsiveness to meet the needs of our customers worldwide. Last but not least, this technology contributes to Airbus's roadmap to achieve climate neutrality by 2050."

Faster And More Cost-Effective Replacement of Various Components

The parts meet strict aerospace requirements while enabling faster and more cost-effective replacement of various components throughout the aircraft. Thanks to decentralized manufacturing, Airbus can produce parts where and when they are needed, reducing aircraft downtime, minimizing inventory, and avoiding costly supply chain delays.

With tens of thousands of certified parts already in use, we are witnessing a turning point, not just for Airbus but for the entire aerospace industry.

Rich Garrity

"Our collaboration with Airbus is proof that additive manufacturing is being integrated into large-scale series production and can be a decisive competitive advantage," said Rich Garrity, Chief Business Unit Officer at Stratasys. "With tens of thousands of certified parts already in use, we are witnessing a turning point not just for Airbus but for the entire aerospace industry. The demand for lighter, faster, and more resilient supply chains is accelerating and driving the adoption of Stratasys technology worldwide. What Airbus is achieving today heralds the next growth chapter for our industry: certified additive manufacturing as a standard production method in global aviation."

Subscribe to the newsletter now

Don't Miss out on Our Best Content

Business E-mail

Please enter a valid mailadress.

By clicking on „Subscribe to Newsletter“ I agree to the processing and use of my data according to the consent form (please expand for details) and accept the Terms of Use. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy. The consent declaration relates, among other things, to the sending of editorial newsletters by email and to data matching for marketing purposes with selected advertising partners (e.g., LinkedIn, Google, Meta)

Date: 08.12.2025

Naturally, we always handle your personal data responsibly. Any personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. For detailed information please see our privacy policy.

Consent to the use of data for promotional purposes

I hereby consent to Vogel Communications Group GmbH & Co. KG, Max-Planck-Str. 7-9, 97082 Würzburg including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG (hereafter: Vogel Communications Group) using my e-mail address to send editorial newsletters. A list of all affiliated companies can be found here

Newsletter content may include all products and services of any companies mentioned above, including for example specialist journals and books, events and fairs as well as event-related products and services, print and digital media offers and services such as additional (editorial) newsletters, raffles, lead campaigns, market research both online and offline, specialist webportals and e-learning offers. In case my personal telephone number has also been collected, it may be used for offers of aforementioned products, for services of the companies mentioned above, and market research purposes.

Additionally, my consent also includes the processing of my email address and telephone number for data matching for marketing purposes with select advertising partners such as LinkedIn, Google, and Meta. For this, Vogel Communications Group may transmit said data in hashed form to the advertising partners who then use said data to determine whether I am also a member of the mentioned advertising partner portals. Vogel Communications Group uses this feature for the purposes of re-targeting (up-selling, cross-selling, and customer loyalty), generating so-called look-alike audiences for acquisition of new customers, and as basis for exclusion for on-going advertising campaigns. Further information can be found in section “data matching for marketing purposes”.

In case I access protected data on Internet portals of Vogel Communications Group including any affiliated companies according to §§ 15 et seq. AktG, I need to provide further data in order to register for the access to such content. In return for this free access to editorial content, my data may be used in accordance with this consent for the purposes stated here. This does not apply to data matching for marketing purposes.

Right of revocation

I understand that I can revoke my consent at will. My revocation does not change the lawfulness of data processing that was conducted based on my consent leading up to my revocation. One option to declare my revocation is to use the contact form found at https://contact.vogel.de. In case I no longer wish to receive certain newsletters, I have subscribed to, I can also click on the unsubscribe link included at the end of a newsletter. Further information regarding my right of revocation and the implementation of it as well as the consequences of my revocation can be found in the data protection declaration, section editorial newsletter.