At AIAA SciTech 2026, 3DPrint.com moved between the present ground, exhibitor cubicles, and technical discussions, talking with corporations, researchers, and engineers about how 3D printing is getting used at present in aerospace and protection, and the place it’s nonetheless evolving.
Throughout these conversations, the identical themes emerged. Primes and authorities labs targeted on scale, qualification, and repeatability, the place components should meet strict flight necessities. On the identical time, startups and college groups emphasised pace and iteration, utilizing 3D printing to check new concepts and transfer rapidly from design to experiment. Many discussions additionally centered on measurement, ending, automation, and supplies: work that determines whether or not additively manufactured components can transfer from early builds into flight-ready packages. And that distinction set the tone for a lot of the occasion.
That blend was clear on the present ground itself. Main primes akin to Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, RTX, Siemens, and extra have been recruiting, assembly with companions, and fascinating immediately with engineers, college students, and startups all through the week. In the meantime, additive-focused cubicles, like VulcanForms, Lithoz, Fathom, Lab AM 24, and ZEISS, confirmed how 3D printing now matches into on a regular basis aerospace work.
The present ground at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
The Position of Measurement and Qualification
One of many strengths of occasions like SciTech is that they place additive manufacturing (AM) inside a much wider aerospace context. Quite than specializing in printing alone, conversations usually moved rapidly into measurement, qualification, and course of management.
On the ZEISS sales space, optical scanning and inspection have been described as more and more crucial as additively manufactured components transfer into actual aerospace packages. Whereas automotive stays ZEISS’s largest market (roughly 70 % of its buyer base), aerospace and aerostructures now account for round 20 %, with AM taking part in an more and more essential position.
Additionally they described the size of a few of that work. One of many largest scans mentioned concerned a C-130 plane. Quite than capturing the whole construction without delay, half of the plane was scanned after which mirrored, a course of that also took two to a few days to finish. Giant geometry takes time if accuracy issues, defined Zeiss.
Nonetheless, in response to ZEISS, one of many largest challenges prospects face when inspecting 3D printed components isn’t the scanner itself. It’s preparation. Extremely reflective components may have a light-weight spray coating. Targets should be positioned accurately. Floor prep must be constant. When these steps are rushed or skipped, scan knowledge can find yourself with gaps or voids, undermining the whole inspection course of.
In follow, AM raises the bar for rigor reasonably than reducing it. Printing may be quick, however qualification takes time, which helps clarify why aerospace AM continues to maneuver rigorously at the same time as manufacturing capabilities advance.
Zeiss at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
Universities and the Subsequent Technology of AM Work
That stability between pace and rigor was particularly seen on the college aspect of the present.
One of the crucial encouraging facets of AIAA SciTech was the robust college presence on the expo ground. Throughout aerospace engineering, supplies science, propulsion, and constructions, universities confirmed how 3D printing is already being utilized in hands-on analysis. The main focus was sensible: light-weight constructions, new supplies, quicker testing cycles, and student-built programs that may transfer rapidly from design to experiment.
These packages have been clearly designed for real-world use. The main focus wasn’t simply on analysis papers, however on coaching future engineers and connecting college labs with business, authorities, and protection companions. In a number of cubicles, college students walked guests by printed parts, check rigs, and flight-ready platforms, explaining not simply what they constructed, however why.
Anthony Comer and Zach Atkinson from the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Analysis and Training at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
For instance, on the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Analysis and Training, Assistant Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Oklahoma State College, Anthony Comer, described how AM is built-in immediately into flight analysis. Graduate analysis assistant Zach Atkinson defined that the Simulation to Flight Utilized Analysis Laboratory takes novel plane configurations from digital simulation all the best way to bodily flight testing. Utilizing aerodynamic modeling methods, the group designs and builds plane, then compares simulation outcomes with actual flight knowledge, usually utilizing 3D printed parts to maneuver rapidly from design to testing.
Professor Jason Merret from the College of Illinois Urbana-Champaign at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
One other college sales space drew loads of consideration with a hands-on drone setup that felt quite a bit like a small testing enviornment. Aerospace Engineering Professor Jason Merret from the College of Illinois Urbana-Champaign defined that their lab operates as a mixture of instructing and analysis, utilizing 3D printed drones and enclosures to let college students experiment, check, and iterate. The drone lab has been working for about three years and features a devoted flight room outfitted with a full motion-capture system. With roughly a dozen high-resolution cameras monitoring motion inside a 20-by-20-by-10-foot area, the setup permits a number of drones to be examined concurrently with sub-millimeter accuracy. It might need appeared like a playful sales space, however beneath, it confirmed how AM is getting used to help critical analysis, testing, and hands-on training.
Florida Tech at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
In the meantime, on the Florida Institute of Know-how sales space, AM confirmed up as a part of a broader hands-on analysis atmosphere. Firat Irmak, assistant professor of aerospace, physics, and area sciences, alongside along with his graduate college students, walked guests by a variety of 3D printed parts built-in into electronics, movement programs, and lab-scale manufacturing instruments, displaying how printed components are utilized in actual experiments reasonably than remoted demos. Some workflows have been automated, whereas others have been deliberately hands-on, giving college students expertise validating designs and understanding how printed components behave in actual programs.
The College of Alabama in Huntsville’s Division of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
What stood out was how a lot printed {hardware} was on show. The Florida Tech sales space felt much less like a showcase and extra like a working lab, displaying how 3D printing helps analysis, testing, and engineering training.
FAMU-FSU Faculty of Engineering at AIAA SciTech Discussion board 2026. Picture courtesy of 3DPrint.com.
Different establishments, such because the College of Alabama in Huntsville‘s Division of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, FAMU-FSU Faculty of Engineering, Utah State College’s Faculty of Engineering, California Institute of Know-how, and the College of Maryland‘s Division of Aerospace Engineering, confirmed how 3D printing matches into present analysis workflows. It’s a clear reminder {that a} vital a part of aerospace AM’s future is being formed in college labs at present, usually properly earlier than these concepts attain business or manufacturing environments.
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