TITAN‑AM Program to Industrialize Titanium Additive Manufacturing for Large Aerostructures

April 24, 2026

GKN Aerospace has launched a new program in partnership with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory to mature the use of additive manufacturing for large-scale aerostructures. (Image: GKN Aerospace)

GKN Aerospace has launched the Titanium Industrialization and Technology Advancement for Near-net Additive Manufacturing (TITAN-AM) program, an $8.4 million partnership with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). The initiative is focused on advancing and industrializing Laser Metal Deposition with Wire (LMD-w) technology to enable the use of additive manufacturing to produce large-scale next-generation aerostructures.

The TITAN-AM program will address five critical areas required to enable LMD-w for aerospace structural applications:

Industrialization of LMD-w processes for large-scale titanium aerostructure components.
Development of robust titanium material datasets to ensure structural performance and reliability.
Advanced simulation capabilities to optimize structural design and manufacturing outcomes.
Non-destructive inspection (NDI) techniques tailored for additive manufacturing processes.
Demonstration of the technology on selected aerospace structural components.

Laser Metal Deposition is an additive manufacturing method that uses "a high-power laser to melt and fuse metal powder, constructing three-dimensional objects layer by layer," according to an article defining the technique from Science Direct. "The process uses a laser beam as a heat source and is based on slicing the desired geometry and building it layer-by-layer using powder or a wire feedstock as additive material."

RELATED: Register for SAE International's Free Aerospace Materials & Manufacturing Summit, May 6, 2026 Online

The collaboration between GKN and AFRL is one of the latest major aerospace industry initiatives to focus on the use of additive manufacturing for larger aerostructures. Airbus, for example, is using wire‑directed energy deposition (w‑DED) to 3D print titanium aircraft parts at much larger scales than earlier additive manufacturing methods allowed. Some of the w-DED parts are already being integrated into in-production aircraft — such as the A350.

The GKN-AFRL program will be executed from GKN Aerospace’s Global Technology Center in Fort Worth, Texas, a hub for advanced manufacturing innovation and collaboration with U.S. defense and aerospace partners. The collaboration reinforces GKN Aerospace’s commitment to advancing additive manufacturing technologies that deliver lighter, stronger and more sustainable structural solutions for defense and commercial aerospace platforms. By leveraging LMD-w, TITAN-AM aims to reduce material waste, shorten production lead times and increase design freedom for complex aerostructures.

GKN Aerospace is already in serial production of major additively manufactured structures that are flying today, including the fan case mount ring for the Pratt & Whitney GTF™ (Geared Turbofan) engine family. These components are produced using additive manufacturing in Sweden and the United States and are in service on aircraft such as the Airbus A220 and Embraer E195-E2.

Source