News (Sponsor type)

Leaders from the British and French aerospace composites sectors launched JEC World 2026 week in the elegant surroundings of the British Embassy in Paris for a strategic event to explore closer collaboration between the UK and France, coordinated by Composites UK and the UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT).

Safran presented the applications for composites across their business units and Safran Tech, their Research and Technology (R&T) division. Several UK companies presented their capability, including CCP Gransden, Pentaxia, Composite Integration, Teledyne, as well as the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) near Sheffield. A roundtable discussion followed with Safran Tech, to consider the potential for an R&T centre in the UK, working with current centres of excellence. Representatives from the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMIC, in Northern Ireland), AMRC, the Aerospace Technology Institute, Composites UK, NCC and the Henry Royce Institute discussed their expertise and key areas to address to complement existing capability.

Jo Hawley, the UK's Deputy Trade Commissioner for Europe and Country Director for France, addressed a networking reception in the evening, and spoke of the opportunities for collaboration and increasing trade between the UK and France.

Growing expertise in automated manufacturing

The development of Automated Fibre Placement (AFP) among UK companies was notable. Cygnet Texkimp presented the ART (Automated Rapid Tape) technology which they have developed with supercar manufacturer McLaren. ART has addressed the challenge of producing high quality, complex parts at high rate and with minimal scrap. Tape is laid at up to 2.5 m/s, targeting 60 kg/h, which can be coupled with part production using Double Diaphragm Forming (DDF). Cygnet Texkimp is now marketing the solution to other industries including aerospace, space, defence, wind energy and industrial.

iCOMAT's proprietary rapid tow shearing technology is taking the world by storm, with announcements at JEC World of Factory II in Swindon, UK, swiftly followed by Factory III in Dayton, Ohio, both around 40,000 sq ft (3,716 m2). Since 2021, they have rapidly evolved from a JEC Startup Booster finalist into an international, vertically integrated manufacturer spanning design, tooling and complex assemblies.

Loop Technology has also recently opened a second UK facility in Sheffield and expanded into Seattle, USA. Their portfolio of automation technology includes FibreLINE for high-rate composite preforming and Bravura for automation in confined space. A focus this year was the FibreFORM pick-and-place end effector for rapid material deposition to enable ultra-high rate manufacture of carbon fibre aircraft wings, wing tips, nacelles and drones.

Read the full article on pages 44 to 46 of issue 168 of JEC Composites Magazine.

Cover photo: NCC stand at the UK Pavilion © Composites UK