Schuler forges alliance with FormTech

Air traffic is currently growing at a rate of 5% annually and is expected to double by the year 2030. If one includes replacements for existing aircraft, some 30,000 new planes will be supplied in this period.

In order to provide the aerospace industry with the necessary presses, Schuler has now forged a technology partnership with the company FormTech, which will be advising the world’s largest press manufacturer on the construction of hot presses, as used for the forming of titanium.

FormTech boasts outstanding know-how in this field – from the development of forming presses, dies and components to the production of prototypes. Moreover, titanium is playing an increasingly important role in aircraft design, making planes lighter and helping to reduce fuel consumption.

Werner Beck, managing director of FormTech, says: “The technological partnership between Schuler and FormTech allows the cost-efficient use of titanium alloys for a wide range of components.” Possible production processes include gas pressure forming, diffusion bonding, hot forming, hot deep drawing and isothermal forging. In addition, the two partners have developed a forming technology for titanium which involves only a very small degree of material loss.

The first customer of Schuler and FormTech is a Russian engine manufacturer. This company will shortly take delivery of isothermal forming presses for the production of jet blades from titanium blanks.