Caracol and Eligio Re Fraschini Validate WAAM for Aerospace Tooling with 50% Weight Reduction

• Italian aerospace tooling specialist Eligio Re Fraschini partnered with robotic additive manufacturing company Caracol on a co-funded pilot project to test whether wire arc additive manufacturing could viably replace conventional methods for complex aerospace tooling components.  The target was a spar tool used in carbon fiber lamination processes, a component defined by tight tolerances, complex…

Italian aerospace tooling specialist Eligio Re Fraschini partnered with robotic additive manufacturing company Caracol on a co-funded pilot project to test whether wire arc additive manufacturing could viably replace conventional methods for complex aerospace tooling components. The target was a spar tool used in carbon fiber lamination processes, a component defined by tight tolerances, complex geometry, and demanding structural requirements. Rather than a purely experimental exercise, the project was designed from the outset with scalability in mind, validating a manufacturing approach intended to carry forward into active production programs at larger formats. Caracol AM Tooling for Aerospace. Photo via Caracol. What Conventional Manufacturing Gets Wrong Aerospace tooling has long b