Oxford Performance Materials to supply 3D printed OXFAB parts for Boeing CST-100 Starliner
Oxford Performance Materials, Inc. (OPM), a leading advanced materials and additive manufacturing (3D printing) company, has been selected by The Boeing Company to manufacture 3D-printed structures for the Boeing CST-100 Starliner spacecraft, and OPM has begun shipping OXFAB® production parts for installation.
The Starliner – designed to transport up to seven passengers, or a mix of crew and cargo, to low-Earth orbit destinations such as the International Space Station – is under development in collaboration with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
The OXFAB components for the Starliner utilize OPM advanced materials science and high-performance additive manufacturing (HPAM) technologies. OPM’s Aerospace & Industrial Division has established a set of robust performance attributes verified in an exhaustive B-Basis database that was developed in conjunction with NASA. Boeing selected OPM as a result of the company’s demonstrated ability to continually produce highly specified aerospace parts that consistently perform in demanding space environments.
“From our earliest discussions with Boeing, they stressed the need to see significant reductions in weight, cost and lead times in order to consider replacing traditional metallic and composite parts with new technology for their space program,” said Lawrence Varholak, President of OPM Aerospace & Industrial. “We are proud to be developing and delivering OXFAB technology to the highest standards.”
