It is estimated that sales of passenger aircraft will rise by 4.5% to 5% by 2030. Rising numbers of travelers on intercontinental routes and the increase of aviation in emerging nations are the main reasons for these steadily rising figures. This is compounded by the replacement of older fleets operated by many airlines with modern aircraft which are much more fuel efficient economical in operation thanks to the new technologies they feature.

 Blisk – Blade Integrated Disk

Blisks (blade integrated disks) are an integral component of new, more efficient aircraft engines. These are a composite of blades and disks which replace conventional turbine blades with single blades. The benefits brought by the use of blisks include lower component weight and generally higher strength resulting from being manufactured from a single workpiece. The downside is the fact that they are more complicated to produce using classic machining technologies.

 Precise Electro-Chemical Machining (PECM)

EMAG has demonstrated that this does not have to be the case with its PO 900 BF, a blisk machining unit featuring PECM technology. The manufacture of blisks using PECM is considerably more straightforward and also involves lower costs than traditional machining technologies. For example, production using PECM causes practically zero tool wear since the material is removed at a molecular level. The process, therefore, not only prevents the sort of warping that can occur when milling, for example, but also eliminates the need for finishing since the PECM produces almost perfect surfaces.

 The PO 900 BF blisk machining unit has the potential to produce massive savings in the production of a central component of aircraft turbines whose volumes are set to increase dramatically.