Safran Opens Turbine Blade Research Center Near Paris Written 8 February 2019

FlightGlobal reports that Safran Aircraft Engines opened a new turbine blade research center “at its Gennevilliers site near Paris.” According to the manufacturer, the facility is capable of performing “all development work necessary for next-generation very-high-performance turbine blades” for military and commercial engines used in fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Around 30 engineers and experts will focus on “multi-disciplinary design, single-crystal casting, 3D-printed ceramic blade cores, thermal coatings, cooling circuits, digitised processes, self-adapting micro-drilling, and non-destructive testing based on artificial intelligence.” Safran cited a project to develop enhanced turbine blades to “improve aircraft dispatch reliability” for the company’s Snecma M88 engines, which are used on the Dassault Rafale. The center will also work on “blades for the engine that will power France and Germany’s planned joint Future Combat Air System (FCAS), which will be jointly developed by Safran and MTU Aero Engines.”
More Info (FlightGlobal)