A Tier 1 aerospace OEM reduced part count from 7 to 1, cut weight by 40%, and compressed their supply chain—all with a single PO through MCAM.
This customer manufactures turbine assemblies for commercial jet engines. Their bracket design was a seven-piece brazed assembly: a main titanium body with six smaller parts welded in place to support rotor alignment and thermal load distribution. The design worked, but it carried some real headaches.
Yield was the first issue. Brazing seven pieces together introduced multiple joint interfaces, and each one was a potential failure point. They were seeing 8–12% scrap rate, and every failed joint required a complete remake—no salvage, no rework. The second issue was supply chain fragmentation. The main body came from one vendor, the smaller components from three others, and brazing from yet another facility. Coordinating schedules, managing quality holds, and dealing with engineering changes across five suppliers was eating their program timeline.
MCAM evaluated the design and recommended Ti-6Al-4V DMLS. The bracket carries AS9100 and Nadcap certification requirements, so material traceability and process control were non-negotiable. DMLS delivers the density and surface finish needed for the critical rotor interfaces, and the build process is well-established within the Nadcap ecosystem.
The design itself needed iteration. The original brazed assembly had pockets and datum surfaces that didn’t translate directly to print geometry. Our engineering team optimized the part for AM—adding wall thickness where needed, repositioning cooling channels to improve print efficiency, and planning the support structure to minimize residual stress on bearing surfaces. The final design saved 40% weight by eliminating extra material at braze joints and internal fillets. Printed brackets went through HIP to close internal porosity and precision machining to ±0.002” on bearing interfaces.
One supply agreement instead of five, one delivery timeline instead of five, zero brazed joints to worry about. 40% lighter than the original assembly—for a turbine engine component, that translates directly to fuel efficiency gains across the fleet.
From first contact to finished, certified parts in 12 weeks—half the time the traditional supply chain would’ve needed. The printed brackets came through with zero failures, no rework cycles, no quality holds. 18% cost reduction per unit compared to the brazed assembly, even including HIP and precision machining. The consolidation savings in labor and material buydown more than offset the additive premium.
Part consolidation is where additive manufacturing really earns its place in aerospace. Each brazed joint is a failure point and a source of supply chain complexity. When you print a multi-component assembly as a single part, you’re improving reliability and cutting your supplier footprint. The compliance infrastructure exists—Nadcap, AS9100, ITAR—these aren’t roadblocks in 2026.
The design transfer isn’t always one-to-one. We didn’t just print the original bracket. We optimized for AM, and that bought the customer weight savings and cost reductions they didn’t expect. That collaboration is where real value gets created. And a single PO changes everything—one order, certified brackets on schedule. That’s not just logistics. It’s risk reduction.
Whether you’re dealing with brazed subassemblies, multi-part castings, or welded structures, there’s a good chance additive manufacturing can simplify your design and compress your timeline. But finding the right facility and optimizing for print takes expertise.
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