Mainstream Engineering Awarded Contract from the US Navy for Scalable Technology for Manufacturing Large Composite Components Using Nanostructured Heaters

ROCKLEDGE, FL — March 11th, 2020 — Mainstream Engineering Corporation has been awarded a contract from the US Navy to develop an innovative aircraft manufacturing method to produce aerospace-grade, carbon epoxy laminate structures for future air platforms.

A principal cost driver in making quality composite parts is the need for an autoclave. An autoclave provides the temperature and pressure needed to fabricate parts made from the family of aerospace resins such as Carbon/Epoxy. One aerospace manufacturer has estimated that out-of-autoclave processes can save up to 50% of the manufacturing costs and be 40% faster.  Recent developments in nanostructured heaters show promise to produce high-quality parts and also aid in resin impregnation. Such systems have the potential of producing parts of autoclave quality without requiring an oven. Since no autoclave or oven is needed, these heaters have the potential of curing very large parts, with length dimensions exceeding 100 feet, which typically will not fit in an autoclave.

About Mainstream Engineering Corporation
Mainstream Engineering Corporation is a 34-year-old Brevard County, Florida manufacturer with a history of leading-edge research and development that has resulted in advanced cost-competitive products, which are made in the USA.  Mainstream’s mission is to transition advanced R&D into high-quality, environmentally safe, green, commercial products using lean manufacturing techniques. Areas of research include thermal control, energy conversion, power electronics, biomass conversion, chemical technology, and materials science.