Boeing’s Space Taxis to Use More Than 600 3D-Printed Parts

Aerospace already accounts for about 17 percent of 3D printing revenue, ranking second after industrial and business machines but ahead of automotive, consumer, electronics and medical products. Aerospace is a “near perfect fit” for 3D printing because it involves complex expensive parts made in relatively low volumes,  Boeing’s Starliner is due to blast off for the first time, with many 3-D  plastic (PEKK) lightweight, fire and radiation resistant parts, in June 2018 from Cape Canaveral, and carry its first crew in August 2018. It will be launched on an Atlas V rocket supplied by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin Corp.