Evaluating Eco‐Efficiency of 3D Printing in the Aeronautic Industry

Summary New technologies such as 3D printing, also known as rapid manufacturing or additive manufacturing, are promising technologies to support the aeronautics sector moving toward its ambitious environmental goals. An eco‐efficiency method combining life cycle costs and life cycle environmental assessment is developed to support eco‐design initiatives in the aeronautics industry that accounts for specific reduction targets. Eco‐efficiency results are computed through a normalization procedure and a target‐driven trade‐off and displayed as an XY diagram. Applied to an aircraft doorstop manufacturing, results show that 3D printing has clear benefits both in terms of costs and environmental impacts compared to conventional machining. Nevertheless, 3D printing equipment costs are still high, and a sensitivity analysis shows that, for lower productivity levels, the optimal scenario relies on the chosen trade‐off between environmental impacts and costs reduction.