What’s top of mind in composites?

Source | CW

There’s a line from the Wes Anderson movie “Fantastic Mr. Fox” that runs through my mind every month: “Maybe a few of you might even read my column from time to time, who knows? I tend to doubt it.”

Fox is a newspaper man (albeit, a fox) and a bit self-centered. During the course of the movie’s plot he learns some humility and to appreciate others. It’s a message I try to be mindful of in my own career. When you write for a living, it’s easy to be a bit precious about the content you develop on your own — and that’s okay. But every once in a while it’s also important to take a step back to understand the bigger picture through other people’s perspectives. It can often lead to new avenues of thought, or create connections that may not have been obvious before.

Featured Content

Biomaterials make strides toward composites sustainability READ MORE

Composites end markets: Sports and recreation (2025) READ MORE

Bladder-assisted compression molding derivative produces complex, autoclave-quality automotive parts READ MORE

Luckily, I work with an amazing group of people who are able to provide that new perspective, sharing their insights into the trends and challenges influencing the composites industry. I learn something new from these talented individuals — as I hope our readers and industry connections do too — on a daily basis. Penning this month’s column as we all prepare for travel to JEC World 2025, I turned to my colleagues for their current opinions on the industry — what they’re seeing that excites them, the kinds of topics they feel are at the forefront and even what they hope to learn at this year’s international trade show.

Jeff Sloan, my predecessor and CW’s brand VP, says he is looking forward to insights from industry colleagues in Europe as to the effects of economic and political headwinds on the industry. Is the European economy truly recovering after being in recession in the past couple of years? How do people think the political turbulence in the U.S. will affect the global supply chain? Of course, like many others in the composites industry, Sloan is also curious if Airbus might show any indication of a move toward a new single-aisle aircraft program.

Senior technical editor Ginger Gardiner is closely watching developments surrounding the use of thermoplastic composites (TPC) in aerospace and says there may be signals that the aerospace industry will continue to embrace more TPCs regardless of a next-generation single-aisle aircraft. Gardiner says other trends that are top of mind for her include the continuing industrialization of recycled materials, and the growing interest in ceramic matrix composites and high-temperature materials driven by not only hypersonics and defense applications, but also by the need for nuclear power to address growing energy needs.

Technical editor Hannah Mason addresses the sustainability side of things. “I’ll definitely be looking out for new or increasing uses/commercialization of biomaterials (both resins and fibers), maturation of recycling technologies and uses of recycled materials, as well as options in the EV market for composite battery enclosures and other components,” she says.

In a similar line of thought, senior managing editor Grace Nehls says she’s noticed a move away from simply building up composite recycling capacity, and a focus on more EU projects and collaborations targeting recycling earlier in composite materials production in order to mature the circularity supply chain.

“A lot of people I have talked to mention how great recycling is, but that there are a lot of other issues going on earlier in the process that need to be addressed first,” she says. “I think the industry is finally beginning to acknowledge that.”

Nehls also points to recent developments in the eVTOL industry. Companies like Lilium and Volocopter have filed for insolvency, and Airbus has paused its CityBus NextGen program (albeit for a different reason). At the same time  Archer Aviation and Joby are still rapidly scaling up to launch commercially before the 2030s. “Like all shiny, new things, this end market has grown rapidly over the years, but certain headwinds have come into play,” she says. “I think this market is still going to be made possible some day, but again, like recycling, a lot of companies are acknowledging the difficulties to getting there first.”

And, not to be forgotten, there is the burgeoning space economy, with programs and developments we’ve reported on in recent years that are finally coming to fruition. Check out this month’s cover story, which offers a quick overview of recent space applications over the last couple of years using composite materials.

I expect many of the topics and questions CW’s editors mentioned here are also on your mind as you explore the technologies showcased and talked about at JEC World — perhaps you’re even reading this on the plane as you are traveling the show. As for me, I’m looking forward to hearing what’s top of mind for you. See you in Paris!