Any cornice: a new IT platform will allow you to create parts for satellites, yachts and cars

Russian scientists from the Bauman Moscow State Technical University have developed a new generation digital technology platform. Its goal is to design, analyze, and create polymer products, including solar panels or satellite housings. It will accelerate the production of complex structures by 30% compared to conventional methods. The platform's functionality will be developed in stages, with the release of a prototype scheduled for the middle of the year. Experts noted that the main risks could be competition with foreign counterparts and the lack of a stable user base.

What benefits will the IT platform bring?

Scientists of the NTI Center "Digital Materials Science: New Materials and Substances" of the Bauman Moscow State Technical University together with the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Experimental Physics (VNIIEF) are developing a unified IT platform for engineering software. She will have several tasks — design, analysis and automated manufacturing of parts from polymer composite materials, the NTI press service told Izvestia.

— Today, tools for layer-by-layer design and technological preparation of production are being implemented, and it is planned to complete work on this stage by the middle of the year. The result will be a prototype with 20% of the target functionality. The next phase of work is scheduled for the second half of 2025 and 2026. After its implementation, the platform will allow for the design of composite products (layered and zoned), engineering analysis, drapery modeling, technological preparation and data transfer to cutting equipment, laser projectors or equipment for automatic layout," said Timur Galeev, project manager at the VNIIEF Institute of Digital Technologies.

Development is a comprehensive software solution consisting of several modules. It is integrated with the digital materials science platform, which allows using AI to create new materials. So, with the help of the platform, it is planned to produce a wide variety of parts: aviation (wings, control panels, fuselages), automotive (hoods, body panels, doors), shipbuilding, sports and rocket and space (rocket fairings, solar panels, satellite housings). As the platform develops, the list of supported parts will expand.

— According to expert estimates, production using our system will be accelerated by about 30% compared to traditional methods. Such indicators are, in principle, typical of any product lifecycle management systems, they are also PLM systems. In our case, the increase is provided by automating all stages of the product's life cycle — from design to manufacturing," Timur Galeev added.

According to him, the acceleration of the entire procedure will be achieved due to four factors. Firstly, the automation of processes that eliminate manual labor at the design, calculation and pre-production stages. Secondly, drapery modeling accurately predicts the behavior of composite materials during molding. Thirdly, the time for equipment setup and technological operations will be minimized due to the optimization of manufacturing routes. Finally, by integrating the modules, all stages will be integrated into a single system, eliminating delays in data transmission.

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How will this affect the industry and what will happen to prices?

Experts' expectations from the platform

In 2025, the share of automated production in the industry will increase by 30-40% and will continue to grow. The digitalization of the polymer industry is carried out until 2030 with full access to technological sovereignty, said Valery Sidorenko, director of the Interium digital agency, member of the Public Council of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation. The new development will reduce the time of technological cycles, increase the accuracy and repeatability of production operations, and reduce the cost of finished products by up to 20%, he believes.

— The solution will allow you to create digital twins, use AI in design and monitor digital flows. The collected big data can be applied in all related industries. The main risk is that the platform may turn out to be ineffective if the rest of the existing processes are not configured to integrate with it," the expert noted.

According to Anton Averyanov, CEO of the ST IT group of companies, the platform can reduce the number of errors, enable quick changes in design approaches, and even help create completely new materials or products. However, according to him, the difficulty lies in the fact that working with such a system will require time and certain knowledge. In addition, while the platform is at the prototype stage, its functionality is limited, and this can scare away those who want to get a ready-made solution right away.

— The economic situation also plays a role. If the market is not ready to invest, the project may stall. On the other hand, the support of a large university and the interest from the industry give a good chance of success. The main thing is to make the platform convenient and reliable, present it well and adapt it to the real needs of users. If it succeeds, she will really be able to take her place and benefit," he added.

Ruslan Permyakov, Deputy Director of the NTI Competence Center "Technologies of Trusted Interaction" based on TUSUR, called the project ambitious, and also noted the long time to market and the potential shortage of specialists and competencies in the industrial implementation of such platforms. Among the risks, he highlighted competition with foreign, including Chinese solutions, as well as the lack of a stable user base. The expert also sees potential difficulties in financing the stages after the release of the prototype system and problems with scaling the architecture of the platform as new functions and features are added.

If the project receives sustained support from the government and industrial partners (for example, aircraft manufacturers, defense enterprises), then the platform has a chance to occupy its niche, the expert concluded.