Barely half (56%) of all composite design companies consider themselves knowledgeable in current composites manufacturing practices and apply that knowledge during design. This is the astonishing conclusion drawn from a benchmarking survey of composite engineering firms completed by engineering software provider Vistagy (Waltham, Massachusetts / USA; www.vistagy.com). It also highlights, even more dramatically, that 44% of companies admit they lack the relevant expertise to design for composites manufacturability.

The Vistagy survey, “How does your composite design process compare to industry best practices?”, was carried out across multiple industries, most prominently aerospace, automotive and wind energy. There were 140 responses. Geographically, the spread was 65% US, 25% Europe and 10% Asia. Almost a quarter (24%) of respondent companies have revenues over USD 1 bn, (EUR 700m), while 37% turn over less than USD 50m (EUR 35m). The main reason for adopting composites is to achieve weight reduction (81% of companies), closely followed by improvement in strength-to-weight ratios (69%) and combination of multiple parts (51%).

Other reasons cited included attempting to lower maintenance costs (31%) and extending product life (25%). Assessment of the study’s goal achievement metrics should provide composites manufacturers with considerable food for thought. The survey also found that best-in-class producers, according to the benchmarking survey, are combining six or more parts into one, while 10% are achieving consolidation of 10 or more components. However, roughly a third (34%) are treating composites like metal and only reducing parts at a 1:1 or 2:1 ratio.

Top performers are also reducing maintenance costs by 30%, with proportionate gains in quality and product lifecycles, and cutting component weights by 30% or more. Vice president of Vistagy product management and marketing Bruce Boes explained that the study was conducted to enable companies in the composites industry to understand where they stand compared to their peers. In his view, “One thing that really stood out was that companies with best-in-class performance had a high correlation to the maturity of their processes.” Also, he added, these companies have made the decision to invest in design resources and were more interested in achieving part cost targets than actually knowing their part costs. Boes sees this as a major breakthrough in designing to take full advantage of all the benefits of composites technology.