Dayton Composites Center
Leading the World’s New Aerospace Era
The Birthplace of Aviation is home to the Dayton Composites Center, where world-class equipment, technology and R&D expertise come together. The center’s mission is to develop high-rate, low-cost manufacturing solutions for aerospace and advanced air mobility.
The Dayton Composites Center is a leader in high-rate, low-cost aerostructures research and development. This work is essential to U.S. competitiveness in advanced mobility, from drones to electronic vertical takeoff and landing (e-VTOL) aircraft. IACMI members have opportunities to access expertise and capabilities built over 60 years.
Dayton Composites Center is part of the world-renowned 500,000-square-foot, 850-employee University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI), a founding IACMI member. The center neighbors the U.S. Wright Patterson Air Force Base, home to the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), which collaborates on many projects. Industry partners include NASA, Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Teijin and Joby Aviation, to name a few.
Dayton Composites Center team expertise spans the entire lifecycle of an aircraft, from design to maintenance. IACMI members can access specialists with knowledge of every phase of aerospace manufacturing. The team consists of more than a dozen leading scientists and engineers, augmented by UDRI staff whose work crosses over into composites.
IACMI member companies can leverage the center for:
- On-Site Expertise
- Design Simulation
- Materials Development
- Multifunctional Structures Design and Testing
- Cause and Failure Analysis
Representative Projects:
- Technology Scale-Up: Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanotube Technology (VACNT)
- Technology Application: VACNT for NAWAHiStitch Mountain Bike Wheels
- Material Evaluation and Testing: Cryogenic Hydrogen Storage
- Process Demonstration: RapidClave Rapid-Cure Epoxy Pre-Preg
- Application Development: Next-Gen RapidClave Clean Sheet Projects (coming soon!)
Key Equipment and Technology
- Tailored Fiber Placement (TPP)
- RapidClave Consolidation and Cure System
- Long-Fiber Injection (LFI) and Pre-Forming
- Carbon Nanotube Production Lines
- Compressed Gas Storage Area
- iCOMAT Rapid Tow Shearing (RTS) Technology (coming soon!)
Technical Area Advisor
Brian Rice
Composites Technology Development Lead,
UDRI Structural Materials Division
Dayton Composites Center
2000 Composite Drive
Kettering, OH 45420