ARRIS Composites
Assembly Line
A New Age of Materials Is Dawning, for Everything From Smartphones to Missiles
Modern composites, starting with Bakelite, were pioneered in the early part of the 20th century. Other composites were invented at a steady pace, and the industry began to hit its stride in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when automated processes for turning things like carbon fiber into giant structures like airplane bodies and windmill blades reached maturity.
In just the past couple of years, a number of startups have developed processes for creating all sorts of small objects from composites, in a way that is fast and inexpensive. These include Berkeley, Calif.-based Arris Composites, 9T Labs in Zurich, Orbital Composites in Silicon Valley, and others.
Arris shapes carbon fibers using a process that resembles wire bending—imagine how something like a coat hanger is made—says CEO Riley Reese. Then, those shaped fibers are put into a resin, and the resulting form is put into a custom mold that applies heat and pressure to further compress, shape and strengthen the part. 9T Labs uses a similar process, but starts by using “additive manufacturing” (similar to 3-D printing) to lay down narrow strips of carbon fiber into a particular shape, and then molding it in a way similar to Arris’s process, says Eichenhofer.
Orbital Composites is using substantially different processes, says CEO Amolak Badesha. Using off-the-shelf industrial robots with custom print heads that spit out carbon fiber, the company 3-D prints shapes in a process that resembles Harold’s purple crayon, for those familiar with the children’s book. The difference is that while Harold could draw in three dimensions any shape he liked, Orbital uses removable molds to support its carbon-fiber shapes as they’re being printed.
Arris Secures Additional $34M in Funding
ARRIS®, an advanced manufacturer with a breakthrough technology enabling the highest-performing fiber-reinforced composites at scale, announced that it has raised $34 million in its latest fundraising round. The round saw participation from new and returning investors, including ST Engineering, Zebra Technologies, Youngone, Standard Industries, Vertex Exploratory Fund, NEA, XN, Taiwania Capital, Bosch Ventures, Modern Venture Partners (MVP), and Alumni Ventures Group (AVG). The funding will be used to build on the ARRIS’ success in scaling its global operations.
Founded in 2017, the ARRIS Technology team created a new manufacturing category called Additive Molding by pioneering the development of patented software, materials, and high-volume production methods that prioritize specific stiffness and strength. New levels of product performance are now possible with this first-of-its-kind advanced manufacturing platform, enabling continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composite structures that are lighter and more sustainable.
Skydio and Arris Revolutionize Drone Design and Manufacturing
Skydio, a leading U.S. drone manufacturer and world leader in autonomous flight technology, and Arris, a leader in advanced manufacturing of high-performance products, have redefined airframe design leveraging Additive Molding™, Arris’s breakthrough carbon fiber manufacturing technology. Starting with the new Skydio X2 drone, enterprise, public sector and defense customers will benefit from lighter, longer-range, and more robust aircraft structures at scale. The collaboration has resulted in the first-of-its-kind production use of Arris’s technology in the UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) industry, further extending Skydio’s technology leadership.
Skydio X2 is Skydio’s latest autonomous drone solution for enterprise, public sector and defense. X2 pairs Skydio’s breakthrough autonomy software with a rugged, foldable airframe for easy “pack and go” transportation, and up to 35 minutes of flight time. The X2 airframe will include a newly designed core structural element manufactured with Arris’s Additive Molding™ technology. Arris’s first-of-its-kind Additive Molding leverages 3D-aligned continuous fiber composite materials for complex shapes where material composition can change within regions of a single part. As a result, Skydio has been able to use a single carbon fiber component with the structural results that would have otherwise required 17 parts.