FOCUS ON METAL FORMING
PREPARE FOR TAKE-OFF
By
Dr Hosam Elrakayby,
Forming Team Lead, Advanced Forming Research Centre( AFRC), University of Strathclyde, UK.
About the author
Dr. Hosam Elrakayby has a PhD in mechanical engineering and ten years of experience working in industrialbased research projects. Over the past five years, he has been modelling different sheet metal forming processes.
Currently, he is the acting forming team lead at the Advanced Forming Research Centre( AFRC) part of the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland( NMIS), focusing on strategic sheet forming processes. He is working to optimise and de-risk these methods so that“ customers can invest confidently in making them more cost-effective, economically viable and time-efficient”, he told ISMR.
By embracing hybrid approaches, alternative materials and smarter processing techniques, AFRC aims to help manufacturers unlock new opportunities for superplastic forming( SPF) beyond aerospace and defence.
“ With a degree of innovation, SPF could become a more accessible and attractive option for a wider range of high-value industries, from transport to energy and infrastructure.”
In the US $-900 billion aerospace industry, manufacturing technologies must meet some of the most demanding standards of performance, precision and reliability. Superplastic forming( SPF), for example, has become integral to producing lightweight, structurally complex components, typically using titanium or aluminium that can withstand the extreme environments of international flight.
At elevated temperatures, specific metal alloys exhibit a phenomenon known as superplasticity, allowing them to be formed, stretched and elongated into highly intricate shapes without failure or fracture( often improving the material’ s strength). This unique capability makes SPF an indispensable process for aerospace applications.
However, the cost and complexity of SPF( including tooling expenses, strict material requirements and long processing times) have largely restricted its use to the aerospace and defence sectors. However, with a degree of innovation, SPF could become a more accessible and attractive option for a wider range of high-value industries, from transport to energy and infrastructure.
The benefits of SPF
The near-net shape manufacturing process is used extensively for aerospace parts and
92 | ismr. net | ISMR September 2025