Caracol and Eligio Re Fraschini validate WAAM for aerospace tooling with 50% weight reduction

Italian aerospace tooling specialist Eligio Re Fraschini has partnered with Caracol on a co-funded pilot project to validate wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) for complex aerospace tooling. The target was a spar tool used in carbon fiber lamination, produced on Caracol's Vipra XP platform using CMT-based WAAM with 316L stainless steel. The system deposited material at 3.7 kg/h, producing a 110 kg component measuring 1,000 × 550 × 85 mm in 30 hours of print time, followed by CNC finish machining. Key results included a 50% reduction in tool weight compared to conventionally manufactured equivalents, along with substantial cuts in material waste and production lead time.

This project fits a deliberate pattern Caracol is building to establish WAAM as a credible alternative for aerospace tooling, not just structural components. The aerospace tooling segment has long been constrained by high material waste from subtractive machining, long lead times from dedicated setups, and limited design flexibility. WAAM addresses these constraints through near-net-shape deposition that eliminates mold tooling and reduces the gap between raw material and finished geometry. The 50% weight reduction is particularly significant for aerospace applications where tooling handling, thermal cycling, and autoclave loading directly impact production efficiency. Caracol is building a parallel body of evidence with polymer large-format AM, having previously partnered with Formes et Volumes to produce a 2,200 × 2,200 × 600 mm composite lamination tool that cut lead times by 50% and costs by 30%.

The practical significance here is that Caracol is methodically accumulating reference cases that address the aerospace qualification grind from the tooling side, where qualification burdens are lower than for flight-critical parts. The company needs to convert these pilot results into repeatable production programs at larger formats, and the Eligio Re Fraschini partnership provides a credible European aerospace customer reference. For buyers evaluating WAAM for tooling, the key question is whether the 50% weight reduction holds across a range of tool geometries and whether the process economics remain favorable when scaling to the larger tools typically required for aerospace fuselage and wing structures.