From material to automated production:
The DLR Institute of Structures and Design develops high- performance structures for the aerospace, automotive and energy management industries. Its focus here is on ceramic fibre, polymer and hybrid composite materials. New design concepts make lightweight structures particularly powerful and cost-efficient.

At the DLR locations in Stuttgart and Augsburg, five departments of the Institute work on projects along the entire process chain – from raw material to demonstrators and production technology. This helps provide quick and flexible answers to problems and questions in research and industry.

Integrated Research Platform for Affordable Satellites

Supported by the state of Baden-Württemberg, the institute is working with partners from research and industry on an integrated development platform for cost-effective satellites as part of the IRAS (Integrated Research Platform for Afford- able Satellites) project. With the help of new technologies in the areas of propulsion, structures, electronics and production technologies, an alternative path to today’s cost- intensive development is to be taken.

DLR’s research focuses on metallic and polymer 3D printing and a new type of concurrent engineering connecting the partners.