Clean, up-close view of the Big Braider.

Work In Progress: Big Braider

/in

Big Braider up on stands

Work is nearing completion at Gallagher on an innovative large-scale braider for a public-private venture in the Midwest United States. With funding from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the group is developing a new prepreg braiding method for making composite parts for aerospace applications.

The new system will be the largest braider Gallagher has designed and built to date. The 144-carrier braider’s outer diameter is approximately 25 feet. Among the innovative aspects of the project is the system is designed to operate in a cold room, with temperatures as low as 30° F, due to the materials used in the braiding process.

Work In Progress: 3D Triaxial Braider

/in

Gallagher has been selected to build an innovative 3D triaxial braiding machine to reduce the risk of delamination of composite components.

When completed, the braider’s five rows of migrating carriers will braid a seamless sock with five layers of interlaced fibers, adding significant strength to the finished form.

In this video see our work-in-progress, from design to prototyping and on to the full-scale build.

 

Never waste a good prototype

We worked hard to develop a proof-of-concept prototype for a new 3D triaxial braider so we didn’t want to just scrap it!

Here’s the results. The Gallagher Duck Rally that premiered at CAMX 2022 in Anaheim. Now, we’re wondering how Peeps would do on the track for Easter. Hmmm…