Case Study: Boeing achieves 17% weight savings and halved development time with Altair OptiStruct

Rotorcraft Takes Flight Optimization tools enable Boeing to balance form and function in the development of advanced aircraf

Boeing faced the classic rotorcraft design challenge of balancing weight, stiffness and manufacturability while modernizing legacy structures on its CH-47 Chinook. To explore faster, lighter designs and shorten development cycles, Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems team piloted topology optimization using Altair’s OptiStruct software.

Using Altair OptiStruct, engineers generated an unconventional open-truss ramp design that proved stiffer than the baseline while delivering a 17% weight reduction and improved ballistic tolerance. Altair’s optimization approach also accelerated the workflow—cutting overall development time roughly in half (with analysis windows of six to eight weeks and typical redesigns validated in six to nine months)—and is being extended to other Boeing programs.

Boeing