Case Study: Boom Supersonic achieves 92% cost savings and cuts lead time from weeks to days with Stratasys 3D‑printed drill guides

Boom Supersonic - Customer Case Study

Boom Supersonic, maker of the XB-1 demonstrator and the Overture supersonic airliner, faced a time-consuming challenge: accurately locating and drilling hundreds of fastener holes in complex airframe structures. Conventional metal drill guides would have been costly and slow to produce, so Boom turned to Stratasys technology to speed development and lower costs.

Using Stratasys Fortus 450mc and F900 printers and materials (FDM Nylon 12CF and ULTEM 9085), Boom 3D printed multi-hole drill guides that provided the strength and precision needed for power-feed drilling. Stratasys-enabled parts cut lead times from weeks to days, saved about $3,700 in material cost on a typical guide (roughly 92% vs. machining), and delivered significant schedule and cost benefits across more than 700 printed drill blocks.

Boom Supersonic