Case Study: East/West Industries achieves 50% cost savings and 2-week faster product readiness with Stratasys 3D-printed soft jaws

East/West Industries, Inc. produces aircraft seats and products that save aircrew lives, learn how they teamed up with Stratasys for soft jaw production

East/West Industries, a woman‑owned aerospace designer and manufacturer of aircraft seats and life‑saving systems, faced slow, labor‑intensive production of custom soft jaws for machining; milling consumed time and CNC alternatives tied up machines needed for revenue work, delaying schedules. To solve this, the company turned to Stratasys, using a Fortus 450mc™ and FDM® Nylon 12CF carbon‑fiber material to produce the soft jaws via 3D printing.

Stratasys’ 3D‑printed soft jaws are faster to produce, require no operator manpower during printing, and provide a non‑marring, complex‑shape holding surface—avoiding CNC opportunity costs. East/West Industries realized a 50% reduction in jaw production cost, cut tool production readiness by two days, and accelerated overall product readiness by up to two weeks.

East/West Industries