The National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) at Wichita State University has received second place in the Outstanding Technical Paper Awards at the 2025 Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE) Conference. Their paper, titled “Design Optimization and Analysis Validation of Complex Composite Parts Manufactured using Fiber Patch Placement,” was authored by Dr. Waruna Seneviratne, Director of NIAR’s Advanced Technologies Lab for Aerospace Systems (ATLAS), alongside co-authors Jerome Teoh and Swetha Thirumurugan. 

Their research explored how Fiber Patch Placement (FPP) can address long-standing challenges in the automated manufacturing of complex composite parts. In particular, the study demonstrated that FPP: 

• Reduces defects introduced by fiber steering 

• Maintains high throughput in automated production 

• Enables validated and practical design optimization for complex
  geometries 

The paper was presented on May 22 at the SAMPE Conference in Indianapolis, with the award ceremony following the same day. 
 

A next milestone advancing FPP technology 

Figure: Overview of NIAR ATLAS team’s SAMPE award-winning research on FPP, highlighting process optimization, simulation, and experimental validation of complex composite parts manufactured using Fiber Patch Placement. 

The independent work by the NIAR ATLAS team confirms key benefits that the technology was designed to deliver: fewer manufacturing defects, process stability on complex geometries, and support for performance-oriented design. These findings align with results seen by Cevotec customers using SAMBA Pro systems for similar geometries. 

The results are especially relevant as aerospace manufacturers and research institutions increasingly seek robust alternatives to traditional fiber placement techniques. The NIAR study underlines the relevance of FPP technology and contributes to its industrial adoption by demonstrating practical advantages through peer-reviewed research and real-world validation.
 

Continued collaboration and momentum 

Cevotec remains committed to supporting and enabling advanced research in automated composites manufacturing. More details on FPP in aerospace can be found on Cevotec’s aerospace application page. Recognitions such as NIAR’s SAMPE award help demonstrate the growing adaptation of FPP in aerospace and reinforce the importance of collaborative R&D ecosystems. 

To learn more about the NIAR ATLAS team’s research and award, visit their official announcement page.