ISO/ASTM 52943-2:2024

Overview

ISO/ASTM 52943-2:2024 - "Additive manufacturing for aerospace - Process characteristics and performance - Part 2: Directed energy deposition using wire and arc" defines requirements for producing metallic aerospace parts using directed energy deposition (DED) where wire feedstock and arc energy sources are used. The standard covers process, machine and operator qualification, feedstock and substrate requirements, procedure qualification (pAPS/APS), process monitoring, documentation and traceability. It is intended to be used with applicable engineering documents and does not address health and safety.

Keywords: ISO/ASTM 52943-2:2024, directed energy deposition, DED-Arc, wire and arc, additive manufacturing for aerospace.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Feedstock requirements: specifies properties to record (wire diameter, chemical composition, surface condition, storage and traceability such as heat lot/batch).
• Operator qualification: requires certification per ISO/ASTM 52926-5 with practical and theoretical exams; suggested re-examination interval is every 2 years unless otherwise approved by engineering authority.
• Machine qualification & requalification: each DED machine must be qualified across its working range (calibration, verification, deposition tests, maintenance plan); requalification is required after significant changes, repairs or relocation.
• Process and procedure qualification: use of preliminary additive procedure specification (pAPS) and qualified additive procedure specification (APS) to ensure repeatability and control of key process variables (KPVs).
• Build platform/substrate: material, geometry and surface cleanliness requirements to avoid build defects.
• Environment & process control: facility and process environment controls, enclosures and gas supply considerations for arc processes (MIG/MAG/GMAW, TIG/GTAW, PAW).
• Documentation & traceability: engineering and production documents, build records, process monitoring data and delivery documentation for acceptance testing and certification.
• Process monitoring and product acceptance testing: monitoring, acceptance tests and record keeping to support part quality and airworthiness.

Practical applications

• Qualification and production of structural and non-structural metallic parts for aerospace using wire-and-arc DED.
• Establishing manufacturing plans, quality systems and traceability for suppliers producing AM aerospace components.
• Auditing and certifying DED systems, operator competency, machine performance and procedure repeatability.

Who should use this standard

• Aerospace OEMs and tier suppliers
• Additive manufacturing process engineers and QA personnel
• Welding and AM coordinators, certification bodies
• Machine builders, wire feedstock suppliers and maintenance teams
• Engineering authorities responsible for part airworthiness

Related standards

• ISO/ASTM 52900 (AM fundamentals & vocabulary)
• ISO/ASTM 52926-5 (operator qualification for DED-Arc)
• ISO 14175 (welding gases), ISO 544, ISO 15792, ISO 14344 (feedstock/consumables)
• SAE AMS 7005, ISO 17662, SAE AMS 7032, ISO 15614 series (procedure and qualification guidance)

This standard helps organizations implement controlled, repeatable DED wire-and-arc processes to meet aerospace performance and traceability expectations.