Kanpur / New Delhi: Committed to staying at the forefront of composite manufacturing technology, Lohia Aerospace Systems on August 4 announced that they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Massivit — the global leader in large-format additive manufacturing — establishing a Joint Manufacturing Alliance to bring their technology to India for the first time for composite tooling and critical aerospace components. This will be the first commercial installation of large-format additive manufacturing for composites anywhere in the country.
Under the alliance, Massivit’s large-format 3D printing platform will be installed at Lohia’s Kanpur facility, enabling molds and production tools to be manufactured in days rather than weeks — a reduction in production cycles of up to 90%. This is a step-change in speed for an industry where tooling lead times have long been a bottleneck, and it places advanced digital tooling capability on Indian soil for the first time.
Lohia will invest approximately USD 8–10 million over the next one to two years, scaling with market demand. The platform will be housed within Lohia’s Kanpur operations, where an expansion of 250,000 square feet is already underway alongside the existing 80,000-square-foot facility. Each printer can produce one to two complete sets of tools per day, and Lohia plans to bring 8–10 printers online in short order — creating an estimated 60 to 100 skilled jobs, as each printer requires a dedicated team of 8 to 10 people.
Composite manufacturing in India has traditionally relied heavily on manual tooling and production processes. The introduction of additive manufacturing technology marks a significant industry milestone, bringing automation and digital manufacturing into the composite production process in India. This technology will reduce manufacturing time by up to 90%, improve quality, and reduce costs for our partners by up to 50%.
“This alliance pairs innovation with industrial scale to serve India, one of the world’s fastest-growing aerospace and defence markets,” said Anurag Lohia, Chairman and Managing Director, Lohia Aerospace Systems. “As demand for indigenous aerospace and defence manufacturing accelerates, RapidWings and its core CIM technology give us the exact edge we need to scale production and expand rapidly, reducing our dependence on imported tooling and shortening delivery timelines for our customers at home and abroad.”
“This collaboration exemplifies Lohia Aerospace’s intent to provide its customers and partners rapid scale-up and cost-effective manufacturing solutions,” said Avik Bhattacharya, President, Sales and Marketing at Lohia Aerospace.
Lohia Aerospace will provide the personnel, facilities, infrastructure, finishing, quality control and customer delivery, drawing on its ISO 9001, AS9100D and NADCAP certifications and its established base of public- and private-sector aerospace and defence customers. Under the Joint Manufacturing Alliance, Lohia will hold exclusivity for the platform in India’s aerospace and defence sectors, including for UAV and manned aircraft production.
The alliance opens a significant new manufacturing opportunity. The capability will serve aerospace producers as well as composites manufacturers across every industry, with each tool priced at approximately USD 10,000–20,000. Because large-format additive tooling is not yet established in India — and what little is used today is entirely imported — the alliance positions Lohia to substitute imported tooling with domestic production, with the goal of, 100% import substitution over time.
“We are thrilled to partner with Lohia to deliver our RapidWings platform to India’s fast-growing defence market,” said Ziki Kuly, Chief Business Officer, Massivit. “The synergies here are significant for scaling local production of mission-critical requirements.”
The collaboration reflects Lohia’s broader commitment to building sovereign, world-class manufacturing capability in India, bringing global technology to India while enabling value and job creation.
