Lohia Aerospace, Massivit Bring Large-Format Composite Tooling to India

Updated on August 17, 2026 • 5 min read

Lohia Aerospace Systems has signed a memorandum of understanding with Massivit 3D Printing Technologies to establish large-format additive manufacturing (LFAM) for composite tooling in India, targeting aerospace, defense and other composite manufacturing applications.

Structured as a Joint Manufacturing Alliance, the partnership will bring Massivit’s RapidWings LFAM platform to Lohia Aerospace’s manufacturing facility in Kanpur.

The system will be used to produce large composite molds and manufacturing tools, with the companies positioning the investment as a way to reduce India’s dependence on imported tooling while introducing more automated, digitally driven tooling production.

RapidWings Platform Moves Composite Tooling Into Digital Production

Composite tooling can represent a significant portion of the time required to move from part design into manufacturing.

Traditional tooling routes may involve multiple operations and substantial manual work before a production-ready mold is available.

The RapidWings platform approaches the problem through large-format additive manufacturing, enabling large molds and tools to be produced directly from digital manufacturing data.

According to reports surrounding the agreement, the technology could reduce tooling lead times by as much as 90%, potentially enabling tool sets that previously required weeks to be produced within days.

Tooling costs could also be reduced by as much as 50%, depending on the application and conventional manufacturing route being replaced.

Individual large-format composite molds or tools can reportedly be produced within a few days.

India Targets Domestic Composite Tooling Capacity

The significance of the agreement extends beyond installing another additive manufacturing system.

Lohia Aerospace says composite manufacturing in India has traditionally depended heavily on manual tooling and production processes, while domestic large-format additive tooling capability remains limited.

Where such capability is required, tooling may currently need to be sourced internationally.

Installing the RapidWings platform in Kanpur gives Lohia an opportunity to produce these tools domestically while developing expertise around digital tooling workflows.

The longer-term objective is to reduce reliance on imported tooling and establish a local manufacturing capability serving India’s growing composites sector.

Aerospace, Defense and UAV Applications Targeted

Under the alliance, Lohia Aerospace will have exclusive rights to deploy the platform across India’s aerospace and defense sectors.

Potential applications include tooling for both crewed aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

These industries can benefit particularly from shorter tooling cycles because new components frequently pass through prototype, qualification and design-iteration stages before entering serial production.

The ability to modify a digital tool design and manufacture another large mold without rebuilding an extensive conventional tooling chain could shorten development cycles for certain applications.

However, the final suitability of an additively manufactured tool will still depend on factors such as the composite manufacturing process, operating temperature, dimensional requirements and production volume.

Lohia Expands Kanpur Composite Manufacturing Footprint

The LFAM investment comes alongside a broader expansion of Lohia Aerospace’s manufacturing operations.

The company plans to add approximately 250,000 square feet of production space to its existing 80,000-square-foot Kanpur facility.

Lohia Aerospace was established in 2019 as the aerospace and defense business of India’s Lohia Group.

The company also owns Israel-based composite manufacturer Light & Strong Ltd., providing the group with additional experience in aerospace composite production.

Combining that manufacturing background with large-format additive tooling gives Lohia another route for expanding its position in India’s aerospace composites supply chain.

From Imported Tools to Local Manufacturing

The Lohia-Massivit partnership reflects two trends occurring simultaneously in composite manufacturing: localization of aerospace supply chains and increasing adoption of digital production technologies.

For India, the immediate development is the establishment of domestic capability for producing large-format composite tooling using additive manufacturing.

If the reported reductions in lead time and cost can be realized across industrial applications, the technology could give aerospace and defense manufacturers another option when developing molds for prototypes, new aircraft structures and production programs.

The installation in Kanpur will therefore serve not only as a manufacturing asset but also as an early industrial test of how LFAM composite tooling fits into India’s rapidly expanding aerospace manufacturing ecosystem.

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