The Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) has won a top international award for a collaborative aerospace project, receiving a JEC Composites Innovation Award 2026 at a ceremony in Paris earlier this month. The award, presented on 12 January during the JEC World Premiere event, recognises the Highly Loaded Thermoplastic Wing Rib demonstrator, a project led by aerospace manufacturer Daher in partnership with LIST, Victrex, CETIM, and AniForm.
At the core of the project is a patented infrared welding technology developed by LIST’s Structural Composites Unit. The process allows thick carbon-fibre-reinforced thermoplastic components to be assembled without mechanical fasteners, enabling lighter aircraft structures, faster production, and improved recyclability – key challenges facing the aerospace sector.
According to project results, the solution delivers a 22% weight reduction compared with aluminium wing ribs, alongside 15% lower assembly costs, and production cycles that are 25% shorter than bolted assemblies. Over the lifetime of a single-aisle aircraft, the innovation could reduce CO emissions by an estimated 12.5 tonnes per wing rib.
In a statement, LIST said the award also highlights Luxembourg’s broader strategy to strengthen its advanced materials ecosystem. National initiatives, including the National Composite Initiative launched in 2016 and the Sustainable Composite Materials and Manufacturing Innovation Centre led by LIST since 2020, aim to position the country as a “centre of excellence” for high-value composite manufacturing.
The JEC Composites Innovation Awards, established in 1998, recognise collaborative projects with strong industrial and societal impact across sectors such as aerospace, automotive, and energy. In 2026, only 33 finalists were selected from a global pool of around 154 submissions.
