Aerospace and defence group manufacturing aircraft structures, helicopters, electronics and satellites
Leonardo S.p.A.
Rome (Piazza Monte Grappa 4, 00195) · Turin (GCAP programme) · locations worldwideNew on Amplifa
About Leonardo
Leonardo S.p.A. is an Italian aerospace, defence and security group headquartered in Rome. Its business areas include Aeronautics, Helicopters, Automation, Cyber & Security, Electronics, high-performance computing (HPC) and Space. Manufacturing includes aircraft structures such as the Eurofighter tail section, helicopters (e.g. AW149, AW189), land and naval electronics, radars and satellites at the Space Smart Factory in Rome. Process expertise ranges from calendering, extrusion and injection moulding to forging, milling, drilling and heat treatment, through to surface treatments, autoclave curing of composite structures, additive manufacturing and final assembly. In terms of materials, composites with thermoset and thermoplastic matrices, graphene and metamaterials are the focus of development. Research and development is supported by ten Leonardo Innovation Labs, the davinci-1 supercomputer and a network of more than 70 research centres and universities.
- Site
- Rome
- Processes
- Calendering, Extrusion, Forging, Mechanical and chemical milling, Drilling, Heat treatment, Anodic oxidation, Painting
- Materials
- Composites, Thermoplastic-matrix composites, Thermoset-matrix composites (conventional), Graphene, Metamaterials/metamaterial surfaces, Thermoset-matrix composites, Aluminium
- Founded
- 1948 (orig
- Industries
- Aerospace, Defence, Security, Cyber, Space, Automation
- 01
Research & Development (Innovation Labs, HPC davinci-1)
- 02
Design & Systems Engineering
- 03
Manufacturing (machining, composites, forging)
- 04
Heat and surface treatment
- 05
Autoclave curing and assembly
- 06
Functional and certification testing
- 07
Support, Maintenance & Training (CSS&T)
Materials & Processes
Composites
Fibre-reinforced plastics for aerospace structures, cured in the autoclave.
Thermoplastic-matrix composites
For interior parts, secondary and increasingly primary aircraft structures.
Thermoset-matrix composites
Conventional composites for aerospace applications.
Graphene
Applications such as low radar observability, ballistic protection and thermal management.
Metamaterials/metamaterial surfaces
Control of electromagnetic response for microwave components and radar antennas.
Aluminium
Structural material for aircraft manufacturing, e.g. Eurofighter tail section.
Locations
Rome
ITHeadquarters and Space Smart Factory (satellite production)
- Space Smart Factory
- Autoclave
- davinci-1 supercomputer
Turin
ITFirst national site of the GCAP programme
Products & Systems
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CalenderingPlastics | – | – | – | – | Plastics/composites |
| ExtrusionPlastics | – | – | – | – | Plastics/composites |
| ForgingForming | – | – | – | – | – |
| Mechanical and chemical millingMachining | – | – | – | – | – |
| DrillingMachining | – | – | – | – | – |
| Heat treatmentHeat treatment | – | – | – | – | – |
| Anodic oxidationSurface | – | – | – | – | – |
| PaintingSurface | – | – | – | – | – |
| Curing in the autoclavePlastics | – | – | – | – | Composites (fibre-reinforced plastics) |
| Stratification/preform manufacturing for composite structuresPlastics | – | – | – | – | Composites (fibre-reinforced plastics) |
| Additive manufacturingAdditive | – | – | – | – | – |
| Injection mouldingPlastics | – | – | – | – | Plastics |
| Assembly and final assembly of aerospace structuresAssembly | – | – | – | – | Composites (fibre-reinforced plastics) |
| Quality inspection/manufacturing controlTesting | – | – | – | – | – |
| Functional and certification testing (environmental tests, test benches)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Manufacturing of aircraft structures (e.g. Eurofighter tail section)Assembly | – | – | – | – | Composites (fibre-reinforced plastics), Aluminium |
| Electronics manufacturing (Space Smart Factory, satellite production)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
2 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Autoclave (for composite curing) | – | – | – | – | – |
| High-performance computer/supercomputer | Leonardo davinci-1 | – | 20 PFlops Rmax (davinci-2), 230+ CPU and 120+ GPU nodes | – | – |
Additional services
Reference customers
History
- 1948
Early origins of the group's history as Finmeccanica (1948–1959)
- 2017
Renaming of Finmeccanica to Leonardo SpA
- 2026
New contract worth €3.7 bn for two DDX destroyers for the Italian Navy; first series order for Centauro II from the Brazilian Army