The McNAIR Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research at the University of South Carolina’s Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing has announced the installation and immediate availability of a Mikrosam (Prilep, North Macedonia) Libra Multifunctional Robotic System at its 42,000-square-foot advanced manufacturing facility in Columbia, South Carolina. Procurement of this equipment was made possible through Office of the Secretary of War Manufacturing Technology Program funding with program management support provided by Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane.
The McNAIR Center serves as a multidisciplinary hub for advanced engineering and manufacturing, supporting aerospace, mechanical, electrical, chemical, industrial and biomedical engineering initiatives. The facility enables service work, applied research, technology demonstrations and workforce development in partnership with industry and government stakeholders.
In collaboration with Composite Automation (Cape Coral, Fla., U.S.) and Mikrosam, the McNAIR Center has installed an 8-tow, ¼-inch automated fiber placement (AFP) head equipped with laser and infrared (IR) heating, integrated onto a KUKA (Augsburg, Germany) Titan L750 robot mounted on a 10.6-meter linear rail. The system includes 1.2 × 1.2-meter flat oil-heated tooling, as well as headstock and tailstock configurations capable of accommodating tooling up to 4.3 meters in length and 1.8 meters in diameter.
Mikrosam Libra AFP system Installed at USC’s McNAIR Center. Source | McNAIR Center
Adapatability, flexibility, data and digital control
The Mikrosam system features an AFP head, advanced controls and large-format capability, but its defining characteristic is adaptability: any end effector can be mounted and controlled from the platform, enabling the McNAIR Center and its partners to apply the software and machine to other, novel applications. In addition to AFP heads, the system can integrate mixed-supplier or in-house-developed end effectors for applications such as thermoplastic welding, automated inspection and other advanced manufacturing processes, supporting highly versatile robotic composites manufacturing.
At the core of this capability is Mikrosam’s multi-material AFP head, which enables precise placement of multiple slit tapes with individual tow control, including on-the-fly cutting, restarting and steering, allowing accurate fiber deposition across complex geometries while maintaining consistent material handling and placement quality. The system is fully capable of processing high-temperature thermoplastics and is equally mature for thermoset materials and dry fiber preforms; McNAIR is also interested in using the equipment to test novel material systems not yet used with AFP. Processing thermoset, thermoplastic and dry fiber materials on a single platform offers advantages for both research and industrial environments, enabling rapid material qualification, process development and transition to scalable manufacturing.
“Our AFP systems are designed to process multiple material systems on a single platform while maintaining precise control over critical parameters such as temperature, compaction and fiber placement,” emphasizes Samoil Samak, general director at Mikrosam. “The integration of closed-loop thermal control and high-power laser heating allows users to explore thermoplastic processing at a level of consistency and repeatability that is essential for industrial adoption.”
Like all composites manufacturing systems at the McNAIR Center, the Mikrosam AFP platform is fully integrated with comprehensive data acquisition and power monitoring systems. Through Mikrosam’s control and software ecosystem, it enables continuous monitoring and recording of key process parameters — including temperature, compaction pressure, layup speed and material use — ensuring full traceability and process transparency. These tools support real-time evaluation of processing parameters and energy inputs, providing immediate feedback on how layup conditions influence deposition quality, placement rates and final part performance, supporting both research validation and production-scale process optimization.
McNAIR expects the AFP and integrated robotic system to play a critical role in next-generation advanced manufacturing initiatives, particularly in high-rate thermoplastic composite (TPC) production and large-scale structural applications. The Mikrosam system’s modular and multi-process design significantly expands its application potential across multiple industries.
Additionally, the Roctool (Le Bourget-du-Lac, France) induction-heated platens — installed at McNAIR earlier in 2026 — can be used as 762 × 1016-millimeter heated tooling for out-of-autoclave (OOA) consolidation and integrated AFP laydown processes, further strengthening the Center’s ability to support rapid manufacturing workflows and advanced thermoplastic processing strategies.
Industry collaboration and access
The McNAIR Center is making the Mikrosam Libra AFP System available to industry and government partners for:
Workforce development and hands-on training.
Contract manufacturing and technical services.
Applied research and development.
Secure research and development projects.
Process demonstration and validation.
Advanced manufacturing scale-up initiatives.
Providing availability to adaptable robotic systems with advanced AFP capability, multi-material processing, closed-loop thermal control, modular tooling flexibility and integrated data monitoring, continues to expand the McNAIR Center’s role as a national resource for advanced composite and aerospace manufacturing innovation.
“Advanced composites manufacturing is entering a phase where flexibility and process integration are becoming just as important as performance,” adds Samak. “With this system, the McNAIR Center now has a platform that enables collaboration between academia, industry and government, accelerating the transition from research to real-world manufacturing.”
Industry and government partners interested in using the Mikrosam AFP system for service, research, development or workforce training are encouraged to contact the McNAIR Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research at the University of South Carolina.
