Fincantieri has announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Aeronautical Service, an SME active in the development of advanced aerospace solutions, to initiate a strategic collaboration aimed at the large-scale adoption of carbon-based composite materials and innovative technologies in naval, civil, and military applications.
The agreement was signed in La Spezia on the occasion of Seafuture 2025 by Mauro Manzini, vice president sales of Fincantieri’s Naval Vessels Division, and by Kris Bordignon, chief executive officer of Aeronautical Service.
Through this understanding, Fincantieri takes a decisive step in the implementation of its industrial strategy, which aims to extend the group’s technological perimeter beyond the use of steel, consolidating its role as an enabler of innovation even in the most advanced and high-tech intensity segments of the market.
Carbon composite materials, enriched with nanotechnologies and proprietary engineering solutions, offer a set of key benefits: structural lightness, reduction of radar, infrared and magnetic signatures, high mechanical strength, ballistic protection, fireproofing and modularity. These characteristics make them strategic both for the evolution of military platforms and for adoption in the civil sphere in sectors where performance and safety are decisive.
Specifically, the collaboration will focus on the development of a new high-speed unit of the Cch (Combatant Craft Heavy) type, made with carbon fiber composite materials enhanced through nanotechnologies. The unit will also be characterized by state-of-the-art stealth performance, thanks to the reduction of radar (RCS), infrared and magnetic signatures, while ensuring the safety and resilience of the platform with multifunctional composite materials including fireproof and ballistic protection characteristics. The unit will also be equipped with integrated self-defense systems and will support operations with drones, loitering munitions and advanced surveillance and communication technologies. The payloads will be fully reconfigurable to adapt to different mission profiles.
The agreement represents a further confirmation of Fincantieri’s ability to collaborate effectively with the fabric of SMEs, enhancing specialized skills and promoting innovation through open and synergistic industrial models.
Pierroberto Folgiero, chief executive officer and general manager of Fincantieri, stated: “Thanks to this agreement, we clearly affirm our pioneering role in the introduction of composite materials at sea. It is a technological paradigm shift that aims to combine innovation, safety and sustainability in all strategic, civil and military applications. We are happy to collaborate with Aeronautical Service, a technologically cutting-edge SME, to design together the next generation of shipbuilding.”
“For Aeronautical Service it is a great honor to collaborate with an excellence group like Fincantieri,” stated Kris Bordignon, chief executive officer of Aeronautical Service. “This entirely Italian agreement strengthens our mission to transfer innovation to leading industrial partners, enhancing our expertise in advanced materials and new generation platforms.”
