Alcoa Inc. ( NYSE:AA) and Airbus have reached an agreement that will see Alcoa provide 3D-printed fuselage, and engine pylon parts made out of titanium for use in commercial airplanes. Deliveries of components are expected to start by the middle of this year. Alcoa hopes to leverage its hefty experience of supplying to the aerospace industry, as well as recent acquisitions to supply the best materials possible. This deal comes after a $1 billion agreement signed last year which saw Alcoa provide fasteners to Airbus.

“The unique combination of our multi-material alloy development expertise, powder production capabilities, aerospace manufacturing strength and product qualification know-how position us to lead in this exciting, emerging space.” said Alcoa Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Klaus Kleinfeld. A key positive for Airbus ( OTCMKTS:EADSY) is that the company is able to provide comprehensive solutions, from developing the necessary alloys, to ensuring product qualification.

In 2015, Alcoa acquired RTI International Metals, now known as Alcoa Titanium and Engineered Products (ATEP) which greatly enhanced its 3D printing solutions and services. ATEP is especially adept with titanium parts, and it can provide a whole range of services; from melting, machining and finishing to final inspections.

Moreover, the company has invested $20 million in its facilities in Whitehall, Michigan that provides CT scan and Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP). HIP allows 3D-printed metal parts to be strengthened, to ensure consistency and longevity. By expanding the facility, Alcoa can now meet the growing demand for engine parts, and also treat larger components of jet engines within its own production facilities. Moreover, this will allow the company to be ready to introduce new products in future.

Alcoa also spent an additional $50 million to improve its 3D printing procedures at the Alcoa Technical Center with a significant focus on improving, and enhancing metallic powders used in manufacturing. It will also allow the company to develop new, cutting-edge methods for faster, and cheaper 3D printing. The expansion will allow the company to offer better products to its customers in the aerospace, automotive, medical, and construction industries as well as make it easier for 3D-printed parts to pass qualification tests.

In other news, Alcoa has announced that it has signed deals worth $350 million to supply bauxite to a wide variety of customers located in Brazil, China, and Europe over the next two years. Bauxite will be supplied from its operations in Brazil and Guinea. The company is attempting to enter the raw bauxite market as it looks to increase third-party sales. Previously, bauxite was only provided to its own refineries however, the company’s reserves are far in excess of demand which has led the company to pursue sales in the global market.

Alcoa has already announced that it is splitting its main mining business consisting of Bauxite, Alumina, Aluminum, Cast Products, and Energy and its value-add business into two separate companies. The new, value-add business will be called Arconic, and it will include Global Rolled Products (GRP), Engineered Products and Solutions (EPS), and Transportation and Construction Solutions (TCS). Arconic will provide customers with innovative and highly advanced multi-material services and solutions that target the aerospace, automotive, energy and medical industries. The signing of these two different deals perhaps provides a peek into what is in store for investors after the split.

According to Credit Suisse analysts, the upstream business may be on the upswing following recent reductions in global supply of alumina. Given that Alcoa has removed a substantial amount of its own capacity and plans to reduce its smelting capacity by 25% and its refining capacity by 20% by the middle of this year, further reductions should lead to significant cost saving.

Considering that the company sits quite low on the cost curve, especially in refining operations, and is removing many of its high-cost operations, any improvement in basic material markets should lead to a rise in profits. By tapping into global bauxite markets, the company opens up another revenue stream which should help it in the future.

About at the downstream business, Credit Suisse believes that performance could be improved as both the automotive, and aerospace industries continue to exhibit solid growth however, the company has not capitalized on these trends so far. If the company is able to improve operations, then both GRP and EPS should see gains in margins. Analysts are especially positive about the automotive sheet sector, and see solid demand in aerospace. Moreover, as these are high margin segments this should be a significant boost to the bottom line.