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AMERICAN NEWS Almost all the fastener suppliers are based in North America,


Byrne reported. “Fasteners are not a commodity for us to go to India or China for,” he said. But an existing North American supplier may come to Boeing and want to acquire a foreign- based company or build a plant elsewhere. Then Boeing “will work with that supplier to develop that capability.” For fasteners and other parts, Boeing looks


at a long product life cycle, Byrne said. The 737 short-range twinjet created a new market when it went into production in 1967. The next generation 737 took its first flight in 1997. In 2007 – 40 years after the first 737 – Boeing celebrated the 7,000th


order for the plane.


Future of fasteners with Boeing What is the future for fasteners in Boeing


planes? “It will continue to evolve. Strength and weight are key issues. Boeing wants to continue to simplify fastening systems, while maintaining performance,” Byrne responded. Every ounce of weight on any airplane requires


more fuel on every flight. “Managing weight is a tough challenge,” Byrne acknowledged. The new Dreamliner 787 is the prime


example. It will use 20% less fuel than similarly sized airplanes due to half of the plane’s primary structure being constructed from composite materials. A one-piece carbon fibre reinforced plastic fuselage section replaces 1,500 aluminum sheets and 50,000 fasteners. Carbon fibre composites provide higher


strength-to-weight ratio than traditional aircraft materials. Composites are used for the fuselage, wings, tail, doors, and interior. Boeing already uses composites in commercial airplanes like


the 777 and 747, and defence products like the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey military transport and the C-17. Byrne explained that though there are half the number of


holes on the 787 as the 767, that doesn’t equate to half the number of fasteners. There are more highly engineered fasteners and more multi-piece fasteners, he pointed out. Instead of one rivet that is just one piece, the 787 may have pins and bolts with nuts, washers or collars. “The whole nature of fastening solutions has changed with


a composite plane,” Byrne explained. The Dreamliner took its maiden flight on 15th


December 2009, and remains in the flight


test and certification process. The 787 drew a lot of attention to fastener supply problems.


Among the delays in production of the Boeing 787 in 2007-2008 was a shortage of fasteners. Byrne acknowledged the situation “exposed some gaps” in Boeing’s fastener ordering which it had experienced earlier with other metal products. “We are going to manage fasteners more aggressively,” Byrne said. That includes “greater collaboration with fastener manufacturers. They have to understand our forecasts – what and when we need fasteners.” If Boeing tells suppliers specific projections it “is better than


asking them to speculate. It adds clarity for their production planning and inventories.” “As a whole we can manage commodities more effectively,” Byrne said. Beyond supply lessons, Boeing discovered the new fasteners


brought other challenges. “What we learned is that the installation (of new fastening systems) was more difficult –


Buy American legislation In the early weeks of his administration, president Barack


Obama signed into law the American Recovery & Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009 – also known as the Stimulus Act – which expanded the “Buy American” provisions of the Berry Amendment for Department of Defense suppliers. Boeing has “worked very hard to get there” and meet the Berry Amendment for its tankers. “We have worked diligently with Congress to create a solution that meets the intent of the law.”


Working with suppliers and customers Boeing and fastener suppliers “absolutely have to work


together. Communication and working together “yields the best results.” Fastener requirements will continue to evolve in a progressive evolution. “We need to continue to innovate. We can’t remain where we are,” Byrne noted. As a large OEM, Boeing has a certain presence with its


suppliers. “We have the same thing happen to us,” Byrne refers to airline customers. In 2004 the launch customer, All Nippon Airways, ordered 50 Dreamliners for delivery in 2008. Currently there are 57 customers from six continents who have placed 847 orders totaling US$164 billion.


“Pretty amazing engineering” Beyond the pricing and scheduling demands, Byrne obviously


appreciates what goes into Boeing airplanes. “Very few people appreciate the amount of engineering in fastening solutions,” Byrne pointed out. “There are a lot of people who think just ‘nuts and bolts’.” The engineering of tolerances is actually “pretty amazing engineering.”


24 Fastener + Fixing Magazine • Issue 67 January 2011


especially to remove and replace fasteners.” A potential growth area for Boeing and its suppliers is aftermarket parts. “We’d like to grow our business there.” Byrne said the Boeing brand name is valuable to the aftermarket and Boeing has a “financial and moral stake in doing it right.”


Courtesy of Boeing


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