Aerospace & Defence
January 2013, Alenia Aermacchi, part of Finmeccanica, signed a contract for panels from Czech company Aero Vodochody to build a fuselage section for the Airbus A321. Aero Vodochody will produce up to 96 panel sets a year in a renewable contract initially valued at over 120 million Euros. Ladislav Simek, president of Aero Vodochody, said:
“The contract for A321 fuselage panels is a result of our long-lasting cooperation with Alenia Aermacchi on C-27J Spartan aircraft. Aero Vodochody is responsible for producing the centre wing box. “After some problems with the C-27J Spartan
program, there was a significant drop in orders, so Alenia Aermacchi decided to offer Aero Vodochody the production of A321 fuselage panels. The first set of panels should be produced by the end of 2013. We have just bought a new Integrated Panel Assembly Cell (IPAC) CNC automatic riveting machine, so it will be able to produce the fuselage panels very quickly.” At GKN Aerospace, composite material processes
include automated tape laying, double diaphragm forming, automated fibre placement, resin transfer moulding, resin film infusion, liquid resin infusion, microwave curing and laser ablation.
Automated tape laying allows the rapid deposition of composite pre-impregnated tapes to either a flat or curved tool to produce complex parts. This method allows the deposition of both individual plies directly on the tool or may stack the plies in the correct orientation prior to placement on the tool. Used on Airbus A400M composite wing spar and
A340 landing flap, the advantages include reduced cost cycle time, manufacture of large structures up to 14 metres in one go, automated process and increased accuracy, repeatability and quality. Double diaphragm forming forms flat composite
material under heat and vacuum to provide complex shapes. Also used on Airbus A400M composite wing spar and A340 landing flaps, the advantages include use of different temperatures during the forming process, automated process, controlled forming and good quality and repeatability.
Automated fibre placement
Automated fibre placement of pre-impregnated composite fibres/tapes onto a tool at high speed provides several advantages to GKN Aerospace, including speed of deposition, reduced scrap, improved
Fig. 3. For 60 years Saab has performed structural testing of specimens.
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