The accreditation applies to CML’s new composites facility which was officially opened in October 2011 by HRH the Duke of York. The scope of the approval includes prepreg lay-up, NC ply cutting, autoclave curing, NC machining, trimming and drilling.

“We are pleased to have received accreditation and are committed to producing the highest quality composite parts for all of our customers,” said Geoff Stewart, managing director of CML. “Nadcap accreditation underlines that commitment and provides CML with a highly-recognisable discriminator in the aerospace manufacturing industry.”

CML received the AC7118 Rev C accreditation after passing a rigorous Nadcap audit. The Nadcap accreditation, along with its AS9100 Rev C accreditation, underlines CML’s commitment to the highest quality standards and positions the company to capitalise on the growth in use of composites, particularly within the aerospace industry within which it primarily operates.

“Achieving Nadcap is no easy task. Nadcap accreditation is one of the ways in which the aerospace industry identifies those who excel at manufacturing quality product through superior special processes. Companies such as Teledyne CML work hard to obtain this status and they should be justifiably proud of it,” said Joe Pinto, vice-president and COO at the Performance Review Institute which administers Nadcap. “PRI is proud to support continual improvement in the aerospace industry by helping companies such as Teledyne CML be successful and we look forward to continuing to assist the industry moving forward.”

www.cml-group.com

These technologies are among those with the potential to transform the future manufacture and assembly of large composite aero-structures - and produce the performance gains the industry seeks in the next generation of airframes.

The OOA Composite Processing Phase II programme used OOA materials to design, develop and manufacture an affordable, lightweight, blended aircraft wing box featuring integrally stiffened skins, complex contours and four different stringer shapes. The manufacture of the parts used vacuum bag technology and the low cost tooling that becomes practicable when curing outside the extreme autoclave environment. The wing box was then assembled using fastener free, impregnated PI joints.

Stephen Grojean, materials and process engineer, GKN Aerospace explained: “As an industry we are striving to improve airframe manufacture by reducing airframe cost and weight. To achieve these goals we are designing larger, lighter, more integrated aircraft structures. This programme addresses two of the major challenges we face - overcoming the limitations imposed by autoclave curing and proving effective fastener free, joining processes. The results we have achieved serve as a technology enabler allowing us to progress to next stage in composite wing structure and blended wing box manufacture.”

www.gknaerospace.com

Known as Workflow, operators will be able to apply toolpaths within seconds. Workflow understands the component topology and therefore understands required manufacturing environment.

Workflow tools aid in loading and positioning the component, choosing the manufacturing method and suitable machine tools, adding user defined stock or stock from a database, importing fixtures, selecting a machine and toolkit, and managing strategies to automate manufacture. At each stage Workflow takes decisions or makes suggestions as to how the goal is best achieved. However, the user can easily over-ride the decisions if required making the whole process flexible.

Once each section is complete, the user moves seamlessly to the next stage, completing each process in turn, resulting in a fully programmed, fully collision-checked, part with swift and accurate CNC code generated.

It is claimed Workflow will have a significant impact on shortening programming time, and because it is so simple to operate, the learning curve for new users is considerably reduced. The traditional CAM commands remain available at all times, and the user can alternate between the two.

Edgecam general manager Raf Lobato said: “Workflow was developed to address the many challenges facing manufacturing today. The driving force behind Workflow was the industry’s need to reduce costs with reliable, repeatable rapid NC code generation.

“Customers will benefit from producing programs much faster than if they were using more conventional CAM systems, and their staff will become proficient in using Workflow, quicker and increasing their return on investment.”

www.verosoftware.com

Using maxon motor’s EC-4pole brushless DC motor the automated system can quickly adjust its parameters when drilling complex aerospace structures containing both metal and composite materials.

The latest aircraft use an increasing amount of carbon fibre and other composites. By using these lightweight materials instead of metals, aircraft can be made lighter and more fuel efficient. In some applications where extra structural strength is required, layers of composite are stacked with layers of titanium or aluminium alloy. Often, such a layered stack has to have holes drilled through it so that fasteners can be attached.

These composite and metallic materials have very different material properties and would normally require different drilling parameters. For example, drilling a carbon fibre composite commonly requires high speed and low torque, while drilling titanium typically requires low speed and high torque. Drilling a hole through a stack of both materials demands a tool which can quickly and efficiently switch between these two modes.

Designing such a tool is made more complicated by the fact that they often have to be deployed in confined spaces, such as within wing boxes or engine intake ducts. maxon motor’s EC-4pole brushless motor proved to be ideal for this project, manufactured in a 22mm and 30mm version its high power density and speeds of up to 25,000rpm make it ideal for high performance drill applications.

Senior sales engineer, Paul Williams at maxon commented: “The brushless motor with MR (magnetic reluctance) encoder allows the customer to quickly control the exact speed and torque on the drill; AMRC innovative 2 speed gearhead allows high speed drilling with low torque and to high torque low speed to meet the different drilling parameters within one drill tool”’  

Researchers at the AMRC with Boeing have previously developed flexible robots carrying lightweight tools to do essential tasks in such awkward spaces, including a confined space drill.

The challenge fell to the AMRC’s new Design & Prototyping Group as part of a project backed by Boeing. The project was led by senior design engineer Dr Garth Nicholson.

“Our solution was what we have called a passive input gearbox, which automatically changes gear ratios depending on the rotation direction of the drive motor, while always maintaining the same drill rotation direction,” says Dr Nicholson. “Its design was particularly demanding because we had to fit it onto our existing confined space drill. It had to be as small and light as possible, while still covering a wide range of output speeds.”

The assembled gearbox is now being evaluated at the AMRC. Following successful tests with the drill motor, the gearbox is now being integrated into the confined space drill chassis. Full test programs will trial the different options for material detection and investigate the process capability of the whole system for stack drilling.

www.maxonmotor.co.uk

AEC, part of the Rolls-Royce group, is one of Invotec’s largest customers and the awards reflect the achievement of Invotec’s Tamworth facility in recording a 100% delivery performance whilst meeting stringent quality targets over the course of 2012. In addition to the performance statistics however, Invotec was also praised by AEC for its agile approach to delivery and prioritisation, its structured approach to change control, its team-working on resolving customer issues, and the openness of its management systems.

“We are delighted to have received these important awards from such a significant customer – through AEC, our products are flying in engines across the entire global aviation industry,” stated Tatton. “Following on from our success in recently winning the SC21 Bronze Award and the MBDA Bronze Award, we now have a clear message for all of our customers. Invotec is an organisation committed to the continuous improvement necessary to meet the most exacting of customer requirements.”

www.invotecgroup.com