AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS Archives - Page 13 of 26

Canadian Aerospace Manufacturer Joins Global Licensee Network for A20X™

A Canadian manufacturer of aerospace systems and components recently joined the global network of foundries licensed to manufacture cast parts using the advanced A20X™ aluminum alloy.

Aeromet International Ltd announced that Magellan Aerospace Corporation's Haley Ontario site will be added to the global A20X™ supply chain. Developed and patented by Aeromet in the UK, A20X™ is the world’s strongest aluminum casting alloy and is used in aerospace, defense, and space applications. The unique solidification mechanism and microstructure of the A20X™ aluminum alloy produces investment and sand cast parts with class-leading mechanical properties and enhanced thermal performance. A20X™ is fully approved for aerospace with MMPDS and AMS classifications and are typically used in high strength, high-temperature applications.

"Demand for A20X™ castings is growing significantly as aerospace and defense customers seek to unlock the weight and cost reduction potential offered by the high strength alloy – the global supply chain is key to supporting customers around the world," said Mike Bond, Director of A20X™ at Aeromet.

Haydn Martin, Magellan’s Vice President, Business Development, Marketing, and Contracts

"Magellan is delighted to join the global network of A20X™ foundries and to be able to offer the unique benefits of A20X™ castings to its customers," said Haydn Martin, Magellan’s Vice President, Business Development, Marketing, and Contracts. "The constant challenge for aerospace engineers is to find an optimum balance between strength and weight when designing a component. The higher strength characteristics of this alloy open up new opportunities for engineers to utilize the advantages of cast components in critical aerospace applications where, traditionally, light alloy castings have not been able to meet the requirements."

Canadian Aerospace Manufacturer Joins Global Licensee Network for A20X™ Read More »

Heat Treating Group Launches Mechanical Testing Facility

A U.K. heat treatment specialist recently went operational with a new in-house mechanical testing facility, certified by UKAS, at its Cambridge plant.

Andy Fox, operations director at Wallwork Cambridge.

With the new testing equipment, Wallwork, based in Bury, England, has the capability to run tensile, compression, and hardness tests on materials and components prior to and post heat treatment, boosting customer order turn-around times.

“Destructive testing is mainly specified by customers in aerospace, however, it is becoming increasingly common in motorsport, medical devices, and other industries where there can be no compromise in product integrity. The new facility gives us much quicker results than going out to an external testing lab,” said Andy Fox, operations director at Cambridge.

In addition to Rockwell hardness and shadowgraph is the new Z100 testing rig from ZwickRoell, which allows Wallwork to quickly identify any material or processing issues that could impact quality as well as data to refine existing metal heat treatment processes, component design and more. Wallwork operates vacuum brazing units at Manchester and Cambridge where the new Z100 has the potential to confirm joint strength between vacuum brazed materials.

“Faster turnaround of testing results is necessary for us to meet customer manufacturing targets and it also makes much easier the internal management of important accreditations,” said Fox.

Heat Treating Group Launches Mechanical Testing Facility Read More »

Engine Maintenance Agreement Reached to Support Arizona-based Carrier

October 17, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

A leading provider of engine and airframe services based in Scottsdale, Arizona, recently signed an exclusive, long-term engine maintenance agreement with a Phoenix-based air carrier for its CF34-8E5 engines powering a fleet of 42 Embraer 175 regional aircraft.

Mike Lotz, president and Chief Financial Officer of Mesa Air Group

StandardAero worked out this deal with Mesa Airlines, which provides scheduled passenger service to 110 cities in 39 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, Mexico, Cuba, and The Bahamas.

“StandardAero’s operational performance, exceptional customer service and program flexibility are some of the key traits that form the foundation of our long and trusted partnership making entering into this new MRO agreement an easy decision,” said Mike Lotz, president and Chief Financial Officer of Mesa Air Group, the commercial aviation holding company of Mesa Airlines.

“We are delighted in the confidence placed in StandardAero with this exciting new engine maintenance agreement to support Mesa Airlines CF34-8E5 engines,” said Todd Sywake, Vice President – Business Development and Strategy for StandardAero’s Airlines and Fleet Division. “StandardAero focuses on creating a world-class, hassle-free customer experience while developing custom tailored MRO solutions to help lower our partners’ operating costs.”

Engine Maintenance Agreement Reached to Support Arizona-based Carrier Read More »

Aviation Engine Manufacturer Readies T901 for U.S. Army’s Improved Turbine Engine Program

October 11, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS

The leading global provider of jet and turboprop engines, parts and mechancial systems for commercial, military, business and general aviation aircraft recently submitted its final Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) proposal to the U.S. Army.

GE Aviation offers its XT901-GE-900 engine for the Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), the U.S. Army’s endeavor to re-engine its Boeing AH-64 Apaches and Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawks. The U.S. Army is also expecting the ITEP engine to meet Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft requirements for Future Vertical Lift (FVL).

Through continuous upgrades and technology advancements, GE has doubled the power of derivative engines in the T700 family over its lifetime and reduced its cost to the government by 50 percent. GE’s XT901 turboshaft design, manufacturing, assembly and testing will be supported by the following site locations: Lynn, Massachusetts; Auburn, Alabama; Huntsville, Alabama; Norwich, Connecticut; Newark, Delaware; Loves Park, Illinois; Jacksonville, Florida; Madisonville, Kentucky; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Muskegon, Michigan; Hooksett, New Hampshire; Asheville, North Carolina; West Chester, Evendale, and Dayton, Ohio; and Rutland, Vermont.

Aviation Engine Manufacturer Readies T901 for U.S. Army’s Improved Turbine Engine Program Read More »

AM Solutions Supplier Plans EBAM® System for Aerospace Applications

October 10, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS

A leading metal additive manufacturing (AM) group based in Chicago recently announced that it will deliver large-scale metal 3D printing system to a supplier of highly engineered AM solutions.

Sciaky, Inc., a subsidiary of Phillips Service Industries, Inc. (PSI) will deliver an industry-leading Electron Beam Additive Manufacturing (EBAM®) 110 System to Burloak Technologies, a division of Samuel, Son and Co., Limited, which delivers high quality, lightweight, fully functional additive manufactured parts for a range of industries including space, aerospace, defense, energy, medical, automotive, and transportation.

Peter Adams, co-founder and president of Burloak Technologies.

“Using traditional subtractive processes, such as forging and machining, the production of titanium parts of this size could take one year while generating a significant amount of waste,” said Peter Adams, co-founder and president of Burloak Technologies. “Our EBAM 110 system will allow us to manufacture the same large-scale titanium structural parts in a matter of days. We are already engaged with several aerospace end-users who have started the qualification process with us.”

Scott Phillips, president and CEO of Sciaky, Inc.

“Sciaky’s EBAM systems are the most widely sold large-scale metal 3D printing system in the world, having qualified parts on land, sea, air, and space applications,” said Scott Phillips, president and CEO of Sciaky, Inc. “The innovators at Burloak Technologies will leverage the numerous benefits of EBAM to produce faster and cheaper parts for their customers all across the globe.”

A July 2019 delivery is scheduled for this EBAM system.

AM Solutions Supplier Plans EBAM® System for Aerospace Applications Read More »

Iron Foundry Expanding into Aluminum at Ohio Facility

October 5, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FOUNDRY CASTING NEWS

Source: Business Journal Daily

An iron casting foundry located in Hubbard, Ohio, is expanding into aluminum casting with an aluminum slab and billet plant at its current site.

Ellwood Engineered Castings is investing $60 million to house its new Ellwood Aluminum division to serve customers in the aerospace and other industries.

Iron Foundry Expanding into Aluminum at Ohio Facility Read More »

Hot Zone Insulation Materials Critical in Preventing Heat Loss

October 2, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS, INSULATION TECHNICAL CONTENT, VACUUM FURNACES, VACUUM FURNACES TECHNICAL CONTENT

Source: Solar Atmospheres of Western PA

With electricity costs increasing, heat treat facilities are looking for ways to harness energy and minimize heat loss through a variety of insulating methods and applications. Heat Treat Today‘s Technical Tuesday feature comes from Reál J. Fradette of Solar Atmospheres Inc of Souderton, PA (with Nicholas R. Cordisco of Solar Manufacturing Inc. contributing), analyzing the different types of furnace hot zone insulation materials with the following points taken into consideration:

A) Hot Zone Designs

All-Metal Designs
Ceramic Fiber Included Designs
Graphite Type Insulated Hot Zones

B) Defining Hot Zone Losses For Different Hot Zone Configurations

Calculating Power Losses For A Given Size Furnace
Effect Of Hot Zone Losses On Heating Rates and Peak Power

C) Effect on Power Losses With Various Insulation Layers and Thicknesses

Projecting Relative Losses Versus Felt Thicknesses

D) Equating Insulation Designs To Actual Power Usage

Projecting Cycle Costs For Different Areas Of Operation
Impact of Hot Zone Type on Total Cycle Cost

E) Summary And Conclusions

An excerpt:

The heating rate of a load will dictate the total energy required to heat that load at that heating rate. Heating as fast as possible is not often the best solution to the application.

Hot Zone Insulation Materials Critical in Preventing Heat Loss Read More »

Process Control Methods Standard Debuted for Aerospace Applications

September 27, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS

A global association committed to providing and monitoring standards for the engineering profession recently published a new standard with guidance material to support specific aerospace engine applications, with a focus on the practical application of control methods for many different situations.

Dan Eigenbrode, vice president of module centers & supplier quality at Pratt & Whitney and AESQ Executive Sponsor for AS13006

SAE International in Warrendale, PA, released AS13006: Process Control Methods, which AESQ Strategy Group members will accept the immediate use of AS13006 within their respective supply chains. In addition, organizations are strongly encouraged to begin using this latest standard before it becomes a contractual requirement.

Aerospace engine manufacturers and their suppliers currently have differing requirements for process control that have similar intent. This new SAE standard establishes a common practice and methodology, defining the requirements for ongoing process control to improve quality performance through optimized process variation management beyond customer-defined key characteristics.

“The release of AS13006 is a big step forward in harmonizing requirements in the Aero-Engine supply chain,” said Dan Eigenbrode, vice president of module centers & supplier quality at Pratt & Whitney and AESQ Executive Sponsor for AS13006. Aerospace Engine Supplier Quality (AESQ), an SAE ITC program, was founded and formed by major aerospace engine companies to standardize quality requirements across the supply chain.

“Process Control is the key ingredient for sustained product quality and AS13006 provides the means for all suppliers to implement robust systems to ensure consistent quality regardless of product type,” added Eigenbrode.

AS13006, the previously released AS13003, Measurement Systems Analysis Requirements for the Aero Engine Supply Chain, and AS13004, Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA) and Control Plans align and support the SAE standard AS9145, Requirements for Advance Product Quality Planning and Production Part Approval Process, developed by the International Aerospace Quality Group (IAQG)/SAE G-14 AAQSC Committee. The SAE G-22 AESQ Committee and the IAQG/SAE G-14 AAQSC Committee worked together cooperatively to ensure proper alignment of these standards.This standard also aligns and collaborates with the requirements of AS9103, Quality Management Systems – Variation Management of Key Characteristics.

Although designed for the aerospace engine supply chain, AS13003, AS13004, and AS13006 may be applied effectively by other segments of the aviation, space, and defense industries.

The Aerospace Engine Supplier Quality (AESQ) Strategy Group, a program of the SAE ITC, was established to develop, specify, maintain, promote, and deploy quality standards specific to the aerospace engine supply chain. AESQ member companies include Arconic, GE Aviation, GKN Aerospace, Honeywell Aerospace, MTU Aero Engines, PCC, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce, and Safran.

Process Control Methods Standard Debuted for Aerospace Applications Read More »

Aerospace Services Provider Cuts Ribbon on Component Repair Facility

September 20, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS

An Arizona-based aerospace service provider recently opened a new 206,000-sq. ft. repair facility in Cincinnati, Ohio, directly adjacent to its current 236,000 sq. ft. component repair facility, nearly doubling its capacity.

Rick Stine, president of StandardAero Components, Helicopters & Accessories

StandardAero Component Services hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by city and state of Ohio officials, local economic development executives, customers, company officials, and other guests.

The facility will accommodate component repair growth on new and legacy platforms, aero-derivative, military and commercial aircraft engine component repair, as well as larger components. Once fully operational, StandardAero expects to employ 200-300 new technicians to continue to meet the growing demands of customers over the next 12-18 months.

“As new engine platforms are launched and legacy fleets are still maintained, the entire industry is seeing tremendous growth. Demand for component repair has increased so we are stepping up to directly support our customers and address the continued and rapid need for more component repair capacity,” said Rick Stine, president of StandardAero Components, Helicopters & Accessories.

During 2018, StandardAero also increased shop capacity by an additional 60,000 sq. ft. with expansions of its facilities in Hillsboro, Ohio and Miami locations.

Aerospace Services Provider Cuts Ribbon on Component Repair Facility Read More »

Agreement Reached to Initiate Titanium 3D Printing for Boeing 787

September 19, 2018 / AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT, AEROSPACE HEAT TREAT NEWS, FEATURED NEWS, TITANIUM PROCESSING NEWS

A Wichita, Kansas-based, manufacturer of fabricated parts for the aerospace industry recently announced its partnership with the world’s pioneering supplier of aerospace-grade, additive-manufactured, structural titanium components to initiate qualification of parts for the Boeing 787.

Spirit AeroSystems and Norsk Titanium US Inc. have reached an agreement to initiate qualification of Spirit’s first additive-manufactured, titanium, structural component for the Boeing aircraft.

Ron Rabe, Spirit AeroSystems Senior Vice President of Fabrication and Supply Chain Management

This qualification will validate NTi’s production and industrialization processes, integrate Spirit’s work scope of machining final parts from additively manufactured near-net shapes, and verify material and final part conformity to requirements.

“Spirit has had a comprehensive and long relationship with Norsk Titanium, and this part will be our first additive structural titanium component incorporated into a commercial airplane program,” said Ron Rabe, Spirit AeroSystems Senior Vice President of Fabrication and Supply Chain Management.

NTi is the world’s first FAA-approved, OEM qualified, supplier of additive-manufactured, structural titanium components. NTi’s proprietary Rapid Plasma Deposition™ (RPD™) process has been in serial production of Boeing 787 titanium components since April 2017.

“I am very proud of the Norsk Titanium team and this accomplishment. It represents years of technology development,” said Mike Canario, CEO of Norsk Titanium. “I also would also like to thank Spirit for this vote of confidence in the Norsk RPD™ process and capability.”

NTi’s Plattsburgh, N.Y., facility was recently added to Spirit’s Approved Supplier List (ASL) and Boeing’s Qualified Producer’s List (QPL). Spirit and NTi have had an ongoing technology collaboration for more than nine years. In 2017, both companies signed a Master Procurement Agreement (MPA) for qualification and production activities. The first commercial aircraft part will begin serial production later this year.

Agreement Reached to Initiate Titanium 3D Printing for Boeing 787 Read More »

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