JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007 - 8

COMPANIES COMPANIES S-2 Glass® reinforcement continues growth as new armour applications emerge New applications for composite armour systems are continuing to drive the growth of S-2 Glass® reinforcements from AGY. The company shipped a record amount of the material in 2006 and expects to surpass that record in 2007. New applications recently introduced or announced include Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) suits with an overlapping plate design that is more comfortable and more flexible, allowing the wearer to move easily and focus on the threat; and a new CAVCAT vehicle platform that meets higher threat levels including armour-piercing projectiles. Both of the new applications were developed by NP Aerospace Ltd, Coventry, UK, a long-time manufacturer of body armour and security vehicles. www.agy.com New production facility for Rohacell® foam core in North America Degussa’s Inspec Foams, Inc. announced the ground breaking of a North American Rohacell® foam core manufacturing facility. This will allow Degussa to continue to fulfil the increasing demand and forecasted long-term growth for Rohacell® foam core products. The location will be announced in the coming weeks. Along the establishment of the North American production facility, Inspec Foams Inc. will also offer domestic technical and engineering services, access to the manufacturing site and greatly reduced Rohacell® lead times. The production is expected to start by mid 2008. www.rohacell.com ÉireComposites awarded prestigious Nadcap aerospace accreditation ÉireComposites has been awarded Nadcap accreditation for composites processing, becoming only the second supplier of advanced composite structures in Europe to achieve this prestigious aerospace accreditation. The accreditation follows in-depth auditing by the Performance Review Institute (PRI) and is in the category Composites Processing – which includes autoclave processing, highly-specialised liquid processing and thermoplastic press-forming techniques. It provides a new platform for the company, allowing it to develop new relationships with OEMs and their fellow Nadcap accredited suppliers. The company already lists in its customer base prestige companies such as Airbus, BAE Systems, Bombardier Aerospace, Spirit AeroSystems, Cytec Engineered Materials, Ratier Figeac and the Safran Group, all companies which operate at the forefront of aerospace and automotive manufacture and design. www.eirecomposites.com ATK Composite Structures turns to Galorath’s SEERDFM software ATK Composite Structures has been a leading supplier of mission-critical composite structures to major aerospace and defence organizations like Lockheed Martin and Vought Aircraft Industries. As a major composites subcontractor, ATK prepares approximately 80-90 proposals per year. Rapid, consistent estimating is essential for enabling the company to complete quality proposals at such a high volume. Previously, ATK used a cumbersome bottoms-up estimating approach that required spreadsheets with hundreds of lines and, unfortunately, relied too heavily on the skill and experience of each estimator. Plus, each proposal typically required up to five full workdays and a team of nine to complete. ATK turned to Galorath’s SEER-DFM software with Composites plug-in, a tool that enables engineers and analysts to understand the impact of critical cost elements on design features and process parameters specific to the composites environment. As a result, designers working on new concepts can rapidly see the cost impact of specific decisions. www.galorath.com Quickstep commences process capability work with major US aerospace firms International advanced composites group Quickstep Holdings Limited has achieved a further key milestone in entering the North American aerospace market, announcing the commencement of key initial manufacturing trials with North American aerospace giants GE Aviation and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation at its newly established North American Quickstep Centre of Excellence (NAQCE). The company has completed commissioning of its QS20 composites production machine at NAQCE, located in the heart of the North American aerospace industry in Dayton, Ohio. Initial demonstration programmes will immediately commence with these major US-based aerospace companies, which have already expressed strong interest in Quickstep’s composites manufacturing technology. A landmark cooperation & development agreement with Eurocopter was also announced. Furthermore, Professor Walker, a leading consultant to global aerospace companies, said: “Quickstep’s Technology Advisory Board estimates that by 2011, Boeing and Airbus will each need to manufacture an additional 840 tonnes of carbon fibre materials each month in order to satisfy demand for new twin-aisle and replacement single-aisle aircraft that are necessary to meet the world’s rapidly increasing appetite for air travel. This additional production – amounting to almost 1,700 tonnes of carbon fibre per month – must be sourced from a manufacturing industry already operating close to capacity, making new and more efficient processing techniques an absolute necessity.” www.quickstep.com.au JEC Composites Magazine / No34 July-August 2007

http://www.agy.com http://www.rohacell.com http://www.eirecomposites.com http://www.quickstep.com.au http://www.galorath.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007