JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #41 - June 2008 - 50

FEATURE “Aeronautics” SLCA: expert in composite aerostructures Among Safran Group, Aircelle's subsidiary SLCA has long-established experience in complex assemblies for composite aerostructures. Rather than resting on its laurels, the company continues to uphold its expertise in the field by participating in different projects. SLCA is relying on its expertise to expand the engineering services it proposes to its customers. The company recently presented Airbus with 23 potential solutions for its new A400M military transport aircraft within a programme of weight reduction studies for aerostructures. through lower energy consumption. The partners involved in the project are SLCA, PPE, CINI and the ENSAM engineering school in Metz. Comac, the second project, will serve to develop on-site monitoring systems for aeronautical components during production and operation. The system uses a defect detection tool that allows tailoring the control method as a function of the damage and the type of structure. Expected advantages are: - ability to detect defects on site using the portable systems, - a wider range of detectable defects through concurrent use of several different technologies, - accelerated inspection processes, - on-site decision-making aid, thanks to an intelligent system. The partners involved in the project are SLCA, PPE, Institut de Soudure, LORIA (Nancy) and TREFLE (Bordeaux). New service offering Using the experience it has accumulated since 1980, SLCA developed a new engineering service to provide support for its customers’ weight-reduction and production-cost research. Not long ago, Airbus called on SLCA’s design office, located at Plaisir near Paris, to define concepts that could reduce the mass of a given A400M aircraft component by 100 kg. This service has involved three phases: - analysis of component design and engineering data, - proposals for potential weight reduction, - consolidation of the proposals selected by Airbus. SLCA has already completed the first two phases, and its assessments confirm the feasibility of Airbus’ objective, i.e. reducing the weight of the aerostructure component in question by 12%. In a tribute to the company’s know-how in complex composite aerostructures, Airbus has hailed the quality of the work thus far accomplished and the relevance of the solutions proposed. 28 years of industrial expertise SLCA applies its more than 28 years of industrial expertise in composites to partner with some of the best-known names in aeronautics. Today, its core business focuses on project Expanding the use of composites Concurrently with this latest initiative, SLCA has been investing in two innovative projects that should help to expand the use of composite materials in the aerospace industry. CAPSAIRTM project focuses on perfecting and simplifying the manufacture of structural components using the Liquid Resin Infusion (LRI) process, from part design through the qualification process. It will serve to: - raise productivity for lower investment, - save on time and labour through fewer manufacturing steps, - eliminate problems linked to material service life, - improve the environmental footprint for such components photo credit : Eric Bienvenu NH90 cowling assembly line JEC Composites Magazine / No41 June 2008

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #41 - June 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #41 - June 2008