News

P&W Demonstrates Geared Turbofan Engine

Less than a year ago, Pratt & Whitney and MTU of Germany launched a technology readiness program to develop a new generation of high-pressure compressors for jet engines. The program was meant to help assure that high-performance, mid-thrust engines will be ready for new single-aisle commercial aircraft. While the program was in development, Paul Adams, SVP of engineering at Pratt & Whitney said, "This program will help validate the technologies we and MTU believe are required. It also supports our effort to develop a mid-thrust geared turbofan engine."

This summer, Pratt & Whitney began final assembly of its revolutionary new geared turbofan demonstrator engine at the company’s Engine Center in Middletown, Conn. In a geared turbofan engine, a fan drive gear system allows the engine’s fan to operate at a speed different from that of the low-pressure compressor and turbine, resulting in greater fuel efficiency and a slower fan speed that results in less noise. The 30,000-pound thrust engine promised to deliver a 12 percent reduction in fuel consumption, a 30-decibel noise reduction for Stage III requirements and 40 percent less maintenance costs while producing half the emissions of modern jet engines. P&W announced the formation of strategic relationships with Avio and Volvo Aero for continued development of key geared turbofan engine technologies.

During the fall of 2007, the company’s geared turbofan demonstrator engine began ground testing ahead of schedule. The demonstrator engine successfully completed its first ground test at the company’s advanced test facility in West Palm Beach, Fla. The full-scale demonstrator engine successfully started and ran, marking the beginning of a ground test program that will run through May 2008. "With more than 20 years of design, development and component rig testing, we are confident that this demonstrator engine will meet all performance expectations and validate the game-changing characteristics of the geared turbofan engine," said Bob Saia, VP, next generation product family, Pratt & Whitney. The company is now actively testing key components on 15 test rigs around the world and flight testing on Pratt & Whitney’s 747 flying test bed will begin in mid-2008.

Reliance Aerotech’s Maintenance Survey Results Show Companies Rush to Hire

Reliance Aerotech Services (RAS) provides outsourced aviation maintenance personnel and integration solutions for the aviation markets. In the company’s fifth annual aviation maintenance industry survey, results showed that contract labor risks are not well understood by many aircraft organizations that, according to RAS’ GM Ron Jordan, "...[are] in a rush to get ‘warm bodies’ [and] overlook key risk factors in choosing vendors to supply contract personnel." According to the survey, which addresses FAA compliance, liability insurance, screening procedures, workers comp, quality assurance programs and program performance, 79 percent of major airline respondents realize the importance or their MRO labor, but more than half of those respondents didn’t know what types of insurance and the levels of insurance that are carried by the staffing firms that provide the labor. More than half reported having no process in place to chose the company, other than putting people in place fast. This rush for getting people in place resulted in staffing firms performing reference checks on only 40 percent of the personnel and only 67 percent had FAA drug testing completed. Nearly three-quarters of respondents reported that they were unsure if the staffing firms used screening methodology to ensure worker compatibility in their workplace, which, according to RAS’ 2004 survey, is key to determining performance. "Given the importance maintenance organizations place on contract labor in the supply chain, we are surprised by the seemingly casual approach many organizations take towards this critical resources," said Jordan. Only 14 percent of respondents reported auditing the procedures of staffing firms in third-party facilities where they outsource work.

Eclipse Brings Commercial Safety to General Aviation

Eclipse Aviation has introduced the first FAA-approved aircraft manufacturer Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) program that includes flight data monitoring capabilities that are consistent with the programs used by commercial airlines as part of FAR Part 121. Until Eclipse introduced this program, FOQA was primarily used in the commercial sector. The company’s FOQA program is consistent with the internationally-endorsed SMS philosophy (see Editor’s Notebook, page 4) that safety risk management is a proactive culture. Eclipse feels FOQA is central to that culture because it uses objective flight data and software to allow Eclipse to learn of any issues while the aircraft is still in the field, before it ever touches down. FOQA identifies, assesses and analyzes flight-related hazards and, due to the integrated avionics design, Eclipse can capture nearly everything that occurs while the aircraft is in operation. Software on the ground looks at all the data collected and then reports any abnormal events or trends to the entire fleet. Therefore, Eclipse can investigate (to determine root causes), develop strategies to mitigate risks and then implement corrective actions. Finally, the FOQA system provides a mechanism to monitor and adjust the effectiveness of corrective actions, closing the loop on the process and ensuring optimal operational safety. "FOQA programs are not new, but are today considered state-of-the-art in the airline industry," said Eclipse Aviation’s Manager of Flight Safety Chris Solan. "Our program is revolutionary because as a GA aircraft manufacturer, we are essentially taking on the role and responsibilities of a sophisticated airline, aggregating large amounts of data so systemic trends can be easily identified...we can bring a tremendous improvement in safety to our customers, particularly individual or small-fleet operators." Information collection, analysis, corrective action and monitoring still leaves room for human error, but Eclipse is working on that as well with its training program for pilots. The company has entered into a partnership with Flight Simulation Company of The Netherlands and Higher Power Aviation, Inc. of Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. These organizations will join simulator manufacturer OPINICUS Corporation of Lutz, Fla. in working with Eclipse to deliver the training curriculum that was approved by the FAA this year.

PPG Aerospace Earns Awards

PPG’s Atlanta and Los Angeles centers were selected from more than a thousand suppliers to earn the 2006 Platinum Source Preferred Awards from Northrop Grumman Corp. for consistently delivering top-quality coatings, sealants and other products and services. To earn the award, PPG had to meet quality, delivery, customer satisfaction and lean process standards for at least 12 consecutive months and have a process variability reduction program in place.

GKN’s First Use of TMMC on Commercial Aircraft

GKN Aerospace teamed with FMW Composite Systems to develop and supply titanium metal matrix composite (TMMC) thrust links for the Boeing 787. This contract represents the first use of TMMC in a commercial application. TMMC is an engineered material consisting of silicon carbide fiber and titanium powder that has been diffusion bonded. This creates a hybrid material that is stiffer and stronger than conventional titanium alloys. TMMC offers weight savings of 25-40 percent more than traditional steel or inconel trust links and handles increased temperature tolerance better than monolithic titanium. The 787 Dreamliner thrust link will contain an FMW manufactured TMMC center tube that GKN will plasma-weld to two machined titanium end lugs. GKN will then final machine and assemble the links. GKN is also responsible for managing the contract and supplying two versions of the thrust link to enable integration with either the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 or the GEnx engine.