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Issue link: https://hpc.epubxp.com/i/101340
FEATURE / A400M WING ASSEMBLY Prepping the one-piece wingskin an a400m composite wingskin, manufactured by airbus in stade, germany, and illescas, spain, is prepared by airbus workers for attachment to the spar/rib assembly in the vertical jig. cal solutions. The spars and wingskins, says Evans, represented for Airbus the ���rst use of carbon ���ber composites in a wingbox application. Stage 1 The A400M assembly facility is organized in three stages and in the shape of an inverted ���U,��� with Stage 1 at the left hand leg, Stage 2 along the arch and Stage 3 at the right hand leg. Stage 1 involves primary wing box structural assembly. Stage 2, comprising Pre-Equipping 1 and 2, includes addition of fasteners and minor structural work, wiring and other components in systems preparation, as well as testing. Stage 3 involves the addition of electrical harnesses, more wiring and piping, and full functional testing before shipment to Airbus��� A400M Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Seville, Spain. large-scale, high precision is large-scale our composite and metal industry leader 1.888.856.5143 | Info@janicki.com 28 | high-performance composites www.janicki.com source: airbus More than 30 percent of the A400M���s aerostructure comprises composites, and the material is a vital part of Airbus��� efforts to reduce aircraft weight, increase fuel ef���ciency and extend service range. The largest single composite parts on the plane are the one-piece wingskins, each of which is 19m/62 ft long and 12 to 14 mm (0.47 to 0.55 inch) thick. When conceived and implemented, it represented one of the composites industry���s largest design, engineering and assembly challenges. Evans notes, in fact, that Airbus��� experience with carbon ���ber composites on the A400M laid the groundwork for the company to do the same ��� more easily ��� on its A350 XWB. ���It set up Airbus well to design and manufacture the more advanced A350,��� says Evans. The fact is that almost every assembly process Airbus has developed relative to composites on the A400M is a ���rst for the company and, in some cases, a ���rst in composites. The Filton team relied on lessons learned from Airbus composite experience at plants in Germany, Spain and France to develop innovative and ef���cient techni- The most intensive composites work occurs at Stage 1. It���s here that Airbus receives the composite front and rear spars, manufactured by GKN Aerospace at its nearby Bristol, U.K. facility. Also integrated at Stage 1 are the composite upper and lower wingskins. These are manufactured via automated ���ber and tape placement by Airbus at its plant in Stade, Germany. The wing in Stage 1 assembly the day of the HPC visit was for A400M aircraft number 13. The ���rst step at Stage 1 is spar assembly. Spars are delivered in two sections and joined with customized carbon ���ber joint plates made by GKN Aerospace (Bristol, U.K.). The front spar is oriented ���at in one of six holding ���xtures, with the wing ribs and skins attached and assembled in a vertical orientation, with the spar serving as the base. After the spar is joined, 24 aluminum ribs are attached at molded-in attachment points along the spar. (Evans says Airbus assessed use of carbon ���ber composites in rib manufacture, but given the roughly 600 orders expected for the plane, the tooling for composites was deemed too expensive.) After all of the ribs are attached, the wingskins are moved into place over the ribs and Airbus begins the most demanding work involved in the wing���s assembly: the drilling of 12,000 holes in a wing set. This is accomplished with what Airbus