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Aerospace Manufacturing learns how GKN Aerospace’s facility in Munich is benefiting from the installation of a large volume Fooke milling machine with a custom-built dust extraction system for carbon fibre machining.

Since March 2015, the Fooke 5-axis portal milling machine with a tailored dust extraction unit designed by Keller Lufttechnik has been operating successfully at the Munich site.

The large volume machine tool is 14m long and is used to manufacture carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) aircraft landing flaps.

Anyone boarding a modern aircraft is highly likely to come into contact with a GKN aerospace product. The UK company, which employs 12,000 employees in 35 countries, supplies the aviation industry and all major OEMs with metal and composite components. At its Munich site, around 500 workers primarily produce carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) aircraft landing flaps.

The facility currently provides composite structures to various programmes including: the A320, A330/340, A350, A380, C Series, Global 7000 and Global 8000 aircraft.

“We specialise in CFRP processing and manufacture all components from scratch ourselves,” says Hans-Jochen Platte, machining division manager at GKN.

The company is well-known for the quality of the units it produces. When considering the purchase of a new milling machine, GKN had very demanding and specific expectations in terms of performance such as the system's precision and speed. The Fooke Endura 611Linear 5-axis portal milling machine was eventually chosen for the job.

5-axis HSC machining of carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) aircraft landing flaps

Fast and flexible

The Endura 611Linear is an extremely fast and dynamic overhead X-axis gantry milling machine of portal design with five CNC-controlled simultaneous axes. It is especially suited for the finish-machining from five sides of workpieces made of clay, plastics or composite materials such as CFRP and glass fibre, model making block material such as Ureol and High-Speed Cutting (HSC) machining of aluminium.

Fooke machines – serviced and supported in the UK by Phase 3 CNC – feature a solid structural rigidness and tight accuracies that guarantee optimal quality of motion control and maximum productivity. Endura machines are equipped with linear motor drives which have proven highly successful especially when it comes to the high-speed machining of large workpieces. Fooke machine tools are noted for their high performing motion control, resulting in high precision and superior surface finish quality. The Endura 600 range of machines has an acceleration value of up to 3.0m/sec². Traverse paths up to 30,000 x 3,500 x 2,000mm and positioning accuracy in the X-axis of 0.030mm; Y-axis 0.020 and Z-axis 0.015mm.

Other features include: direct measuring systems in all axes (X, Y, Z, C and A); safety system and brakes in all linear axes (X, Y and Z); drive units protected by bellows and an easy accessible ground level milling chamber which facilitates loading and unloading with a crane or forklift.

Fooke offered GKN a complete installation package including a full machine enclosure and a high-performance dust extraction system designed by Keller Lufttechnik.

“The concept met all our expectations and covered all our requirements,” comments Platte. “We were also impressed with Fooke's high level of vertical production. Moreover, it was important for us to work with a company headquartered in Germany.”

Air quality control

According to Platte, the milling machine and its extraction unit play a critical role in producing landing flaps.

“An extremely high level of precision is vital to us,” he explains. “Moreover, it is essential that the machine and its extraction unit operate continuously without any failures. We work in three shifts and cannot afford any downtime.” This need meant reliability was given a higher priority than price when GKN was choosing the new system.

Fooke European sales director, Andreas Feldevert explains: “Our milling machines are driven by linear motors. They are extremely dynamic, very precise and reliable. The high speed at which all the machines' axles move means greater productivity for our customers. Moreover, the machine operates precisely, which is essential in the aviation industry.”

Keller Lufttechnik’s extraction system on the Fooke machine at GKN

However, the system's smooth running is not just dependent on the milling process. Thin fibres released during milling must be effectively extracted, since they can be breathed in by workers and are carcinogenic. Because of this, they must not be allowed to escape from the machining area.

Keller Lufttechnik based in Kirchheim unter Teck near Stuttgart is a Fooke partner company that shares its corporate philosophy and high standards in terms of product quality.

It is a global technology provider specialising in capturing and separation of a variety of air pollutants as well as in the reduction of emissions in industrial applications. Its wide range of services includes air pollution control systems, filtration systems, de-dusting systems and the appropriate suction technology for almost all solutions such as: dry separators; wet separators; oil mist separators; emulsion mist separators; work booths; filters and filter elements made from a variety of materials.

Experts from Fookes and Keller Lufttechnik jointly designed extraction equipment tailored to GKN's requirements.

“Dust capture presented a challenge for two reasons,” comments Peter Wörner, a project engineer in the sales division of Keller Lufttechnik. “The machine has a very long traverse path measuring 14m. We had to ensure that extraction was consistent along the whole length. During the manufacturing process, the milling spindle is also cooled by a diagonal flow of compressed air. This causes the dust to swirl, making it more difficult to capture.”

Using flow simulation, it was possible to map the effect of the air currents precisely and devise a tailored solution.

“Air flows through the entire cabin from top to bottom. The extraction equipment, which extracts accumulated dust and chippings, is located in the floor. So too are the back-pressure flaps in the pipes, which provide the necessary protection against explosions. This is also a clever solution in terms of how space is used,” adds Wörner.

Warm returns

The extracted air passes through two filtration stages, eliminating particles to such an extent that the air can be fed back into the hall.

According to Platte: “A lot of energy is required to heat 32,000m³ of air per hour. It therefore makes sense to feed processed air, which is already warm, back into the hall as clean air.” Keller Lufttechnik estimates that this saves GKN approximately €20,000 in annual heating costs.

GKN has been operating the unit since March 2015 and is very happy with it.

Platte concludes: “Everything works perfectly. Even the installation was enjoyable. Fooke and Keller Lufttechnik employ highly qualified experts who develop excellent solutions and implement them punctually and precisely. This is a rare experience for me.”

www.phase3cnc.co.uk

www.fooke-portalfraesmaschinen.de/en_US/home.html

Company

GKN

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