Composites are increasingly entering commercial airliners, but what are the reasons for this trend? Light, resistant and insulating, composites, particularly carbon fibre are widely used in military aerospace, and have recently started replacing aluminium as the idol of civil aircraft manufacturers.
“Carbon fibre reduces aircraft mass by 20–40%, a saving that directly impacts operating costs, particularly in terms of fuel consumption,” begins Millorit. “This allows airline companies to expand their field of action without increasing costs, which ensures business growth and increased turnover. We've seen the arrival of new aircraft with composite materials accounting for 50% of their composition. This revolution points to a radical change in production; a fully carbon fibre aircraft is no longer science fiction, but rather today's goal.”
The increasing use of composite materials is a definite benefit for the professionals who work with them. Other than load-bearing parts, manufacturers currently produce more complex parts in carbon fibre and need to increase production rates. Hybrid materials have also been developed, but how can they benefit aerospace businesses?
“The aeronautics sector recognises that carbon fibre presents unique benefits; nonetheless, it remains a very expensive material,” Millorit continues. “Professionals are always concerned with optimising production costs. Thanks to the combination of fibreglass and carbon fibre, they've finally found the solution to reduce spending: fibreglass is several times less expensive than carbon fibre. Combining both materials gives manufacturers a competitive advantage since they are selling a finished product which costs less, while remaining just as robust. This composite is the perfect compromise between price and product quality.”
Technological solutions also offer businesses a way to optimise expenditure. For example, DiaminoTechTex, Lectra's marker-making solution, maximises material use by up to 5%. This solution also enables designers to anticipate the best marker to accurately determine material requirements. Lectra says an accurate cutting solution, such as its VectorTechTex, also helps reduce material consumption. VectorTechTex's cutting accuracy without buffer spacing between pieces enables significant raw material savings.
New materials mean new processes to implement them, so what changes are taking place in the supply chain's production process? Millorit says carbon fibre, combined with fibreglass, simplifies the industrialisation process.
“Thanks to the resin transfer moulding process, certain parts of the aircraft are moulded and glued in a single step. This means that many machining operations are eliminated and the manufacturer has no size constraints. This process, in addition to reducing the number of parts to manufacture, offers improved mechanical adaptability and a more fatigue and corrosion resistant part. However, to cope with this new trend, businesses must use manufacturing machines capable of processing large sizes of composite fabric, such as the VectorTechTex range, which claims to offer larger and longer cutting tables to cut material directly from single-ply or multi-ply rolls.”
Maintaining a continuous production rhythm is essential for these manufacturers. Millorit concludes that to achieve the best availability rate, production speed must be precise in order to meet the just-in-time production challenges of the market.
“The slightest delay could alter the material, affecting delivery deadlines and the time to market of the finished product,” he notes. “It's therefore essential to guarantee the availability of manufacturing equipment. Technology included in VectorTechTex provides accurate data and allows real-time analysis of production. The data is processed by business and solutions experts at five Lectra international call centres. They intervene either remotely or onsite to guarantee a record availability of 98%, safeguard production and improve return on investment.”
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