Industrial Factory Automation

Lightning Aerospace has invested in the NC 4020 Duplex profiler from Water Jet Sweden (WJS). The profiler's attributes include the specifically developed Fanuc 300i control system and the ability to auto-adjust the distance between the two cutting heads via the computer-aided-design station. With the new WJS profiler now installed, the company is able to offer a 24-hour turnaround facility that is suitable for Ministry of Defence contractors that have to quickly, cleanly and accurately machine new materials for the advanced military equipment needed for delivery to war zones. With waterjet profiling, it is possible to produce clean-cut edges in a variety of materials, from steel and aluminium through to 300mm-thick titanium. Constantly introduced materials, which pose difficult problems for traditional cutting methods, are possible through waterjet cutting. One such material is Kevlar, which is used for personnel protection. It may take the form of thick panels made up from 50 or ...

Cobham Technical Services has announced that its Opera electromagnetic design software has been used in an aircraft lightning strike simulation project. Lightning strike tests of a helicopter at Eurocopter's Donauworth facility have verified the accuracy of finite element analysis techniques for characterising the electromagnetic behaviour of complete and custom-cabled modern aircraft structures constructed using advanced composite materials. The exercise was performed using the Opera software as a final element of the company's work for the ILDAS (In-flight Lightning Strike Damage Assessment System) project.  Simulation of the ILDAS tests highlighted how finite element techniques can generate accurate models of complex assembled airframes and simulate the effects of lightning strikes rapidly - in around a day on a standard office PC - to help developers evaluate and optimise lightning protection measures during the design cycle. The industry's current certification agains...