British Aerospace soars above the competition with new modular storage system

Citation

(1999), "British Aerospace soars above the competition with new modular storage system", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 71 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.1999.12771eaf.010

British Aerospace soars above the competition with new modular storage system

British Aerospace soars above the competition with new modular storage system

Keywords: British Aerospace, Storage, Lista

As a leading company in the development of defence and aerospace technology, British Aerospace is involved in over 50 defence programs and has 28 international partnerships. With annual sales exceeding £7 billion, and over 42,000 employees, British Aerospace is the UK's largest exporter of manufactured goods.

British Aerospace excells in the design, manufacture and testing of military products. As the pioneer of such military craft as the Hawk jet trainer series, the Harrier fighter jet series and the Eurofighter, British Aerospace has, indeed, had a considerable impact on the international defence market.

British Aerospace is a full partner in the European commercial plane consortium, Airbus Industrie, whose airliner family claims to be the most modern in the world.

The company believes its strength lies in an ability to provide total solutions that meet the technological demands facing today's aerospace and defence markets.

According to production supervisor, David Birkenhead, "For over 80 years, British Aerospace has provided innovative products and services that enable our customers to become market leaders. As a result, British Aerospace is seen as a strategic partner; not simply a goods manufacturer."

Consequently, when British Aerospace set out to replace the storage equipment in its Samlesbury Aerodrome machine shop, it sought an "ally" of its own. It did not want to simply purchase new storage cabinets from a catalogue. Rather, it sought a company that could work with them to custom design a complete workspace solution.

After a reconnaissance of local companies, British Aerospace selected Lista (UK) Limited to design and install a new modular storage system. Lista recommended a workspace system that included modular drawer storage cabinets, mobile NC tool trolleys, and industrial workbenches.

"Foremost, we felt Lista's broad range of quality products could best solve the storage problems we faced", says Birkenhead. "Second, we had confidence in Lista's sales representatives to facilitate the installation process, and to ensure the new workspace system met all of our expectations."

Lista's modular storage system enabled British Aerospace to standardise small parts storage in the machine shop, thereby improving organisation, accessibility, mobility and overall productivity.

Comprising five individual small parts manufacturing cells, British Aerospace's machine shopfloor resembled, at times, a battlefield strewn with tools and small parts. To alleviate the disorder on the machine shopfloor, Lista recommended modular drawer storage cabinets, which are the core of the workspace system.

Lista's drawer storage cabinets, which claim 50 per cent more storage capacity than conventional shelving, consolidated small parts storage on the shopfloor. By utilising different drawer heights and individual drawer partitions, British Aerospace was able to store a diversity of items -- slot mills, machine chucks, backstops, stationery and manuals, to name a few. Each drawer is also labeled for faster retrieval. In addition, drawers can be reconfigured at any time, allowing for changes in storage needs.

Likewise, the durability of the Lista cabinets was a key feature for British Aerospace. Each cabinet drawer has a maximum 200kg load capacity, which was critical for storing the heavy carbide tools typically used by British Aerospace. Moreover, Lista's unique safety system prevents the cabinets from tipping, even at full load capacity.

Says Birkenhead, "In the past we've had to bolt storage cabinets to the floor, because when fully loaded, they became unstable. Lista's cabinets, while freestanding, offer supprior stability without sacrificing safety."

Additionally, in the pre-set area, Lista's drawer storage cabinets house the "carbide slot mills" used in the manufacture of small aluminum aircraft parts. These specialized cutting tools, which vary greatly in size and shape, are stored in the customisable drawer compartments, enhancing overall organisation and accessibility. And, the carbide slot mills are protected from dust and debris, extending the life of these expensive tools.

Similarly, British Aerospace is said to be able to store expensive NC tools safely in Lista's NC Tool Transporters. Each tool trolley has a maximum 800kg load capacity, and is fitted with special NC tool holders. Specially designed for vertical storage of pre-set tools, Lista's tool transporter protects tools from damage and employees from injury. Moreover, the mobile design allows field operators to move freely about the machine shopfloor.

Says Birkenhead, "Every technician has his own Lista tool trolley with NC tools. This has practically eliminated misplaced tools and tool hoarding; therefore, our tool inventory is easier to monitor."

For the pre-setting and assembling of tools, British Aerospace utilises Lista's industrial workbenches. Durable laminate worksurfaces can withstand the daily assembly and disassembly of heavy machine tools.

Complementing the workbenches are Lista's NW Cabinets, which serve as workbench bases. Because of their narrow width, NW Cabinets, with customisable drawers, offer highly accessible storage and extra leg room for comfort. As self-contained workstations, Lista's workbenches improve organisation and productivity.

Overall, because of the Lista storage solution, British Aerospace has won the battle with small parts storage. Perhaps the most important benefit for British Aerospace has been the standardisation of storage on the machine shopfloor.

Birkenhead claims, "With the Lista storage solution, each of the small parts cells has the same method and order of storage. The machine shop functions as a single unit, thus improving the manufacturing process as a whole. Now we can focus on bringing aerospace technology to the next level."

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