Citation
(1998), "De Montfort University wins major aerospace contract", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 70 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.1998.12770eab.032
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 1998, MCB UP Limited
De Montfort University wins major aerospace contract
De Montfort University wins major aerospace contract
De Montfort University's Faculty of Computing Sciences and Engineering has won a major contract from a group of leading UK aerospace organisations to develop costing methods and tools. The university work is part of a £10 million project to study the affordable manufacture of primary aircraft structures using composite materials which are of lighter weight and higher strength alternative to metallic structures.
The aerospace organisations, led by British Aerospace Airbus, have been awarded the multi-million pound funding from the Department of Trade and Industry's Civil Aircraft Research and Demonstration (CARAD) programme.
The research and technology project is the second phase of a programme known as Affordable Manufacture of Composite Aircraft Primary Structures (AMCAPS). It will make a major contribution to developing composites for wing primary structures and will help the UK to maintain a secure position at the forefront of the future aerospace market worldwide.
De Montfort's team will develop costing methods and tools to evaluate the economic benefits of new and existing composite materials and manufacturing technologies, currently being developed as part of the AMCAPS programme. Dr David Stockton, leader of the manufacturing research group at the university, said: "Our expertise in the area of cost engineering and estimating and our knowledge of British Aerospace's current costing processes gave them the confidence to award us this prestigious contract".
Jeff Jupp, director of engineering for British Aerospace said: "Composite materials for large primary aircraft structures could be an important area for the future, but to make them viable it is necessary to find ways to produce a reliable, maintainable product at a price which is cost-effective". The task for DMU is to ensure this objective is achieved by the development of costing methods and models by which viable product designs and manufacturing processes may be selected.