Aircraft galley manufacturer invests in Rye precision

Citation

(1998), "Aircraft galley manufacturer invests in Rye precision", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 70 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.1998.12770fab.004

Aircraft galley manufacturer invests in Rye precision

Aircraft galley manufacturer invests in Rye precision

Keywords Aircraft, Machining, Rye Machinery

One of the world's major manufacturers of galleys for passenger aircraft, C.F. Taylor Interiors Ltd, has invested in a second Rye CNC router for precision machining of fibrelam honeycomb composite materials and various alloys of aluminium at its factory in Llanelli, South Wales. In all, C.F. Taylor has two factories, that at Llanelli opened in 1989 and the company's head office at Wokingham. Berkshire since 1981. The company's first Rye router was installed in 1990, and was one of the first Rye routers to be used for machining aluminium panels.

At Llanelli, increasing orders and a need to machine larger panels introduced during 1997 the requirement for a CNC machine capable of cutting and machining components as large as 3 metres × 1.5 metres, 90 per cent of which are in fibrelam honeycomb composite. This consists of two sheets of fibreglass bonded to a lightweight honeycomb structure to produce a rigid yet extremely light panel of great durability, available in a variety of thicknesses. The other 10 per cent of the panels cut on the Rye CNC router are of aluminium in various grades.

These panels are used in the manufacture of galleys and crew sleeping quarters for virtually every type of Boeing and Airbus aircraft, in configurations designed for airlines all over the world. In the nature of the shape and quality assurance requirements of aircraft, components for the galleys often have to be machined to complex curves with great precision. Extensive use is made of sophisticated CAD/CAM systems and components are dimensionally checked to extremely fine tolerances using the latest co-ordinate measuring machines. The Rye router must, therefore, deliver a very high standard of accuracy, precision and repeatability.

According to Martyn Blewett, senior production engineer at Llanelli, the key benefit of the new Rye MA2515 TP twin-table CNC router is its large bed (Plate 4). The sizes of components machined on it range from as little as 150mm square to 3 metres or more in length. When small components are being machined, the two tables are split, so that the operator can be loading and unloading one while the contents of the other are being machined. When large panels have to be machined, the two tables can be synchronised together as one, making it possible for major components to be machined on the 2.5 × 3.0 metre surface.

Plate 4 The new Rye MA2515 TP twin-table CNC router in use at C.F. Taylor Interiors Ltd

"One of the problems we had before we bought the latest Rye CNC was the fact that we could not machine anything over about 2.5m by 1.2m at Llanelli" he said. "That meant that we had to transport the largest panels to Wokingham for machining. The new router has eliminated those transport costs."

He went on to explain that the twin tables also boost throughput and productivity, so increasing the company's capacity and potential revenue.

Further details are available from Rye Machinery Ltd. Tel: +44 (0) 1494 441211; Fax: +44 (0) 1494 440345.