Denel Saab Aerostructures (DSA) is one of only two companies outside Europe that manufactures sections of the world’s most advanced transport aircraft, due to be delivered to defence forces within the next two years.
The massive four-engine turboprop aircraft recently made its public debut at the Farnborough Air Show in England with the locally produced components already on board.
Ismail Dockrat, the CEO of DSA says the successful manufacturing of a vital part of the aircraft is proof that the local manufacturing sector can hold its own with the rest of the world in the field of high-end engineering.
“Our participation in the Airbus production process is testimony to the ingenuity of our design team and the quality of our workmanship,” says Mr Dockrat.
The Top Shells will be fitted on all 180 Airbus A400M that will be produced over the 25 year life cycle of the project and will be a profitable project for DSA. The company is responsible for the entire product, from design to manufacturing, at its facilities in Kempton Park.
The Top Shells are made up of more than 1 100 parts consisting of a large machined skin, made out of an aluminium alloy. In addition some 900 system brackets are fitted to the shells. Each aircraft is fitted with two top shells, positioned in front of, and behind the wings where it is joined to the fuselage. The brackets support the vital electric and electronic wiring, hot air and heat exchange piping and including the aircraft’s life-rafts.
Each shell has the width and length of a small car and weighs about 100k. The manufactured product is shipped to Germany where it is incorporated into the fuselage which is then transported for final assembly at the Airbus production facility in Seville, Spain.
Denel Saab Aerostructures also manufactures the wing-to-fuselage fairings (WFF) made of an aluminium alloy frame and carbon composite panels. The locally manufactured components have already been fitted and flight-tested on five A400M development aircraft. The shells that left the production line this week will be fitted on to the first aircraft due to be delivered to an end customer.
Richard van Wyk, Top Shells Project Manager at DSA says the company’s participation in the Airbus project has enabled its engineering division to train and develop high-level skills. Most of the engineers and artisans working on the project received extensive training in Germany and Airbus conducts regular audits of the manufacturing process. The product also exceeds the rigorous standards set by local and European civil aviation authorities.
“We have been an integral part of the Airbus project from the design stages right through to production and testing,” says Mr Van Wyk. The majority of the components are manufactured locally, either at DSA or by sub-contractors in the engineering sector.
To produce the Top Shells DSA has invested in custom tooling and advanced engineering machinery which can later also be utilised in future manufacturing processes on other types of aircraft. This includes large bed machining, laser radar inspection and an enlarged special treatment plants.
Mr Van Wyk says DSA will be able to produce between two and three sets of top shells per month but the production schedule is determined by the requirements of Airbus.
Simon Green, Key Account Manager: Airbus at DSA, says the local team has received positive feedback from the primary manufacturer.
The A400M was started as a joint project between the Airbus founding countries: Germany, France, Spain, Turkey, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom and in a strategic partnership with South Africa, to provide heavy airlift capacity that can transport modern military equipment and humanitarian relief supplies into inaccessible global hotspots. The aircraft has a payload capability of more than 30 000 kg but it has a range of 8 710 km and can land and take off in less than 1 000 metres.
The first prototype made its historic maiden flight on 11 December 2009 and has completed, over 200 flights, accumulating more than 600 flying hours without any problems reported on either the Top Shells or the WFF.
Mr Green says Denel Saab Aerostructures participation in the project has confirmed its status as a reliable World-class supplier and innovative design partner in the highly competitive aviation industry.
