Lockheed Martin completes F-35 production facility
By Staff | July 01, 2004
Lockheed Martin's (Ft. Worth, Texas, U.S.A.) huge facility for F-35 Joint Strike Fighter production is nearing completion, with final assembly and testing of equipment for composites manufacturing and assembly. The Ft. Worth operation will begin producing the forward composite fuselage and wing skins later this month, says Lockheed spokesman John Kent. The center fuselage is already in production in team member Northrop Grumman's Palmdale, Calif., U.S.A. facility. BAE Systems will fabricate the aft fuselage and tails at Samlesbury, U.K. Components will be shipped to Ft. Worth for final aircraft assembly.
In addition to the company's automated fiber placement machines (see HPC January 2002, p. 34), additional new automated manufacturing equipment includes a large, flexible overhead gantry for milling the inside surface of composite fuselage parts to precise tolerances, to ensure optimum stealth performance. The gantry mill, accurate to 50 microns (0.050 mm), according to Lockheed Martin, is supplied by DS Technology (USA) Inc. (Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.)., the U.S. representative of DS Technologie Werkzeugmaschinenbau GmbH (Möenchengladbach, Germany). Fastener holes in the fuselage and wings will be drilled by two automated "autodrill" cells, which will operate 24/7 to optimize production schedules. The machines, supplied by Cincinnati Lamb (Hebron, Ky., U.S.A.), use laser-positioning systems to ensure the accurate alignment of drilling and countersinking tools.
Wings will be supported in large moveable platform jigs to facilitate component assembly and composite wing skin installation. Assembled components will be moved from one work station to another by automated (driverless), battery-powered wheeled transporters called automated guided vehicles (AGVs). Each AGV, manufactured by Mentor AGVS - Formtek Cleveland Inc. (Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.) can support as much as 15,786 kg/35,000 lb.
Lockheed's Laser Ultrasonic Technology (Laser UT) machine will perform the final part inspections. Laser UT, developed in-house, uses laser energy to detect defects in the composite materials, and is 10 times faster than existing water-coupled ultrasonic inspection machines, according to the company.
All of the manufacturing machines are designed to reduce manufacturing time and costs dictated by strict affordability targets, says the company. "These are the most advanced machines ever applied to fighter aircraft assembly," says Tom Burbage, executive vice president and general manager of the F-35 program. "Their efficiency and accuracy will help the F-35 achieve its goals of affordability, quality and manufacturing speed."
