Add to favorites

#Industry News

Strata Delivers On 100-shipset Order for A350 Composite Flaps

Strata Manufacturing has delivered to Airbus 100 shipsets of A350-900 inboard flaps assemblies made of lightweight composite materials.

Strata is an aerostructures manufacturer owned by Mubadala Investment and located in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, at the Nibras Al Ain Aerospace Park.

Airbus assembles the A350-900 out of 53 percent composite materials, with the fuselage consisting of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic. Strata makes the wings’ inboard flaps with hot drape forming and automated tape layup machines.

The manufacturing process begins with carbon-fiber material being pre-formed using hot drape forming, which heats the material with infrared radiation to soften the material quickly and uniformly. That delivers “accurate parts free from stress-wrinkling,” according to Strata.

The facility has two automated tape layup machines, both computer-controlled. The machines lay unidirectional prepreg composite materials onto a flatbed, Strata explained. Workers then transfer them to a mold and perform additional processing. The automated tape layup machines have a work envelope measuring 2.5 by 10 meters, which enables “automated processing of large composite layups, eliminates the need for a separate ultrasonic cutting machine, and drastically reduces processing times,” according to Strata.

“Strata is constantly looking to expand its technical manufacturing capabilities by investing in cutting-edge technologies and nurturing its employee’s abilities,” said Strata CEO Ismail Ali Abdulla. “This ensures better efficiencies and quality across our production lines and empowers us to advance within a highly-competitive global aerospace sector. In addition, we have successfully moved from assembling to fabricating [inboard flaps] components. This is a testament of our capabilities and focus to elevate our status as a sole supplier alongside Airbus of the wing part.”

Details

  • Al Ain - Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates
  • Strata Manufacturing

    Keywords