Production engineering software for Airbus Partners

Citation

(1999), "Production engineering software for Airbus Partners", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 71 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.1999.12771bab.003

Production engineering software for Airbus Partners

Production engineering software for Airbus Partners

Keywords CAE, Software, Tecnomatix

Tecnomatix Technologies Ltd has secured an order worth over £1.5 million to supply the European Airbus Partners with computer-aided production engineering (CAPE) software tools. Spanning three major European countries, the order represents the largest ever programme of CAPE implementation in the aerospace industry, covering ROBCAD for manufacturing process design, DYNAMO for dynamic mock-ups, and VALISYS for tolerance management and quality inspection.

The order was placed through Parametric Technology Corporation (PTC), which is the primary supplier of computer-aided design, manufacturing and component product data management tools for the Airbus Concurrent Engineering (ACE) programme.

The software will be used in France, the UK and Germany by each of the members of the Airbus consortium; Aérospatiale, British Aerospace and Daimler Benz Aerospace respectively. British Aerospace will be using the software at its Filton and Chester facilities to support the design and validation of the manufacturing and assembly processes for the wings of the new A340-600 airliner.

All Tecnomatix Technologies' products in service in the UK are supported by specialist staff operating from the company's offices near Sutton Coldfield in the West Midlands.

Commenting on the order Stephen Bryce, Manufacturing Engineering Manager for British Aerospace Airbus, said: "The use of CAPE will help us to cut the development time of new projects, reduce the need for expensive prototypes and to validate ergonomics issues. All major challenges for maintaining our competitive edge as world leaders in wing design and manufacture".

"In choosing a CAPE provider, Airbus Partners were looking for a company familiar with aerospace industry issues and committed to providing long-term product development and customer support, and whose products meet its needs and integrate well with our CAD/CAM/PDM system from PTC. Tecnomatix has a proven track record in all these areas".

Harel Beit-On, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tecnomatix, commented, "This order, which spans three major European countries, represents the largest ever programme of computer-aided production engineering (CAPE) implementation in the aerospace industry. Tecnomatix has been working with the various members of the Airbus consortium for several years and we are very proud of the confidence that they have expressed in our company by this order."

Beit-On continued, "We believe that this prestigious technology partnership with Europe's leading aerospace consortium will strengthen our position with other aerospace companies worldwide as well as with their suppliers, and will fuel our future expansion and growth."

Further details can be obtained from Tecnomatix Technologies. Tel: +44 (0) 121 323 1300; Fax: +44 (0) 121 323 1333 or Tecnomatix Technologies SA. Tel: + 33 (1) 3458 2424; Fax. +33 (1) 3458 2442.