Rolls Royce: Electrifying the future
We’ve been changing the way the world is powered for the last 100 years. Now, with an increased focus on electrification, we’re set to revolutionize the next 100. Continue reading:
https://www.rolls-royce.com/media/our-stories/electrification.aspx
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Rolls-Royce welcomes UK Government funding for project to push the boundaries of all-electric flight research (press release)
Rolls-Royce today welcomes funding from the UK Government which will enable it, together with new partner YASA, to carry out ground-breaking research aimed at accelerating the adoption of all-electric propulsion in aviation.
Rolls-Royce is leading a research project known as Accelerating the Electrification of Flight (ACCEL) to explore the use of a high power electrical system in a demonstrator aircraft. We are working with YASA (UK), a manufacturer of high-power, light weight electric motors and controllers used in automotive, aerospace and industrial applications. Drawing on Rolls-Royce’s expertise in aviation design and safety, the project aims to flight test the system to gain a detailed understanding of the potential for electric flight. Rolls-Royce will be supported by Electroflight Ltd (UK), specialists in high performance electric powertrains including energy storage systems.
Rob Watson, Director of Electrical, Rolls-Royce said: “We are delighted to be leading this research partnership. We are already investigating the potential of hybrid-electric propulsion, building on our existing expertise in applications such as hybrid trains and gas turbine-powered naval vessels, but this funding from the UK Government will enable us to explore the potential of all-electric flight.
“The increased use of electrical systems is an inescapable trend in our markets and championing electrification is a core part of our long-term strategy at Rolls-Royce.”
Chris Harris, CEO, YASA said: “We’re excited to be working with Rolls-Royce on integrating our high-power, light weight electric motors into a pure electric demonstrator aircraft. Thanks to our innovative axial-flux design, YASA can deliver the smallest, lightest electric motors for a given power and torque – opening up new and exciting opportunities for electrification in aerospace.”
Roger Targett, Managing Director, Electroflight said: We are delighted to be supporting Rolls-Royce with an integrated electric powertrain including an innovative energy storage solution. Our team comprises leading experts in electrification from the motorsport and automotive sector to assist our partners to accelerate the evolution of electric aircraft.”
Rolls-Royce is already exploring hybrid-electric propulsion – using a gas turbine engine as a generator to power an electric fan – for regional commercial aircraft through the E-Fan X demonstrator programme with Airbus and Siemens, announced last year. At the Farnborough International Airshow, Rolls-Royce is also showcasing a hybrid electric vertical take-off and landing (EVTOL) vehicle concept which could be adapted for personal transport, public transport, logistics and even military applications and take to the skies as soon as the early 2020s.
About Rolls-Royce Holdings plc
- Rolls-Royce pioneers cutting-edge technologies that deliver the cleanest, safest and most competitive solutions to meet our planet’s vital power needs.
- Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 4,000 marine customers including 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.
- Annual underlying revenue was £15 billion in 2017, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services. The firm and announced order book stood at £78.5 billion at the end of December 2017.
- In 2017, Rolls-Royce invested £1.4 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 31 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research.
- Rolls-Royce employs almost 55,000 people in 50 countries. More than 19,400 of these are engineers.
- The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills. In 2016 we recruited 274 graduates and 327 apprentices through our worldwide training programmes.
About YASA: www.yasa.com
Founded as a spin out from Oxford University in 2009, YASA is now the world’s leading manufacturer of axial-flux electric motors and controllers for hybrid and pure electric propulsion and generation. YASA motors and controllers are designed and manufactured at YASA’s new 42,000 sq. ft. serial production facility. The facility has a capacity of 100k motors per year, 80% of which are destined for international export. The facility was opened by the Business Secretary The Rt Hon Greg Clark MP in Feb 2018.
About Electroflight: www.electro-flight.com
Electroflight is an innovative technology company focussed on accelerating the development, integration and testing of electric powertrains. The team leverages many years’ experience in high performance automotive and motorsport applications to bring pace to aerospace electrification.
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DARTeC - addressing the digital aviation challenge (press release)
Cranfield University and its partners in the £67million Digital Aviation Research and Technology Centre (DARTeC) will today announce the five primary research challenges that the centre will tackle when it opens in early 2020.
Launching the challenges in a white paper, entitled ‘Addressing the digital aviation challenge’, the partnership behind DARTeC will set out how they will aim to unlock the potential of digital aviation for the UK and global aviation industry.
With the pace of air travel growth already causing strains across the sector and UK passenger numbers expected to increase by 49% by 2050, solutions other than expansion of airport capacity and ground infrastructure need to be found.
Digital aviation has often been cited as being the next significant business transformation event of the sector and one which can support the industry towards delivering greater customer satisfaction while addressing efficiency, cost and capacity issues.
However, while many of the challenges of digital aviation are understood individually, there are very few opportunities to address them simultaneously within a collaborative research and technology environment. DARTeC will offer that opportunity by creating a ‘research eco-system’ underpinned by Cranfield’s global research airport and the University’s newly-opened autonomous vehicle research facility.
Funding for DARTeC is being provided by a consortium of leading aerospace and aviation companies including Thales, SAAB, Monarch Aircraft Engineering Limited, Aveillant – as well as Cranfield University. The Centre is also benefiting from £15.5m of funding from the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF), a scheme led by Research England.
Launching DARTeC’s five research priorities at the Farnborough International Show, Professor Graham Braithwaite, Project Lead and Director of Transport Systems at Cranfield University, said: “Aviation is a key sector for the UK economy contributing £52 billion to UK GDP but the sector’s present rate of growth is simply not sustainable.
“We need new digital solutions to tackle the challenges of over-capacity in both airports and airspace, we need to create passenger experiences more fitting of the 21st century and we need to create more sustainable air travel. Working with our partners, DARTeC will greatly advance the application of innovative technologies within the air transport sector and will unlock the potential of digital aviation.”
Addressing the digital aviation challenge, DARTeC’s five primary research areas will be:
- Connected systems – developing digital systems that will operate at speeds that the current Aircraft Condition Monitoring System (ACARS) and the Aircraft Condition Monitoring System (ACMS) are not capable of producing.
- Unmanned traffic management – developing airspace management solutions that will bring higher levels of system resilience, safety and security while adapting to competition from UAVs to operate in the same airspace.
- Seamless passenger experience – developing a more personalised, intuitive and less stressful passenger experience by using digital integrated technology to examine challenges such as unified security, the elimination of triple waiting areas, optimised passenger flows and baggage separation.
- Distributed airport and airspace management - developing the next generation of air traffic control in an environment of steadily increasing air traffic density and ‘on-demand’ requests.
- Conscious aircraft – developing technology and systems that would allow aircraft to monitor its current health, allowing it to reliably predict the useful life or components and systems, while automatically adapting to optimise their remaining life.
Lockheed Martin Introduces LM-100J 'FireHerc' At Farnborough International Airshow
press release
FARNBOROUGH, England, July 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) today at Farnborough International Airshow (FIAS) introduced the LM-100J "FireHerc," a civil-certified firefighting airtanker variant of the proven C-130J Super Hercules that is the airlifter of choice for 18 nations around the world.
The LM-100J is the commercial freighter production model of the C-130J Super Hercules and an updated version of the legacy L-100 commercial Hercules freighter. The LM-100J is flying at and on static display at this year's FIAS.
C-130s — legacy Hercules, Super Hercules and L-100s — have flown millions of hours in support of missions for military and civilian operators around the world for more than 60 years, which includes supporting firefighting missions for more than 40 years. The LM-100J FireHerc builds on this proven experience and offers advanced capabilities to support aerial firefighting requirements for decades to come.
"With the presence of wildfires increasing on a global scale, there is a real-time need to provide more advanced assets to protect our people, communities and environment," said George Shultz, vice president and general manager, Air Mobility & Maritime Missions at Lockheed Martin. "As a variant of the C-130J Super Hercules, the FireHerc delivers a powerful combination of established performance advantages and innovative technology that will truly change the way we fight and defeat wildfires."
FireHerc-Performance
The Hercules plays a vital role in firefighting by dispersing retardant to contain and control fires in locations with complex terrain and compromised operating conditions. The FireHerc's straight-wing design and turboprop power plant allows it to excel in supporting this challenging low-level, low-speed firefighting mission profile like no other large airtanker in operation.
Additional FireHerc advantages include:
- Advanced flight deck avionics that provide outstanding situational awareness and modern safety features to protect and guide flight crews through challenging conditions.
- The ability to support two different retardant dispersion solutions: the gravity-drop based Coulson Aviation RADS Product Line or the pressure-type dispersal Modular Aerial Firefighting System II (MAFFS II). Both have been certified by the U.S. Forest Service on the Hercules platform to meet strict ground coverage standards.
- A path to support night firefighting with advanced integrated technology, allowing responders to combat fires on an unprecedented 24/7 cycle — providing an unmatched advantage against nature.
More information about the LM-100J FireHerc is available here. Read more...
Airbus: The future is electric
At the 2018 Farnborough Airshow, the UK government announces financial support for the pioneering Airbus E-Fan X hybrid-electric flight demonstrator.
The E-Fan X is the next step in Airbus’ electrification journey. This ambitious project, in partnership with Siemens and Rolls-Royce, aims to develop a flight demonstrator testing a 2MW hybrid-electric propulsion system. Continue reading https://www.airbus.com/innovation/The-future-is-electric.html
Boeing Forecasts $15 Trillion Commercial Airplanes and Services Market
press release
20-year outlook projects rising demand for 42,700+ new airplanes, valued at $6.3 trillion
Services to outpace the world fleet; to grow 4.2% annually creating a $8.8T market
FARNBOROUGH, United Kingdom, July 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] lifted its long-term forecast for commercial airplanes as rising passenger traffic and upcoming airplane retirements drive the need for 42,730 new jets – valued at $6.3 trillion – over the next 20 years. The global airplane fleet will also sustain growing demand for commercial aviation services, leading to a total market opportunity of $15 trillion.
The company's annual forecast, renamed the Commercial Market Outlook (CMO) to include detailed analysis of the dynamic aviation services market, was presented today at the Farnborough International Airshow. Recognized as an industry benchmark for global air travel forecasting, the 2018 CMO projects the total number of airplanes increasing 4.1 percent over the previous forecast.
"For the first time in years, we are seeing economies growing in every region of the world. This synchronized growth is providing more stimulus for global air travel. We are seeing strong traffic trends not only in the emerging markets of China and India, but also the mature markets of Europe and North America," said Randy Tinseth, vice president of Commercial Marketing for The Boeing Company. "Along with continued traffic expansion, the data show a big retirement wave approaching as older airplanes age out of the global fleet."
According to fleet data, there are more than 900 airplanes today that are over 25 years old. By the mid 2020's, more than 500 airplanes a year will reach 25 years of age – double the current rate – fueling the retirement wave. Tinseth said the data explain why 44 percent of the new airplanes will be needed to cover replacement alone, while the rest will support future growth.
Including airplanes that will be retained, the global fleet is projected to essentially double in size to 48,540 by 2037.
The single-aisle segment will see the most growth over the forecast period, with a demand for 31,360 new airplanes, an increase of 6.1 percent over last year. This $3.5 trillion market is driven in large part by the continued growth of low-cost carriers, strong demand in emerging markets, and increasing replacement demand in markets such as China and Southeast Asia.
The widebody segment calls for 8,070 new airplanes valued at nearly $2.5 trillion over the next twenty years. Widebody demand is spearheaded, in part, by a large wave of replacements beginning early in the next decade and airlines deploying advanced jets such as the 787 Dreamliner and 777X to expand their global networks.
Additionally, Boeing projects the need for 980 new production widebody freighters over the forecast period, up 60 airplanes over last year. In addition, operators are forecasted to buy 1,670 converted freighters.
New Airplane Deliveries through 2037 by size
| |||
Airplane type
|
Seats
|
Total deliveries
|
Market value
|
Regional jets
|
90 and below
|
2,320
|
$110 billion
|
Single-aisle
|
90 and above
|
31,360
|
$3,480 billion
|
Widebody
|
8,070
|
$2,480 billion
| |
Freighter widebody
|
---------
|
980
|
$280 billion
|
Total
|
---------
|
42,730
|
$6,350 billion
|
The massive fleet generates a strong and growing demand for aviation services ranging from supply chain support (parts and parts logistics), to maintenance and engineering services, to aircraft modifications, to airline operations. Over the next 20 years, Boeing forecast an $8.8T market for commercial aviation services with annual growth of 4.2 percent.
"The commercial airplane business fuels an enormous ecosystem of service providers. Our combined forecast shows the full picture of the $15T commercial market ahead of us," Tinseth said. "We see a market in which airlines outsource more and more, a market in which data and data analytics help aircraft and airline networks become more efficient and reliable, and a market in which new technologies provide new services solutions. All of these trends drive greater demand for integrated solutions over the life of an airplane."
Major categories in the services forecast include the $2.3 trillion market for Maintenance & Engineering, which covers tasks required to maintain or restore the airworthiness of an aircraft and its systems, components, and structures. Another major category is the $1.1 trillion market for Flight Operations, which covers services associated with the flight deck, cabin services, crew training and management, and airplane operations.
Commercial Aviation Services through 2037 by service category
| |
Service category
|
Market value
|
Corporate & External
|
$145 billion
|
Marketing & Planning
|
$540 billion
|
Flight Operations
|
$1,115 billion
|
Maintenance & Engineering
|
$2,365 billion
|
Ground & Cargo Operations
|
$4,665 billion
|
In terms of the geographic split of the new forecast, the airplane and services demand are similarly geared toward the major growth markets. The Asia Pacific region, which includes China, will continue to lead the way, accounting for 40 percent of total airplane deliveries and 38 percent of total services value. North America and Europe round out the top three.
Commercial market through 2037 by region
|
||
Region
|
Airplane deliveries
|
Services market
|
Asia Pacific
|
16,930
|
$3,365 billion
|
North America
|
8,800
|
$1,850 billion
|
Europe
|
8,490
|
$1,875 billion
|
Middle East
|
2,990
|
$745 billion
|
Latin America
|
3,040
|
$515 billion
|
Russia/C.I.S.
|
1,290
|
$265 billion
|
Africa
|
1,190
|
$215 billion
|
Total
|
42,730
|
$8,830 billion
|
Formerly known as Boeing's Current Market Outlook, the CMO is the longest running jet forecast and regarded as the most comprehensive analysis of the commercial aviation industry. The full report can be found at www.boeing.com/cmo.
Forward-Looking Information Is Subject to Risk and Uncertainty
Certain statements in this release may be "forward-looking" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "expects," "forecasts," "projects," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include statements relating to our future plans, business prospects, financial condition and operating results, as well as any other statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Forward-looking statements are based on current assumptions about future events that may not prove to be accurate. These statements are not guarantees and are subject to risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict.
Many factors could cause actual events to differ materially from these forward-looking statements, including economic conditions in the United States and globally, general industry conditions as they may impact us or our customers, and other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any such statement, except as required by law. Read more...
Newly-established Boeing NeXt organization to lead future commercial mobility solutions and bring flight closer to home
- Boeing, SparkCognition to shape the future of travel and transport
- Collaboration to focus on next-generation airspace management for the safe integration of autonomous air vehicles
FARNBOROUGH, United Kingdom, July 17, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] today announced it is collaborating with artificial intelligence (AI) technology leader, SparkCognition, to deliver unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM) solutions.
Boeing and SparkCognition will use artificial intelligence and blockchain technologies to track unmanned air vehicles in flight and allocate traffic corridors and routes to ensure safe, secure transportation. Through the collaboration, they will also provide a standardized programming interface to support package delivery, industrial inspection and other commercial applications. Boeing HorizonX Ventures previously invested in SparkCognition to support its development of a cognitive, data-driven analytics platform for the safety, security and reliability of data technology.
"Estimated by some analysts at $3 trillion, the urban aerial mobility opportunity will lead to the creation of the largest new market in our lifetimes," said Amir Husain, founder and CEO of SparkCognition. "The world's number one aviation leader partnering with the world's most innovative industrial AI company means that unparalleled experience in safety, innovation, scale, and reliability will be brought to bear to address this monumental opportunity."
To help advance UTM and next-generation travel, and evolve the transportation ecosystem, Boeing is standing up a new organization, Boeing NeXt. It will leverage Boeing's research and development activities and investments in areas such as autonomous flight and advanced propulsion, as well as focus on modeling smart cities and exploring new market opportunities to solve for the transportation challenges of the future.
"We're at a point in history where technological advances and societal trends are converging to demand bold solutions and a different way to travel," said Greg Hyslop, Boeing chief technology officer. "Boeing has the experience and expertise to safely and efficiently shape this emerging world of travel and transport. Through Boeing NeXt, we intend to build on our legacy of opening up new frontiers to move people and goods with proven technologies."
To reimagine how products and people move around the world, Boeing is pursuing technology development in emerging fields, including AI and hybrid and fully electric propulsion, that will help ensure safe, efficient flight. In a new video, the company outlines how these enablers will come together with digital systems to make the introduction and integration of autonomous and piloted air vehicles a reality.
"By taking a holistic approach that combines Boeing's strength in technological innovation with new business models and nontraditional partnerships, we are laying the foundation for the future commercial mobility ecosystem," said Steve Nordlund, who will lead Boeing NeXt in addition to his role as vice president of Boeing HorizonX. "We are shaping the physical and connectivity infrastructure to ensure new air vehicles safely operate in the global air space."
The Boeing NeXt portfolio will include the recently unveiled passenger-carrying hypersonic concept, as well as electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicles that will provide on-demand cargo transport and urban air travel in the future mobility ecosystem.
With award-winning machine learning technology, a multinational footprint, and expert teams focused on defense, industrial internet of things, and finance, SparkCognition builds AI systems to advance the most important interests of society. Its customers turn to SparkCognition to help them analyze complex data, empower decision making, and transform human and industrial productivity. Learn more about SparkCognition's AI applications and why the company was featured in CNBC's 2017 Disruptor 50 and recognized two years in a row on CB Insights AI 100 by visiting www.sparkcognition.com.
Boeing is the world's largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners and defense, space and security systems. A top U.S. exporter, the company supports airlines and U.S. and allied government customers in more than 150 countries. Boeing products and tailored services include commercial and military aircraft, satellites, weapons, electronic and defense systems, launch systems, advanced information and communication systems, and performance-based logistics and training.
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