Airbus announces increased investment, expansion of aircraft manufacturing in the U.S.
press release
Investments in Mobile, Alabama alone surpass $1 billon
Mobile, AL, USA – Airbus announced today that, as part of its plan to produce 63 A320 Family aircraft per month in 2021, the company will expand its industrial footprint in the U.S. by increasing the production rate of A320 family aircraft at its Airbus U.S. Manufacturing Facility in Mobile to seven per month by the beginning of next year. This increase, and continued recruiting for the A220 manufacturing team, will result in a further 275 jobs added at the Alabama-based facility over the next year. The company will also invest another $40 million through construction of an additional support hangar on the site, bringing its total investment to more than $1 billion in the Gulf Coast city.
Airbus' announcement comes on top of huge growth in 2019, when the company added 600 new jobs at the manufacturing site. With plans already in place for production of four A220 aircraft per month in Mobile by the middle of the decade, Airbus is on track to produce more than 130 aircraft in Mobile each year for its airline customers.
Reflecting on the growth and continued investment in the U.S., Airbus Americas Chairman and CEO C. Jeffrey Knittel said, "Airbus has been manufacturing in the U.S. for many years now through our helicopter, aircraft and satellite products. This increase in commercial aircraft production in Mobile is an exciting expansion of our significant industrial investment in the U.S., and it continues Airbus' positive contribution to American aerospace."
Knittel continued, "We have invested more than $1 billion in Mobile because of the terrific team of employees there – and because of the support and welcome we continue to receive from the Gulf Coast community and State and Congressional leaders like Senator Richard Shelby, who has been with us from the beginning. We look forward to building on that strong relationship with our neighbors. This goes beyond jobs to include our support of education initiatives and future workforce development that will positively impact the community for decades to come along the Gulf Coast."
In addition to its operations in Mobile, Airbus has extensive presence throughout the U.S. The company employs approximately 4,000 people at 38 locations in 16 states. Among its other facilities in the U.S. Airbus has: an engineering center in Kansas; training facilities in Florida and Colorado; materials support and headquarters in Virginia; an innovative think tank (A3) in California; a drone data analysis business in Georgia; helicopter manufacturing and assembly facilities in Texas and Mississippi; and a satellite manufacturing facility (OneWeb Satellites) in Florida. Furthermore, in the last three years alone, Airbus has spent nearly $50 billion in the U.S. with more than 450 U.S. suppliers, supporting more than 275,000 American jobs.
In addition to the rate increase and new team members, Airbus will have a lot more to celebrate in Mobile in 2020: Defense and Space will celebrate its 15th anniversary in April; Airbus' newest final assembly line for the A220 will open, and the delivery of the first U.S.-made A220 will take place. The company will also welcome the graduation of the first students from the FlightPath9 high school student training program in May, participate in the opening of the Flight Works Alabama aviation experience center in June, and deliver its 200th U.S.-built A320 family aircraft in the summer.
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Investments in Mobile, Alabama alone surpass $1 billon
Mobile, AL, USA – Airbus announced today that, as part of its plan to produce 63 A320 Family aircraft per month in 2021, the company will expand its industrial footprint in the U.S. by increasing the production rate of A320 family aircraft at its Airbus U.S. Manufacturing Facility in Mobile to seven per month by the beginning of next year. This increase, and continued recruiting for the A220 manufacturing team, will result in a further 275 jobs added at the Alabama-based facility over the next year. The company will also invest another $40 million through construction of an additional support hangar on the site, bringing its total investment to more than $1 billion in the Gulf Coast city.
Airbus' announcement comes on top of huge growth in 2019, when the company added 600 new jobs at the manufacturing site. With plans already in place for production of four A220 aircraft per month in Mobile by the middle of the decade, Airbus is on track to produce more than 130 aircraft in Mobile each year for its airline customers.
Reflecting on the growth and continued investment in the U.S., Airbus Americas Chairman and CEO C. Jeffrey Knittel said, "Airbus has been manufacturing in the U.S. for many years now through our helicopter, aircraft and satellite products. This increase in commercial aircraft production in Mobile is an exciting expansion of our significant industrial investment in the U.S., and it continues Airbus' positive contribution to American aerospace."
Knittel continued, "We have invested more than $1 billion in Mobile because of the terrific team of employees there – and because of the support and welcome we continue to receive from the Gulf Coast community and State and Congressional leaders like Senator Richard Shelby, who has been with us from the beginning. We look forward to building on that strong relationship with our neighbors. This goes beyond jobs to include our support of education initiatives and future workforce development that will positively impact the community for decades to come along the Gulf Coast."
In addition to its operations in Mobile, Airbus has extensive presence throughout the U.S. The company employs approximately 4,000 people at 38 locations in 16 states. Among its other facilities in the U.S. Airbus has: an engineering center in Kansas; training facilities in Florida and Colorado; materials support and headquarters in Virginia; an innovative think tank (A3) in California; a drone data analysis business in Georgia; helicopter manufacturing and assembly facilities in Texas and Mississippi; and a satellite manufacturing facility (OneWeb Satellites) in Florida. Furthermore, in the last three years alone, Airbus has spent nearly $50 billion in the U.S. with more than 450 U.S. suppliers, supporting more than 275,000 American jobs.
In addition to the rate increase and new team members, Airbus will have a lot more to celebrate in Mobile in 2020: Defense and Space will celebrate its 15th anniversary in April; Airbus' newest final assembly line for the A220 will open, and the delivery of the first U.S.-made A220 will take place. The company will also welcome the graduation of the first students from the FlightPath9 high school student training program in May, participate in the opening of the Flight Works Alabama aviation experience center in June, and deliver its 200th U.S.-built A320 family aircraft in the summer.
Airbus delivers strong 2019 commercial aircraft performance
- press release
- 863 aircraft deliveries, 8 percent higher than in 2018
- 1,131 new aircraft orders, 768 net orders, backlog stands at 7,482 aircraft
Toulouse – Airbus SE (Stock exchange symbol: AIR) delivered 863 commercial aircraft to 99 customers in 2019, outpacing its previous output record set in 2018 by eight percent. In the 17th yearly production increase in a row, Airbus progressed on the transition to all NEO variants and by year end Airbus had delivered 173 wide-body aircraft, its highest number in a single year.
In 2019, deliveries comprised:
A220 Family: 48 v 20 in 2018 (since the A220 became part of the Airbus Family: 1 July 2018)
A320 Family: 642 v 626 in 2018. Of these, 551 were NEO Family v 386 in 2018
A330 Family: 53 v 49 in 2018. Of these, 41 were NEO Family v 3 in 2018
A350 Family: 112 v 93 in 2018. Of these, 25 were A350-1000 v 14 in 2018
A380: 8 v 12 in 2018
Airbus had a strong year of sales with a total of 1,131 new orders.
Net orders reached 768, compared to 747 in 2018, underlining customer endorsements in all market segments and taking Airbus' overall historical cumulative net orders over the 20,000 mark.
The A220 achieved 63 net orders, confirming it as the leading aircraft in its category. The A320 Family continued its success with 654 net orders including an outstanding market response for the new A321XLR. At year end, the current Airbus wide-body offering comprised sales and repeat orders of 32 A350 Family and 89 A330 Family aircraft. Cancellations of 363 reflect specific airline situations in 2019 as well as the decision to end A380 production. At the turn of the year, Airbus' backlog stood at 7,482 aircraft.
"I am happy to see our commercial aircraft order and delivery numbers reflecting the continuous efforts to better serve our customers and bring our competitive products and services to the market", said Guillaume Faury, Airbus Chief Executive Officer. "I sincerely thank our customers for their loyalty and the Airbus teams and our industry partners who made it possible."
Airbus will report Full Year 2019 financial results on 13 February 2020.
Rolls-Royce opens new facility in Bristol, UK to develop components for cleaner, quieter, more-efficient jet engines
- New facility in Bristol, UK will develop components for UltraFan, a revolutionary new engine design
- Site will use low-energy, low-emissions processes, reducing waste by maximising raw materials
- Advanced manufacturing hub represents an investment of £25m and has secured 150 jobs
A new Rolls-Royce facility which will develop jet engine technologies set to transform flight, reduce emissions and set new benchmarks for efficiency has opened in Bristol, UK. The composite technology hub will develop fan blades and fan cases which significantly reduce weight in a jet engine, lowering fuel consumption and emissions.
The fan blades and fan cases being made at the facility are a feature of the Rolls-Royce UltraFan® engine demonstrator, a revolutionary new engine design which will reduce fuel burn and CO2 by at least 25% compared to the first Trent engine.
The new facility will use low-energy, very low emissions processes and features state-of-the-art automated manufacturing methods and materials. It will maximise the use of raw materials, reducing waste. Rolls-Royce has pledged to achieve zero emissions at its operations and facilities by 2030*.
Rolls-Royce has a crucial role in the transition to a net zero carbon economy and has a three-part environmental approach: reducing the impact of existing technologies; pioneering electrification in aviation; and working with the industry to accelerate the use of sustainable fuels.
Alan Newby, Rolls-Royce, Director, Aerospace Technology and Future Programmes said: "This incredible new facility exemplifies our commitment to creating cleaner, more efficient forms of power. Our highly-skilled employees will use the latest technology, materials and manufacturing techniques to develop components that will contribute to lighter, quieter, more powerful jet engines with fewer emissions."
The facility will focus on carbon-fibre composites, which are used in the aerospace industry to reduce weight significantly. The lighter an engine is, the less fuel it burns, creating fewer emissions. A Rolls-Royce fan system made with carbon-fibre composites can save almost 700kg per aircraft, the equivalent of seven passengers and their luggage.
The fan blades are made by manufacturing techniques that build up hundreds of layers of carbon-fibre materials, pre-filled with state-of-the-art toughness-enhanced resin material. Heat and pressure are then applied, and each blade is finished with a thin titanium leading edge, which offers extreme protection against erosion, foreign objects and bird strikes.
From January, the facility will begin making fan blades and cases for the UltraFan demonstrator engine. The composite system for the UltraFan engine demonstrator is taking shape, and different parts have completed aerodynamic performance, bird-strike, containment, icing and water ingestion tests, as well as ground and flight testing.
Rolls-Royce has been involved in developing carbon-fibre technologies for several decades and already uses the material for parts within its engines. The new facility will take this technology to the next level.
It will benefit from manufacturing techniques that have been developed in partnership with the National Composites Centre in Bristol, and research conducted at the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre at the University of Bristol, as well as several other universities and research centres based in the UK and in Europe.
The facility has secured 150 jobs in Bristol. An existing composite manufacturing technology facility, along with around 30 employees, has been transferred from the Isle of Wight. Since 2008, the UK Government has provided funding and support for Rolls-Royce composite technology research and development, including £7.4m of funding to support the Isle of Wight facility. The equipment from here has been moved and developed further at the new facility in Bristol.
More info:
Rolls Royce: Step inside our factory of the future
Rolls-Royce develops world-first electrical technology for next-generation Tempest programme
press release
Over the last five years Rolls-Royce has been pioneering world-first technology that will contribute to the UK's next-generation Tempest programme.
In an aim to be more electric, more intelligent and to harness more power, Rolls-Royce recognised that any future fighter aircraft will have unprecedented levels of electrical power demand and thermal load; all needing to be managed within the context of a stealthy aircraft.
Before the launch of the Tempest programme, Rolls-Royce had already started to address the demands of the future. Back in 2014, the company took on the challenge of designing an electrical starter generator that was fully embedded in the core of a gas turbine engine, now known as the Embedded Electrical Starter Generator or E2SG demonstrator programme.
Conrad Banks, Chief Engineer for Future Programmes at Rolls-Royce said:
"The electrical embedded starter-generator will save space and provide the large amount of electrical power required by future fighters. Existing aircraft engines generate power through a gearbox underneath the engine, which drives a generator. In addition to adding moving parts and complexity, the space required outside the engine for the gearbox and generator makes the airframe larger, which is undesirable in a stealthy platform."
Phase two of this programme has now been adopted as part of Rolls-Royce's contribution to the Tempest programme.
As part of this journey, the company has been continuously developing its capabilities in the aerospace market, from gas turbine technologies through to integrated power and propulsion systems. The goal being to provide not only the thrust that propels an aircraft through the sky, but also the electrical power required for all the systems on board as well as managing all the resulting thermal loads.
Rolls-Royce is adapting to the reality that all future vehicles, whether on land, in the air or at sea will have significantly increased levels of electrification to power sensors, communications systems weapons, actuation systems and accessories, as well as the usual array of avionics.
The launch of phase one of the E2SG programme saw significant investment in the development of an integrated electrical facility – a unique test house where gas turbine engines can be physically connected to a DC electrical network.
The launch of the second phase of the project in 2017 saw the inclusion of a second electrical generator connected to the other spool of the engine. It also included an energy storage system in the electrical network and the ability to intelligently manage the supply of power between all these systems.
The two-spool mounted electrical machines allows, by combination of operation as either a motor or a generator, the production of a series of functional effects on the engine, including the transfer of power electrically between the two spools.
As part of the E2SG programme, Rolls-Royce is investigating the feasibility of using dual spool generation to influence the operability, responsiveness and efficiency of the engine. Another key technology under development is the Power Manager intelligent control system, which uses algorithms to make real time intelligent decisions about how to supply the current aircraft electrical demand while optimising other factors including engine efficiency to reduce fuel burn or engine temperature to extend component life.
Throughout the Tempest programme, Rolls-Royce will be continuing to mature the electrical technologies demonstrated by the E2SG programme, with a third phase of testing likely to include a novel thermal management system being integrated with the overall system, as well as more electric engine accessories.
The company also intends to showcase a full-scale demonstrator of an advanced power and propulsion system. There will be new technologies in all parts of the gas turbine, including twin spool embedded generation to higher power levels, an advanced thermal management system, an energy storage system tailored to the expected duty cycle of the future fighter and an intelligent power management system which will be able to optimise the performance of both the gas turbine and the power and thermal management system.
Embraer and the Brazilian Air Force to study joint development of a new light military transport aircraft
Embraer and the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) signed a memorandum of understanding which enables the study of the potential development of a new light military transport aircraft.
The study seeks to identify alternatives and solutions to meet FAB's operational needs, especially in the Amazon region and austere environments, including unpaved, short and damaged runways located in remote areas. Relying on Embraer's high level of innovation and technological capabilities, the study will also seek to explore new technologies to provide solutions to FAB's extreme demands, such as different system architectures, innovative platform solutions, and hybrid-electric propulsion, among others.
FAB, which in 2019 received its first units of the modern KC-390 Millennium, a multi-mission tactical military airlifter, seeks with this study to complement and modernize its transport capabilities in the smaller segments, in order to broadly and completely fulfill Brazil's needs.
Based on a strong track record of cooperation, that unites Embraer's excellent execution capabilities and FAB's innovative and high-performance requirements, the study will also cover global market demand for the new aircraft.
According to the agreement, Embraer will carry out market studies for the development of the new aircraft, while FAB will provide its expertise in operating aircraft in this segment.
"We are confident that the expertise of the Brazilian Air Force will help us to establish the most appropriate requirements for this study, resulting in an extremely capable aircraft," said Jackson Schneider, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security. "Embraer is more than up for the challenge. Our newest product, the C-390 Millennium multi-mission transport aircraft, is coming into operation, and this new project will be instrumental in maintaining and enhancing Embraer's engineering and technology capabilities to meet the challenging demands of FAB and other customers worldwide."
"The purpose of this memorandum is to formalize Embraer's intention to develop a light transport aircraft to carry cargo and personnel. The Brazilian Air Force participation is mainly with regard to sharing expertise, based on projects that Embraer and the Brazilian Air Force have already developed in partnership, to meet the Air Force's needs over time", said Lieutenant-Brigadier Antonio Carlos Moretti Bermudez, Brazilian Air Force Commander.
The study seeks to identify alternatives and solutions to meet FAB's operational needs, especially in the Amazon region and austere environments, including unpaved, short and damaged runways located in remote areas. Relying on Embraer's high level of innovation and technological capabilities, the study will also seek to explore new technologies to provide solutions to FAB's extreme demands, such as different system architectures, innovative platform solutions, and hybrid-electric propulsion, among others.
FAB, which in 2019 received its first units of the modern KC-390 Millennium, a multi-mission tactical military airlifter, seeks with this study to complement and modernize its transport capabilities in the smaller segments, in order to broadly and completely fulfill Brazil's needs.
Based on a strong track record of cooperation, that unites Embraer's excellent execution capabilities and FAB's innovative and high-performance requirements, the study will also cover global market demand for the new aircraft.
According to the agreement, Embraer will carry out market studies for the development of the new aircraft, while FAB will provide its expertise in operating aircraft in this segment.
"We are confident that the expertise of the Brazilian Air Force will help us to establish the most appropriate requirements for this study, resulting in an extremely capable aircraft," said Jackson Schneider, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security. "Embraer is more than up for the challenge. Our newest product, the C-390 Millennium multi-mission transport aircraft, is coming into operation, and this new project will be instrumental in maintaining and enhancing Embraer's engineering and technology capabilities to meet the challenging demands of FAB and other customers worldwide."
"The purpose of this memorandum is to formalize Embraer's intention to develop a light transport aircraft to carry cargo and personnel. The Brazilian Air Force participation is mainly with regard to sharing expertise, based on projects that Embraer and the Brazilian Air Force have already developed in partnership, to meet the Air Force's needs over time", said Lieutenant-Brigadier Antonio Carlos Moretti Bermudez, Brazilian Air Force Commander.
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