Purdue News
Purdue News
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February 20, 2004 Purdue to help take advanced manufacturing sky-highWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A conference at Purdue University on Feb. 23-24 will help bring the principles of advanced manufacturing to the aviation and aerospace industries. The second Aerospace Automation Consortium, co-sponsored by Purdue's School of Technology, is designed to facilitate partnerships among industry and academic leaders to explore solutions to problems in aerospace and aviation manufacturing. Bradley C. Harriger, a mechanical engineering technology professor, said the aerospace industry has special needs when adopting an advanced manufacturing model because of the size of its products. "Some of the problems that we are encountering are problems that can translate to other industries, but aerospace and aviation work has its own set of special circumstances that create new challenges," Harriger said. "For researchers and industry leaders to determine the best way to meet those challenges, it is important for them to collaborate and move beyond the idea of competition. If the industry can improve its processes, all of the stakeholders will share in the benefits." Session topics during the consortium will include modeling and simulation, defect prevention and integrated assembly lines, as well as a presentation on building successful strategic alliances for research. Participants also will tour Purdue laboratories and hear from former astronaut Guy Gardner, the director of superprojects at Purdue's e-Enterprise Center. Harriger said the value of collaboration can be seen in two ongoing projects on which researchers from Purdue's Department of Mechanical Engineering Technology are working with Northrop Grumman. In one example, a Purdue research group of faculty and students is using computer software to analyze machines and tooling used in aerospace manufacturing. The goal is to eliminate vibrations in the machinery, making it more efficient and increasing its lifespan. In another project, researchers are working with industry representatives to design an automated system that can attach the outer skin of an aircraft to the aircraft's supporting structures. In current systems, the slightest misplacement of either the skin or the supporting ribs can lead to rivets not attaching the skin to the rest of the plane. "There is a large set of issues and concerns that are specific to the aerospace and aviation industries," Harriger said. "We don't know what all of those are or the most efficient way to solve them. It could be that an assembly line model or some undeveloped method will be the most efficient way to manufacture aircraft, and hopefully this consortium and the partnerships that develop from it will help to answer that question." The consortium, co-sponsored by Northrop Grumman and Rockwell Automation, expands on a similar Northrop Grumman event in October. "There are many benefits to holding the second consortium at Purdue," Harriger said. "Not only can we provide a conduit to help advance the aerospace industry, it allows the university to be in on the ground floor of this work and to participate in strategic partnerships that could lead to improvements in the field. Any time we can be a part of something like that, the entire university benefits." Writer: Matt Holsapple, (765) 494--2073, mholsapple@purdue.edu Source: Bradley C. Harriger, (765) 494-7515, bcharriger@tech.purdue.edu Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu Note to Journalists: Reporters are invited to all parts of the event and can photograph or videotape sessions. High-ranking officials from several companies, including Northrop Grumman, will be available for interviews, along with faculty members from Purdue and other universities. A meeting agenda is available online.
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