Seattle, Washington, USA, January 24th, 2018 – Daher has been selected to provide thermoplastic composite structural parts for the Boeing 787 airplanes, utilizing its expertise in this material – which is lightweight, strong and cost-effective to manufacture – for the company’s first-ever production contract with Boeing.
Deliveries and installation of these elementary structural parts will begin in 2018 under terms of Daher’s multi-year contract, replacing existing 787 airplane components currently manufactured using the more traditional thermoset composite materials that have been employed by the aviation industry for 30-plus years.
In supplying the new parts, Daher will apply its demonstrated experience in thermoplastic composites – with a wide variety of aircraft components produced by the company since 2010. This expertise has enabled Daher to master the production techniques for thermoplastic composites, and use its leadership in automation and robotics to optimize manufacturing processes.
“Daher is pleased to begin our Boeing relationship with thermoplastic composite technology, which holds significant promise in further driving down the aviation industry’s costs of manufacturing aerostructures,” said Nicolas Orance, Daher SVP Aerospace & Defense Business Unit. “We are fully committed to meeting Boeing’s expectations on this initial work package, and are ready to explore other opportunities that will bring additional manufacturing cost reductions”, adds Armelle de Larminat, Head of Business Development Americas area.
Daher’s manufacturing expertise further optimized the thermoplastic composite parts for Boeing as replacements for the 787’s existing components. Daher’s production facility at Nantes, France has received Boeing approval as a qualified supply source for thermoplastic composite parts.
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