Winglets are built at the Dahl plant in Tarbes, France, and then assembled into aircraft at the Savannah plant in Gulfstream.
The performance of the Gulfstream G700 is enhanced by Daher's composite-metal winglets.
Gulfstream Aerospace (Savannah, GA, USA) features performance-enhanced winglets made by Daher (Paris, France) to contribute to the fuel efficiency and long range of twin-engine business jets.
Daher manufactures winglets – aerodynamic extensions of the upward curve of the aircraft's wingtips – using composite materials and metal components for optimized weight and enhanced aesthetics. They are manufactured at the Dahel plant in Tarbes, France, and assembled into aircraft at the Savannah plant in Gulfstream.
Winglet winglets reduce aerodynamic drag caused by turbulence at the end of the wing, while also increasing the lift of the wing. Daher's winglets, designed to the aerodynamic shape and specifications of the Gulfstream, play a role in the G700's excellent flight range of up to 7,500 nautical miles and 13,890 kilometers.
Daher CEO Didier Kart noted that the G700 winglets follow the complex parts that Daher has developed for other Gulfstream business jet programs, including composite wingbody fairings and main landing gear doors for the G500 and G600, elevators for the G600, and vertical tail leading edge fairings for the G650.
Aircraft master manufacturer and leader in thermoplastic composites
Daher is not only a component manufacturer, but also an aircraft contract manufacturer. This became an asset as it moved forward from being a leader in the mass production of thermoplastic (TP - thermoplastic) composites. Pierre Rouch, TP Composite Technologist at Daher, says: "It produces a TP component every 3 minutes. ”。In a November 2019 press release, the company claimed that its position as an aircraft manufacturer gave it assets that were different from those of other companies in the space.
"We are now at a critical juncture in thermoplastic (composites), which is maturing and becoming a real game-changer in aerostructures," Daligault said. ”。It allows us to produce lighter, stronger parts than the metal previously used, at a lower cost and at a higher speed. Our performance has been significantly improved in terms of weight reduction, fuel savings, high temperature resistance and increased resistance to damage and stress, plus the opportunity to limit the environmental impact of air transport. "The application of the material in the aerospace industry ** chain.
"Nantes (France) is a dedicated production site for Daher thermoplastic composites," Rouch noted. ”。The plant's two automated production lines produce 160,000 parts per year, including moving parts, ribs, nearly a thousand different types of corner pieces, floor structures, and engine covers for several major aerospace programs.
Its high-throughput performance and state-of-the-art production led to the Daher plant in Nantes being awarded one of the first Vitrine Technologique labels in France in 2015 by a group of industry organizations, including the French Association of the Aerospace Industry (GIFAS), which developed a roadmap for the future development of the European TP industry.
Innovate structures and processes
Daher now focuses on developing thicker components and structural parts that are subjected to high stresses. Successful tests carried out by Daher include large wing ribs developed two years ago as part of an innovation program led by the French Council for Civil Aviation Research (CORAC). Pierre Rouch continues: "At the same cost as aluminum, these products save a little more than 35% in weight. ”。
As a partner in the "WOT-Wings of Tomorrow" project with Airbus, Daher was responsible for the design and manufacture of five high-load thermoplastic ribs. These will be delivered in 2020 for installation in the first full-scale demonstrator.
Following the acquisition in 2019 of KVE Composites (The Hague, Netherlands), which specializes in the welding of thermoplastic composites, Daher was able to introduce a niche TP induction welding technology. This innovative process may reduce the number of rivets and the total weight of the associated application by an additional 15%.
Note that the KVE Composites are also part of the Clean Sky 2 Mecatesters project, demonstrating a full-scale welded thermoplastic composite aircraft fuselage. ）
So, what does the future hold?
One of Daher's core goals is to improve its ability to process production offcuts as well as end-of-life TP components. At the same time, in addition to its application on the wing, TP has continued to expand its application into many different areas of aircraft manufacturing and maintenance. Pierre Rouch concludes: "In terms of thermoplastics, Daher is currently working on about ten other projects and trials, and of course, all these technological innovations will one day make their way into our own aircraft. ”。
-END --Note: For the original text, see Daher Composite-Metal Winglets Enhance Performance of New Gulfstream G-700 Large-Cabin Bizjet 2020 3 12
Chaofan Yang 20238.4