Premium AEROTEC receives autoclave for fuselage structure of Airbus A350 XWB

• Premium AEROTEC is gearing up for series production of the new A350 XWB long-haul aircraft

-- The autoclave (pressurised oven), 25 metres long and eight metres high in diameter, has been delivered to the plant in Augsburg
-- Premium AEROTEC is the world's largest supplier of fuselage structures for the A350 XWB
-- Total investment at Premium AEROTEC for this future generation of aircraft amounts to around EUR 360 million.


(Augsburg, February 23, 2010) -- Premium AEROTEC is the most important aerostructures supplier for the new Airbus A350 XWB long-haul aircraft, whose fuselage is largely made of carbon fibre composite (CFC) materials. This cuttingedge CFC technology is essential for production of the highly complex fuselage structure for the A350 XWB, with its lightweight design. It involves creating the outer skin with a fibre placement machine and curing it in the autoclave. The autoclave technology enables these CFC materials to be manufactured to the highest level of quality. Curing in the autoclave at a temperature of 180 degrees Celsius with a combination of high and low pressure produces components that are extremely strong but also have low specific weight. In combination with other measures, this considerably reduces fuel consumption for this future generation of Airbus aircraft.

The autoclave, with a transport weight of 260 tonnes, was manufactured in South Korea specially for Premium AEROTEC. It was lifted off the river barge by Europe's largest mobile crane in Lauffen am Neckar, from where it began its final route by road to Augsburg. Its total length for the transport (without its pressurised door) is 25 metres and its external diameter is eight metres. The new autoclave has a usable length of 23 metres and a usable diameter of seven metres. The manufacturing cost of the autoclave comes to approximately EUR 6.5 million.

"The arrival of the autoclave in Augsburg is another milestone in Premium AEROTEC's preparations for production of the new A350 XWB. The skills and expertise gained in this trendsetting CFC technology are also a visible proof of our outstandingly trained and highly motivated workforce," said Peter Schwarz, Head of Augsburg plant.

Hans Lonsinger, President and Chief Executive Officer of Premium AEROTEC, added: "Through our investment in new, innovative technologies here in Augsburg and at our other locations in Nordenham, Bremen and Varel, we are ideally equipped to secure our global competitiveness and growth over the long term and to further expand on that basis."

Source : European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS N.V. (Paris: EAD.PA)