Innovative, high performance drilling systems for aerospace and defence is the clear focus on AMEC's exhibition area at this year's Farnborough Air show, where the company is exhibiting as part of the North West Aerospace Alliance pavilion, alongside other 'member' companies.
Being launched at the show is AMEC's new PCD (polycrystalline diamond) coated drilling system, developed specifically for the aerospace and defence industries to enable the stacked drilling of high performance alloys, titanium and carbon fibre composite materials.
Also on show is AMEC's new range of threaded shank drills, designed as direct replacements for existing drills used with the air powered Quackenbush and Lübbering systems, covering diameters from 9.5mm up to 35mm, using AMEC's T-A® replacement insert technology. A further advantage is that just by changing the grade of insert, rather than the whole drill body, the AMEC T-A drills can be used on a variety of materials. Also, this ability removes the need for re-setting, significantly reduces downtime and eliminates the cost of tool re-grinds.
Although this is the first time that AMEC has exhibited at the prestigious air show, the company's high performance T-A® and GEN3SYS® drilling systems are already widely used in the UK and international aerospace industry in a diverse range of applications.
In addition to being used in fuselage and wing manufacture, AMEC drilling systems are also used by specialist aerospace systems companies and contractors in the manufacture of key components for use in landing gear assemblies, hydraulics and control surfaces, for example.
High cutting speeds, exceptional tool life and outstanding repeatability makes the versatile AMEC range ideal for use with a broad range of aerospace grade alloys and composites, as well as less exotic materials such as steel and stainless steel used in related aircraft components and systems.
"Our involvement in the aerospace sector has not only grown over the past five years, but has also diversified as an increasing number of manufacturers seek improved productivity, higher quality, longer tool life or faster tool changes and recognise that AMEC can deliver against all of these criteria," explained AMEC Europe's Managing Director, Rodney Crawford.
"We now work closely with a broad range of primary systems suppliers and specialised contractors to help them achieve improvements and benefits that in some cases were seen as unachievable. Also, we're now developing tooling solutions specifically for this sector, which will help set new standards within the industry."