Regardless of its size, an airplane part needs to be monolithic, with minimal dimensional variation. Such parts ensure better control of the aircraft’s final weight. They also eliminate the need for fixtures and shimming, which can significantly increase assembly time.
To produce large monolithic parts, aerospace manufacturers rely on state-of-the-art machine tools. For example, Airbus plants in Germany, Spain, France and the UK use Flow International Corp.’s Composite Machining Center (CMC) to process skins for wings up to 40 meters long. The CMC performs trimming, drilling, routing, surface milling, marking and inspection of the skin.