Composite fuselage sections aerostructure manufacturing offering

The Composite fuselage sections is a composite fuselage section aerostructure manufacturing offering from Aernnova with aerospace-grade grade and dual-use market. Composite fuselage sections from Aernnova are aerostructure assemblies designed and manufactured by the Spanish Tier 1 aerospace supplier Aernnova for commercial aircraft and helicopters. The offering belongs to the company's aerostructures activity, which also covers wings, stabilizers, movable surfaces and secondary structures, in both composite and metallic construction.

Aernnova states that it handles the design and the manufacture of fuselage sections for all types of fuselage, so a buyer can place the engineering and the production of a section with a single supplier. The company describes an integral service in which it takes responsibility for a programme at any phase of the product lifecycle, and it adapts each activity to the needs of the customer.

Composite construction is used for components that lower structural weight and raise the efficiency of airplanes and helicopters. The company cites composite parts such as an elevator, a pressure bulkhead and a centre wing box among its work, all produced alongside the fuselage sections.

On the production side, Aernnova assembles structures on automated takt lines that apply lean manufacturing and drilling machines working in a single step. It operates automated drilling, countersinking and riveting cells that include a Gemcore riveter, an Electro-Impact riveter for panels, a CIMPA-Broetje cell and five KUKA robots. Assembly simulation with digital twins is used to validate operation sequences, accessibility and ergonomics before a line is launched.

Integration work extends beyond the shell. The company is qualified to install aircraft systems, including electrical and hydraulic circuits, actuator circuits and mechanisms, and to run the conformity tests that follow. Special processes such as sealant application, painting, surface preparation, cold-work, permaswage, anodizing and shot-peening are certified by its customers.

Quality control relies on non-destructive testing: ultrasound, infrared thermography, induced currents, laser interferometry and penetrant liquids. The company works with major aircraft and helicopter manufacturers and takes part in more than 30 aircraft models, with a presence in 7 countries and 23 locations.

Typical users are airframers and helicopter makers that outsource fuselage structure, as well as programmes that need a build-to-print or design-and-build partner for composite and metallic airframe sections.