Member Article

Aerospace manufacturers first to tour materials testing facility

Aerospace manufacturers in the Midlands will be among the first to go behind the scenes at a new state-of-the-art materials testing facility in Banbury, Oxfordshire on Monday 27 April 2015.

A world leader in materials testing, Westmoreland Mechanical Testing & Research, Ltd (WMT&R) is hosting a ‘Make Your Ideas Happen’ roadshow for the Midlands Aerospace Alliance (MAA). Delegates will be able to tour the facility, which officially opened last week.

The roadshow will include updates from the BIS-funded National Aerospace Technology Exploitation Programme (NATEP), a unique programme that is injecting money and expert mentoring into UK aerospace supply chain companies. Created to help UK supply chain companies develop 100 novel technologies, there is up to £150,000 of match funding available to companies with a great idea.

NATEP technology manager for the Midlands region, Peter Knight, said: “This roadshow is tailored for smaller and medium sized manufacturers considering their first research and development (R&D) projects, and we’re delighted that WMT&R is opening its doors to share its expertise and increased capabilities.

“We’ll be learning how the company’s fatigue and tensile testing capacity and composites testing services have all increased as well as viewing its upgraded metallography laboratory, enhanced machining capabilities and laboratory information management system (LIMS).”

Recent Make Your Ideas Happen roadshows have involved aerospace manufacturers across the Midlands, including aerospace giant Meggitt PLC, Marshalls Aerospace, ITP Engines UK and Telford-based Advanced Chemical Etchings.

ACE’s managing director Ian Whateley, said: “By taking delegates around our facility, we were able to demonstrate the etching processes we use and show how these processes can be tailored to more than 1500 different types of materials, which raised some interesting questions and opportunities.”

Toby Hutton, Manager of Friction and Structural Materials for Meggitt Aircraft Braking Systems (MABS), a division of the global engineering firm Meggitt PLC, added: “This programme is exactly the sort of funding programme small companies really need. Minimum admin, maximum support. It’s not about elegantly presented proposals, it’s about the quality of the ideas.”

This may be the last chance for companies to get involved in NATEP, as the final call for funding is only open until 14 May 2015.

The roadshow is on Monday 27 April from 8am-10am at WMTR, 19 Wildmere Road, Banbury, Oxon, OX163JU, and free places are available on the Midlands Aerospace Alliance website.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Midlands Aerospace Alliance .