Airbus (Toulouse, France) announced on Sept. 10 that it has placed orders with MAG Cincinnati (Hebron, Ky.) for six VIPER automated fiber placement (AFP) machines for automated fabrication of composite fuselage panels for the composite airframe on the upcoming A350 XWB commercial aircraft, which will be, according to Airbus, more than 50 percent composite construction by weight. The six VIPER 6000 series AFP machines, MAG Cincinnati's largest, can produce panels for fuselage sections up to 6.3m/20.7 ft in diameter, says the company. Installed at Airbus facilities in France, Germany and Spain, the AFPs will be used for part and process development be- fore transitioning to production of 92 percent of the A350 XWB fuselage. The equipment commonality enables sharing of knowledge base and production efficiencies, noted Randy Kappesser, vice president of MAG Cincinnati's Composites business unit.
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