AEROSPACETO NEW HEIGHTS<strong>Makino</strong> can point to an unparalleled depth and breadth of ex -perience in metal-cutting applications for the aerospace in -dustry. The current portfolio of premium-class horizontal machiningcentres covers all the needs of the Big Two, Airbus andBoeing, the manufacturers of smaller aircraft and thesupply industry. The pioneering role played by <strong>Makino</strong> machiningcentres in this segment is highlighted by their performancein machining titanium and a cutting-edge case study.<strong>Makino</strong> MAG1: a 5-axis HMC ideallysuited to machining aluminium parts ofunder 1,500 mm<strong>Makino</strong> can point to decades of experienceand expertise in aerospace applications4
PRECISELY FEBRUARY 2009Is the aerospace industry a ray ofbright light across the dark skies ofeconomic recession? The long-termfuture certainly looks bright. Accordingto the Airbus Global MarketForecast 2007-2026, there wereapprox. 15,000 passenger and freightaircraft in operation at the end of2006. Ex pectations for the 2007-2026period are for some 24,000 new passengerand freight aircraft to be deliveredat a staggering total cost ofUS$2.8 trillion. The Bombardier MarketForecast Report 2008-2017 lookedat the me dium to small passenger aircraftbusiness (less than 150 seats).Here, more than 13,000 deliveriesworth US$300 billion are expectedover the 2008-2017 period. This segmentof the aerospace market is notdominated by the Big Two to the sameextent. Small-scale manufacturerssuch as Cessna, Dassault, Gulfstream,Hawker Beechcraft or Honda haveeither entered the market or strengthenedtheir position. Two trends arequite apparent. These new aircraftwill have to fulfil higher standards ofefficiency and emission levels; andthere will be an increased use of titaniumparts, e.g. 15% of the weight inthe Airbus A350-XWB compared to5% in the A300 and 9% in the A380.The future looks bright in the mediumto long term, but what about 2009?Airbus, for example, is already heavilyinvolved in developing the A350and the new A320, and at the beginningof this year set up a new metalcuttingcompany known as PremiumAerotec. It is based at the threeGerman sites Nordenham, Varel andAugsburg, and has a total workforceof around 6,000. Varel and Augsburgare responsible for machining alu -minium and titanium parts, Augsburgfor sub-assembly as well. Airbusintends to invest over €500 m in thethree plants in the next three years.What do we conclude? There aregrounds for optimism in the aerospacemarket.<strong>Makino</strong>’s historic strengthsNo other machine-tool manufacturercan point to such a wealth of exper -tise and experience in aerospaceapplications. <strong>Makino</strong>’s relevant systemknow-how goes back to 1972.Pioneering developments of importanceto the aerospace industry haveincluded the semi-floating guidingsystem (1980), motor spindles (1989),S-GI motion control (1992) and Viperand CBN grinding technology (1998).<strong>Makino</strong> has numerous installations ataerospace manufacturers and sup -pliers throughout the world: morethan 700 a1 and Aε machines installedsince 1995, over 80 MC-5X machinesfor heavy-duty cutting applicationssince 1995, and more than 125 MAGmachines for cutting aluminium partssince 2001. <strong>Makino</strong> set up its ownAerospace Group (MAG) in 1993 andMAG <strong>Europe</strong> followed in 2008.<strong>Makino</strong>’s MAG series of premiumclasshorizontal machining centres(HMC) was specifically designed foraerospace applications. In recentyears several MAG machines haveset new standards in dedicatedmachining technology. The MAG4launched in 2001 marked a revolu -tionary approach to machining aluminiumcomponents for aircraft. In2002, the MAG7 entered the marketas the MAG4’s big brother – and it certainlyis big. Parts of up to 7 metresin length can be machined with easeon the MAG7. In 2003 the MAG3,MAG3.H and the MAG3EX extendedthe MAG concept to deliver the samecutting performance in compact,cost-effective machines. 2005 saw theintroduction of a brand-new 80 kWMAG spindle and 2008 the launch ofthe MAG1, an HMC ideally suited tomachining aluminium components ofless than 1,500 mm in size.5
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