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A Melbourne-based Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) component supplier has leveraged a government grant to boost production.
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AW Bell, which focuses on casting solutions and precision machining, has doubled down on its capability investment through a ground-breaking new system at its Dandenong South casting facility.
The casting operation has been translated over onto an "industry 4.0 Smart Factory" system, which aims to increase the efficiency of the production cycle as well as overall quality control.
The move was funded by one of three Defence industry JSF grants awarded in June under the New Air Combat Capability – Industry Support Program.
AW Bell chief executive Sam Bell called the move a "technological first" for an Australian foundry, adding that "world-leading autonomous robotics used for component coating enables full automation of the production line and continuous monitoring of our operations in real-time".
Bell added that the Industry 4.0 Smart Factory integrates new digital and physical technologies to streamline factory operations, while increasing product effectiveness and reducing work health and safety concerns.
“Our Smart Factory has digitised production management across the foundry and production machining operations, from the receipt of raw materials through to delivery of final components,” said Bell.
“It embeds the digital monitoring of components at individual steps in the manufacturing chain, creating a serialised record of each part at every processing point, achieving the highest compliance with global aerospace traceability standards.”
Defence officials spoke equally enthusiastically of the move, with Air Commodore Damien Keddie, Director General of Defence’s Joint Strike Fighter Branch, adding that the venture had furthered AW Bell’s global competitiveness in the JSF supply chain.
“This leap in production technology has allowed AW Bell to expand its capabilities and global cost competitiveness in other aerospace, defence and commercial contracts worldwide and beyond the F-35 Program,” said AIRCDRE Keddie.
