BISMALEIMIDE (BMI) TOOLING FOR 350F APPLICATION PROVIDES THE QUALITY, LONG TERM RELIABILITY, AND ACCURACY REQUIRED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF COMPOSITE STRUCTURES. A NORTHROP DEVELOPMENT PROJECT DESIGNED TO GATHER SUFFICIENT DATA TO DECIDE ON A TOOLING SYSTEM FOR FUTURE PROGRAMS IS WELL INTO ITS THIRD YEAR. FOUR COMPOSITE CURE FIXTURES AND CONTROL PANELS FABRICATED FROM FOUR DIFFERENT MATERIALS ARE BEING CYCLED IN THE AUTOCLAVE ALMOST DAILY. BASED ON THERMAL STABILITY AND CYCLE DATA COLLECTED FROM THIS PROGRAM, BMI IS PROVING TO BE THE OPTIMUM 350F COMPOSITE TOOLING SYSTEM. IMPLEMENTATION OF GR/BMI TOOLING IS PROCEEDING IN LARGE SCALE NOW IN MANY OF NORTHROP'S PROGRAMS. THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY IS DEMONSTRATING THAT LAMINATED COMPOSITE TOOLS CAN BE ACCURATE AND LONG-LIFE TOOLS.
| Number of Pages : | 20 |
| Published : | 06/01/1991 |
