BOEING RECOGNITION
Adhesive-bonded fastener supplier, Click Bond has
won a Boeing Performance Excellence Award (BPEA) at
the gold and silver level almost every year. This annual
scheme was established in 2006 to recognise superior
supplier performance, as measured in the Enterprise
Supplier Performance Measurement (ESPM) system.
The criteria to receive a BPEA requires suppliers to
meet performance ratings, have an annual contract
greater than US$100,000 per year, and maintain
a minimum of 10 monthly deliveries or a General
Performance Assessment rating. Fewer than 50 out of
thousands of Boeing suppliers have received an award
more than once.
“The bar to meet Boeing’s standards is incredibly
high,” said Sean Thompson, an account manager at Click
Bond. “The silver rating requires 99.8% quality and 98%
delivery. We are proud to have maintained even higher
gold levels for both quality and delivery over the past
year. We work hard to understand Boeing inventories,
and in some ways, we’ve had to learn how to predict
the future.”
aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
JUNE 2019 093
The Young Engineers (TYE)
has also designed a series of
magnetic fasteners that can
be potted into honeycomb
structures. These fasteners,
which use rare earth magnets
to maintain strength, can
also be used to secure
access panels, temporarily
hold doors and bins open or
closed, secure loose items
to prevent rattling, or to
secure serviceable items such
as soap dispensers. They
are available in a variety of
styles: magnet-to-magnet
or magnet-to-stud (recessed
to provide fixed position), or
magnet-to-magnet, -stud or
–plate (with flush application
for a tidy attachment).
Available magnetic forces
range from 1-30 lbs.
Another new range being
introduced is Loret Isolator
Inserts, designed to dampen
vibration and/or motion
in applications as avionics
racks, sidewall panels, chillers,
entertainment units, etc.
They can be used in most
common honeycomb panels,
along with sheet metal and
composite structures, often
allowing direct mounting to
aircraft structure.
“The bar to meet Boeing’s
standards is incredibly high”
HARPER ENGINEERING’S
PANEL FASTENING SYSTEM
OFFERS SEVERAL PRACTICAL
ADVANTAGES
PANEL FASTENING SYSTEM
Harper Engineering’s Panel Fastening System has been
developed to address the challenges of existing sandwich panel
assembly methods, specifically with a view to reducing labour and
capital investment in tooling and fixtures. The panel fasteners are
installed into sandwich panels to provide rapid panel-to-panel fixing,
a method claimed to offer higher rates and lower costs relative to
methods such as panel pins, mortise and tenon / tab and slot, angle
and inserts.
Harper Engineering reports that multiple Tier 1 cabin interior
customers have expressed interest in the system and are currently
investing R&D resources into implementing this technology. These
projects involve developing design allowables and certifying the
FST-rated interior structures to meet all FAA/EASA requirements.
This family of unique inserts brings the efficiency of the furniturein
a-box industry to aerospace, where sandwich panel assemblies
require no fixturing or adhesives at the assembly level. The panel
fasteners enable automation in panel manufacturing, pre-finishing
of panel subassemblies, and flat-pack shipping capability, among
other benefits.
Harper panel fasteners can be custom made to fit any panel
thickness, curvature, and mating angle for limitless panel joint
configurations for aircraft interior structures such as stowage bins,
closets, lavatories, galleys, first class seat surrounds, crew rest
modules, and anything else constructed with sandwich panels.
Operators will also be able to quickly disassemble, repair and replace
individual panels as needed.
5
3
4 An A380 is
made of 6m
components –
more than half
of which are
fasteners
FA STENERS
POTTED FASTENERS
/aircraftinteriorsinternational.com