global briefing
largest engine
test cell in
the world
takes shape
The construction of the largest indoor
aviation test facility of its type in the
world, being built by Canadian firm MDS
for Rolls-Royce in Derby, UK has achieved a
significant milestone with the installation of
its augmentor tube.
Work on the massive engine test centre,
called Testbed 80, started last summer and is
expected to be completed next year. The £90
million (US$109 million) building, which is
130m (425.5ft) long with an internal space of
7,500m (81,000 square feet) will have a main
test bed cross section of 15m by 15m (49ft by
49ft) and is being built near Rolls-Royce’s
head office.
MDS is an Ottawa-based company that
designs, supplies and manages the
construction of aerospace test facilities
around the world. It was named as the prime
contractor for Testbed 80 in May 2018.
According to MDS and Rolls-Royce the test
facility will be the largest facility of its type
when completed as expected next year.
The new Rolls-Royce engine test centre
will house the largest engine-test cell in the
world. Currently, the largest is owned and
run by Delta Air Lines in Atlanta, USA and is
14.6m high (48ft) in size with inlet and
exhaust sections which measure 66ft (20m)
and 78ft (24m).
Testbed 80 follows the standard U-shape
layout of indoor aviation test facilities, but
the size, wall thickness and additional
features, such as the equipment for the
center’s high-power x-ray, are bespoke.
Testbed 80’s x-ray equipment will be
powerful enough to x-ray a person standing
up to six miles away.
A major milestone in the build was recently
reached after the twelve augmentor tube
pieces were successfully installed. The
augmentor tube will direct the exhaust gases
from the engine and the test bed bypass air
to the back of the facility, where it will be
diffused and released through a 37m (121ft)
tall exhaust stack.
Fully assembled, the augmentor tube is
about as long as half the wingspan of a
Boeing 747-B. Each piece of the tube weighs 8
tonnes and are so large they had to be
8 SEPTEMBER \\ AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM
// When completed next
year, the engine test cell at
Testbed 80 will be the
largest in the world
/AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM