At a time when the state-of-the-art in aerostructures design more and more often involves the use of carbon-fiber laminates, companies like Alcoa Aerospace suddenly face a perception challenge unrivaled since aluminum became the material of choice in airplane construction. So the timing of Alcoa Aerospace’s first industry forum, held in New York City on May 2, came as little surprise. After all, perhaps the world’s most striking example of composite technology would roll out of Boeing’s Everett, Washington assembly complex in just a few months’ time. A reminder that, in terms of dollar value, Alcoa’s contribution to the 787 nearly equals its content in the aluminum-bodied 767 seemed certainly in order, if for no one but the investment community.
Although in terms of pure weight content Alcoa’s share of the 767 dwarfs the company’s presence in the 787, the many metal-to-composite joints in the Dreamliner require a highly specialized and much more expensive set of fasteners, for example. “We don’t manufacture the high-volume nuts and bolts you buy at your local hardware store,” said Olivier Jarrault, president of Alcoa Aerospace’s Fastening Systems division (AFS). “These are only specialized systems made under very tightly controlled tolerances with high-performance materials.”
