Joint venture takes composites to South Africa

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Sep 25, 2006

A new joint-venture company aims to significantly enhance and enlarge composites engineering in the aerospace sector in South Africa.

Brookhouse Holdings and Aerosud, of Pretoria, South Africa, are to set up a joint venture company.

The new company will significantly enhance and enlarge composites engineering in the aerospace sector in South Africa, while providing Brookhouse with a further important manufacturing resource for its global operations.

One of the main drivers behind this important new development has been the opportunity it allows to offset production of the Airbus 400M in South Africa, following the South African government's decision to purchase eight of the military aircraft to support its peacekeeping commitments in the continent.

Aerosud is one of the fastest-growing aerospace companies in South Africa and is already an established supplier of sheet metal parts and assemblies, airline interior thermo-formed plastic and composite components and airline interior systems, including galleys and seat surrounds, to key OEMs including Airbus, Boeing and BAE Systems.

Aerosud is also a design and manufacturing partner for the Airbus A400M program, and was recently selected for parts manufacture for the European Typhoon fighter program.

With a stable, long term order book now a reality, Aerosud employs around 450 staff, and this figure is expected to grow to around 700 in the next two years.

Over the past four years it has invested around R120 million in the expansion of new facilities and equipment and is shortly to begin the third phase of its current building programme.

In partnership with the SA Department of Trade and Industry, Aerosud will also be embarking on the creation of an aviation-specific subtier Supplier Park adjacent to its existing main campus.

The company is already a strategic partner of BAE Systems and operates to BAE Systems' best practices, supported by documentation and on-site training.

Brookhouse is the UK's leading independent composites manufacture and assembly company, with particular and extensive experience and expertise in the aerospace sector, where its skills have been employed in aircraft ranging from the Canberra bomber to the Typhoon fighter and from the Concorde to Airbus A380 and A400M.

It carries quality certification from all the leading aircraft manufacturers and UK defence organisations and has Nadcap approval for composite manufacture and metal-to-metal bonding, as well as chemical processes and NDT.

Brookhouse is a uniquely integrated organisation offering design and manufacturing for composites tooling, a facility for the repair of composite components and a capability for design, prototyping, manufacture, testing and finishing of complete composite components.

As a result, it can offer its worldwide aerospace customers a global facility to take responsibility for complete parcels of composites' development and manufacture projects.

The new joint venture company will see Brookhouse introducing state-of-the-art composites technology to a new facility on the Aerosud Aviation Park based on its world class capability at Darwen.

This facility will be designed by Brookhouse and Phase I of this joint venture will feature a high specification clean room, monitoring processes, an autoclave and associated equipment.

In addition, Brookhouse will develop composites work packages and provide suitable training to help the new company obtain the necessary quality approvals.

Commenting on the new venture, Dr Paul Potgieter, Group Managing Director of Aerosud said: "This is a very exciting development, both for Aerosud and for the South African Aerospace industry".

"I believe that the management abilities and technical skills we already have in place will be greatly enhanced and complemented by the expertise and experience of Brookhouse to ensure the long-term sustainability and growth of both the new company and the technology".

Richard Thorley, Managing Director of Brookhouse added: "The use of composites in the aerospace sector is set to grow rapidly over the next few years".

"We welcome this opportunity to expand our manufacturing base and extend our global supply chain so that we are well-prepared to meet the increasing demands of our customers throughout the world".