Article Posted on : - Jul 22, 2009

The US aviation giant has tied up with several Indian firms working in aerospace technology.

BANGALORE (BNS): Aiming to build a futuristic aircraft, US aviation major Boeing has tied up with several Indian firms for developing key aerospace technologies with cost efficiency.

The commercial aircraft maker has collaborated with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) for research in aerospace material, structures and manufacturing technologies, according to a report in The Times of India.

“At IISc, we are developing and integrating advanced structural technologies to demonstrate how future aerospace structures can enhance an aircraft’s performance and reduce its weight by 25%. The new technologies will also help in cutting costs by 25%,” Boeing India VP, engineering and technology, Naveed Hussain, was quoted as saying by the news daily.

The partnership with Indian firms on developing some key technologies will help the US major build a fuel-cell powered futuristic aircraft, which will be lighter and more fuel-efficient. Boeing is also looking for ways to improve its 787 Dreamliner.

Its Bangalore Technology Centre, the third of its kind outside the US, will function as a centralised R&D organisation for its major business units and as a focal point for collaboration with Indian R&D organisations, including universities and private sector R&D providers. The company will add 100 more engineers at this facility.

The other institutions Boeing is working with include IIT-Kanpur for integration of passive and active radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, and with the National Aeronautical Laboratory (NAL) for development of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tools and testing aircraft landing gear.

It has partnered with the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to develop advanced low-cost manufacturing processes for polymer matrix composite structures, the report said.

Boeing is part of the Aerospace Network Research Consortium (ANRC), comprising the IISc, Wipro and HCL, which is developing innovative solutions for aerospace networks.

The aviation firm has also tied up with Tata Motors Tal Manufacturing Solutions (TALMSL) to build floor beams using titanium and composite materials for Boeing 787.