SUMMER 2012

AirTalkSupporting

You

IN THIS ISSUEBuilding Confidence in Aerospace Jobspage 8

ConnectFor engineers andbusiness leaderspage 11

02

Inside:

AirTalk is published by theWest of England Aerospace Forum:Unit C St David’s Court, Windmill Road,Clevedon, North Somerset BS21 6UPTel: +44(0)1275 872 353 Fax: +44(0)1275 872 355Email: enquiries@weaf.co.uk Web: www.weaf.co.uk

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From the Chair 02

Chief Executive’s Report 03

Member News 04Goodrich PlymouthCity Engineering (Bristol) LtdVoithVistair

New Members 06

Harmonic 07

WEAF Members at Farnborough Airshow 08

Building Confidence in Aerospace Jobs 08

Diary Dates 09

Algram Best Practice event 10

Fromthe Chair

This issues theme is “Supporting You”and as I take up the role of Chairmanof WEAF I want to reinforce my commitment to that theme from both a personal and organisationalperspective.

Firstly may I say how honoured I am to be asked to undertake theChairmanship following on from the excellent job done by AndrewThompson along with Barry Warburton. I feel passionate aboutour industry having spent over 40years working in Aerospace and Defence. Much of this time includedproduct support and business development roles and being in a position that “Supporting You” was a key aspect of my life with our customers

Today our customers require evermore complex business, technologyand manufacturing solutions to support their demands. The need forinnovative technologies, coupled with lean processes and world classdelivery performance all backed withthe ability to invest in future programmes is an increasing “support” expectation of most customers

As part of this WEAF are driven tooffer you, our members, support that assists you in meeting those demands WEAF has come a longway and I am proud to be associated with an organisation that has transformed itself into acommercial operation to offer greater value and improved benefits.Barry and the WEAF team have donea superb job in this transformation and we want to do more.

We are all committed to expandingand delivering membership servicesthat add value whilst ensuring yourviews are heard on a regional andnational basis. Over the comingmonths we will be looking at moreactivities, events and services that we hope will support your needs and of course we have a prime opportunity for this at FarnboroughInternational 2012 where WEAF willonce again be there to support youas members.

Within our industry competitivenessand differentiation is a key demandof all our customers and WEAF wantto match the demands of your customers by “Supporting You”.

Frank BamfordChairman, WEAF

WEAF, I believe has a reputation for sound advice, excellent service and the provisionof events that highlight the strength of the sector both in the South West and theUK. We are able to attract high calibre people onto our Board, who support and helpdrive WEAF forward.

In Frank Bamford we have a Chairman who will champion the drive to move the company forward in such a way as to ensure its stability and future growth. The new Board is determined that WEAF continues to deliver services to the members that add real value and supports them to meet their aspirations. For example WEAFruns the Aerospace and Advanced Engineering iNet, it is launching an Energy Cluster,and it is developing specific services that when used will add real value to companiesin the South West. WEAF will be focusing on skills development, SC21, continuous improvement, new markets, innovation and technology transfer, AS9100 Rev C and other relevant accreditations, which will all be offered through open training and in house support.

WEAF firmly believes that now is the right time for companies to invest in people, skills and equipment. These areneeded to take advantage in the growth of opportunities both in the UK and in the global markets. WEAF is gearedto help you. All the services offered will be heavily discounted to the members but be open to non members as it isimportant that we share the true sense of networking by helping the cluster in the SW continue to be the largestand best in the UK. If you need that support or are looking for direct help in sourcing courses, possible innovationand technology support in fact anything that supports your aspirations for growth then get in touch.

WEAF is here to help, just call!

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WELCOME

Chief Executive’s Report

New composite wing structures manufacturing andassembly facility in Bristol, UK.GKN Aerospace prepares to take a significant part of future global wing structuresmarket

GKN Aerospace has invested £170m to create a new state of the art composite wingstructures manufacturing and assembly facility just outside Bristol, UK. This facility forms a key part of the company’s global aerostructures business andrepresents an international centre of excellence in composite wing structure designand production. It will be at the heart of the company’s drive to take a significantpercentage of the global wing structures market over the next 30 – 40 years. Thenew site known as ‘Western Approach’, has over 30,000m2 of floor space (equivalentto four premier league football pitches) across two buildings. The first building contains a state-of-the-art composites manufacturing operation that incorporatesthe latest automated, high speed, precision production technologies. The secondbuilding houses an innovative and ‘moving line’ assembly operation that uses automated guided vehicles to move the wing structures through a series of semi-robotic work stations. Work packages for the A350 XWB and the A400M aircraft are already being carried out at this new facility. For the A350 XWB, theWestern Approach operation is manufacturing the all-composite rear wing spars and assembling the wing trailing edge and main landing gear parts to each spar tocreate a complete 27metre long wing assembly. For the A400M military transporter, the operation is manufacturing the all-composite main wing spar – a 20m long assembly that is the first primary wing structure for a large aircraft created entirely in carbon composite materials.

Facts:• GKN Aerospace employs over 300 people at Western Approach today• This figure is expected to rise to 450 employees by 2016• The staff at the new facility is being trained in advanced composites manufacturing

techniques that are at the forefront of technological developments in aerospace today. • GKN Aerospace global turnover has tripled from £500m in 2003 to over £1.5bn in 2011. • GKN Aerospace employs over 9,000 people worldwide.

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MEMBER NEWS

NewsMEMBER

Goodrich Corporation’s Sensors and Integrated Systems team in Plymouth, UK has received a prestigious supply chain awardfrom the UK’s aerospace industry trade group ADS, for achieving nearly perfect on-time delivery and product quality for an entire

year. The 21st Century Supply Chains (SC21) gold award for Goodrich marks thefirst time in history that a manufacturing operation has received the award.Goodrich was selected for its efforts across its entire business and manufacturingoperation in Plymouth, as well as its 99% successful track record for on-time delivery and product quality to all customers worldwide over a 12 month period.

Charlie Johnston, vice president and general manager for Goodrich said, “The talented and committed team in Plymouth embodies the Goodrich lean operating system, our shared values and culture, and dedication to customer satisfaction. I am proud of our people who have led us on the demanding SC21journey to achieve the consistent level of performance that the programme requires.” Rees Ward, chief executive of ADS said, “The gold award for Goodrich isa great achievement, and ADS is delighted to recognise the hard work and effort

that went into achieving this.

As the first manufacturer to gain the gold award in SC21, Goodrich has set an impressive standard marking a whole year’s commitment to ensuring business improvement and excellence. Our sectors of defence, aerospace, security and space rely upon the supply chain to maintain the UK’s world-leading position, and Goodrich is an invaluable example of showing others the way forward.” SC21 is an ADS structured programme focused on accelerating the competitiveness of the UK aerospace anddefence sector by raising the performance of its supply chains. SC21 is designed to help UK businesses at a time when strong international competition, combined with the challenges posed by the UK’s defence industrial strategy, necessitate rapid improvements in supply chain effectiveness.

Goodrich in Plymouth, UK’s First Manufacturing Operation to Receive Supply Chain Gold Award

City Engineering (Bristol) Ltd, the Fishponds-based fabricator and sheet metal worker has just invested in a new £600k Laser Profiling Centre from Trumpf. This new machine uses "fibre" technology where the laser beam is delivered through a fibre opticalcable rather than through a series of mirrors. This is currently the only such laser in the South West and offers many advantages

over existing technology. For example , copper, brass and other highly reflectivematerials can be profiled. It also offers substantial cost and delivery benefitsbecause power consumption is a fraction of conventional lasers, processingspeeds are much higher, and downtime during the production cycle is minimal. The installation comes complete with an automatic material handling system designed to operates on a lights-out basis. Added to its existing Trumpf 5kw laser with a 4 x 2 metre bed, City has a formidable lasercutting capacity. City Engineering is not just a "laser job shop" offering whatmany other companies across the country can provide. For a start, it has invested in a Lismac deburring centre ensuring that all non-ferrous parts are deburred mechanically to a high and consistent standard without incurring expensive labour costs.

In addition, City is a fully equipped CNC sheet metal and fabrication shop supplying complex components and assemblies to blue-chip companies in

the defence, semiconductor, nuclear and oil and gas industries. City is one of Bristol's longest standing engineering companies,having traded continuously under the same family ownership since 1947 with the recent addition of Managing Director SteveWoodbury. Operating from purpose built premises of 30,000 square feet near the M32, City employs 55 personnel the vast majority of whom are skilled engineers.

Bristol based City Engineering invests in new £600KLaser Profiling Centre

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MEMBER NEWS

In May 2009 Voith GmbH, the largest family owned company in Europe, decided to broaden its portfolio and enter the aerospace arena by purchasing an established EADS transnational supplier CeBeNetwork GmbH to create Voith EngineeringServices. This was an exciting prospect for Voith, an organisation that could engage synergies from its core business activities in paper, renewable energy, automotive and rail markets and apply them to the aerospace sector.

It quickly became clear to the Voith organisation that in order to support the increasing customer base of aerospace OEM’s as an effective Tier 1 supplier further advancement would need to be made and this led Voith in the UK to successfully obtain an EASA Part 21 accreditation for both fixed and rotary wing aircraft. A second challenge arose from the knowledge that today’s aerospace supplier organisations must be able to show themselves to be big enough in dealing with the challenging global sector.

As a direct result, on the 14th of September 2011 the first steps were made towards a joint venture with the signing of the‘Memorandum of Understanding between Voith Engineering Services and P3 Digital Services followed by a full joint venture on1st April 2012 and the creation of P3Voith Aerospace. Both these organisations were individually not big enough to cover thefull spectrum of skillsets but jointly allowed for a European wide skill base of 1000 aerospace engineers and the opportunity tocompete for larger work packages. An example of this is that Voith regularly found itself acting as a second tier supplier and in asupporting capacity to the OEM market. With the current joint venture and the increased investments and growth, P3VoithAerospace is able to support and deliver a full life cycle solution including simple software, stress analysis, F&DT packages tomuch larger fully accredited EASA Part 21 Design.

SafetyNet system selected by PEACH AirlineEast meets west as Japan’s new low-cost airline chooses Bristol-based Vistair for safetyAlmondsbury-based Vistair, which develops and supplies cutting edge safety reporting technology to the airline industry, is reporting its first breakthrough into the South East Asian market. Peach, Japan’s new low-cost airline, has selected the company’s industry-leading “SafetyNet” system for all its safety reporting.

The cloud-based “SafetyNet” system, already used by a portfolio of leading world airlines, will be applied to Peach’s fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft. Vistair “pitched” for the three year contract

against such competitors as Gael and AQD.

According to Ian Herbert, founding Managing Director of Vistair:“This is a major breakthrough for Vistair, which has a very strong presence among European and Middle-East Airlines. This is our first win in South East Asia.” Vistair staff will now spend training time in Japan, ahead of this contract becoming operational. “We have provided Japanese language capability for Peach’s use of ‘SafetyNet’, and they signed the contract inJapanese”, said Mr Herbert.

Peach is based in Osaka, and is the newly-launched low-cost airline subsidiary of Japanese flag-carrier, ANA.

Organisational Changes to Meet Market Demands

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NEW MEMBERS

Welcome to ournew members

Trackwise (Trackwise DesignLimited)www.trackwise.co.ukTrackwise are a UK manufacturer ofprinted circuit boards, historically servingthe telecommunications and RF community. A recent innovation has extended their capability to the manufacture of multi layer flexible PBCs of any length. These multi layer PCBs area lightweight alternative to conventionalcable harness solutions.

TWM Technology Limited www.twmtech.co.ukTWM are a UK based manufacturer of machined, plated and solder assembled hermetic packages and mechanical components for high tech industry. We have our own machining shop and the luxury of our own plating line which means we can deliver small batches very quickly. If there is a requirement for solder assembly of glass - metal seals or complex rf circuitry, we are the company to call.

XLEDGER Limitedwww.xledger.comXLEDGER provides web based accountancy software to engineering and service based organisations, covering financials, project costingand billing, expenses, time-sheets, invoicing, document management and reporting. It takesadvantage of modern technologies and centralised processing to minimise administrative costs and effort for end users, providing up to date business information.Email: mail@xledger.co.uk

Cassidian Test & Services Limited www.eads-ts.com Cassidian Test & Services is a world leadingprovider of test solutions for the avionics, defence and space industries. With a 50 yearpedigree providing test solutions to some of the world’s most demanding customers, ourproducts and services support military personneland their equipment at the front line, keep civiland military aircraft safe and monitor vital functions in safety critical facilities.

Phase Vision Limited www.phasevision.com Phase Vision is a UK manufacturer of advanced3D scanning systems for inspection and reverseengineering of components and assemblies.Quartz scanners create highly accurate 3D models of parts which can be compared directlyto the CAD model - perfect for inspecting castings, patterns, sheet metal, forgings andcomposites.

Haseltine Lake LLPwww.haseltinelake.comHaseltine Lake is one of the largest IP firms in Eu-rope. All of our expertise is exclusively dedicatedto IP protection: safeguarding the inventions,creative designs, and other innovations of ourclients. We have a large specialist engineeringtechnologies team that has particular experienceof the aerospace and defence sectors.

Westco Bilanciai Limitedwww.westcoweigh.co.uk Westco offer sales, service, repair, calibration and maintenance of weighingequipment. They are UKAS and BSI accredited and a Member of the UKWeighing Federation.

Semper Aero LimitedSemper Aero offers a wide range of expertise and knowledge in developingaerospace and defence strategies. Theseinclude customer development planning,strategic growth plans coupled with market and industry alignment initiativesand methodologies.

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Winning BusinessOn 1 March numerous WEAF members assembled in Clevedon tolearn from Harmonic how to win business in new markets, sectors and with new customersMartin Wicks, one of Harmonic’s leading best practice advocates, led members through some of the methods used to understand customers’ needs and influence their thinking through the business capture process. Martin then went on to consider how to qualify individual opportunities to focus scarce budgets and resources on writing compelling, customer-focused proposals. Using a topical case study in nuclear new build, which has local resonance and calls for technically demanding solutions, Martin demonstrated certain techniques for understanding the customer’s needs by way of ‘pain chains’. Delegates were reminded of the importance both of understanding the customer and the competitive landscape and of identifying competitive discriminators for use in developing value propositions.

Members were shown the key features of a good proposal and were given some ‘top tips’ in using customer-focused writing techniques to maximise the impact and score from the proposal evaluators.

To conclude, Martin showed the dramatic positive impact on win chances of rigorous qualification and of applying the best resources to bid preparation, i.e. that members can win significantly more business with the same budget!

Harmonic’s presentation can be found in the ‘Downloads’ section of the WEAF website.

www.weaf.co.uk/downloads.html

Winning Business

Focus on understanding the customer’s pain

Work to create unique, compelling Value Propositions

Use the best people to create a customer focused proposal document

For further information contact Fergus.daly@harmonicltd.co.uk

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Farnborough

It was a break-down in confidence that turned the credit crunch into a recession. People stopped spending, so companies started failing. Something similar is happening in the jobs market, especially in the aviation sector where skills are in short supply. The effectisn't as dramatic, but as engineers choose job security over career progression, some companies are delaying programmes and scalingback expansion. It’s significant that the 2011 figures for job offers declined was the highest ever. Why? The answer can be seen in thelatest survey of electronics engineers, one of the specialisations most in demand.

Around 1,000 engineers responded to the survey, looking at factors important in their choice of job. Top of the list, unchanged formany years, is challenging / interesting work with 92% rating this as very important. Next, at 72% is job security. Salary came fifthposition, career prospects ninth. This changes the psychology of the recruitment process. Companies must create a stronger bond with candidates. At Jonathan Lee, we are spending more time to ensure that every contact between the client and the candidatebuilds trust, right from the start. For some, this may include opportunities to meet senior management to talk through the company’sprospects. This is useful for candidates too, helping to set them apart from day one. Most make sure they prepare and use the meetingto validate their broader abilities. Our industry is changing, we need mobility of skills to meet new challenges and to succeed. Overcoming the growing lack of confidence is difficult, but it can be resolved through a deeper understanding and a little innovation -qualities that aerospace companies have in abundance.

Building confidence in aerospace jobsAs an aerospace recruitment consultant, Robin Borns of Jonathan Lee Recruitment brings insight into the psychology of an increasingly static jobs market.

Farnborough International Airshow (FIA) is the largest truly global event of its kind. A platform for some 1,400 exhibitors from theaerospace, defence, space and security sectors to showcase and demonstrate aircraft, equipment and technologies, the show isspecifically designed to facilitate tailor-made and unrivalled opportunities to meet, negotiate and announce business transactions. This biennial event was attended by over 120,000 trade visitors with exhibiting companies announcing order figures of US$47bnduring the 2010 show.

If you are planning to visit the Farnborough air show be sure to pop by the WEAF stand situated in Hall 1 stand B17 and say “Hello”For 2012 WEAF have joined with Aerospace Wales, A|D|S, Invest Northern Ireland, A|D|S Scotland, and the KTN to form a UK pavilion, to strengthen the presence of UK companies exhibiting under regional trade associations. Each exhibitor will benefit froman overriding UK theme branding, in addition to the regional trade association branding.

Companies exhibiting with WEAF at this year’s show include: Aerohub @ Newquay Cornwall Airport, ATL, Avon Magnetics Ltd, Bristol & Bath Inward Investment Service, Groveley Precision Engineering Ltd, KDC Group, Poeton Industries Ltd, Taunton AerospaceLtd, and Trackwise.

WEAF Members at FarnboroughInternational Airshow

07

DIARY DATES - have you booked yet?

Visit our website for full details of all of our upcoming events

www.weaf.co.uk

09

JUNSouth West Energy Cluster - Launch Event Canalside, Bridgwater

WEAF

12

JUN Disciplinary & Grievance Workshop for the Newly Promoted WEAF14

JUN AgustaWestland Event Yeovil26

morning session - Barnstapleafternoon session - PlymouthJUN

SC21 Event - Have you started your SC21 journey or not sure where to start?

19

morning session - YeovilJUN

SC21 Event - Have you started your SC21 journey or not sure where to start?

20afternoon session - Poole

morning session - BristolJUN

SC21 Event - Have you started your SC21 journey or not sure where to start?

21afternoon session - Swindon

JUNAS EN9100 Rev C - 2 Day Course26-27

ExeterJULCALM (Centre for Additive Layer Manufacturing)03

FarnboroughJUL

Farnborough International Airshow9-15

WEAFSEP

Managing Performance - 1 Day Workshop11

WEAFSEP

Managing Appraisals - 1 Day Workshop19

EVENTS

WEAF Gala DinnerWednesday 21 November 2012

Bristol Marriott City Centre Hotel

2, Lower Castle Street, Bristol BS1 3AD

The most prestigeous WEAF event of the 2012 calendar, so mark this date in your diary and make sure you don’t

miss out! The 2011 dinner saw over 200 delegates in attendance with over £1800 being raised for

Childrens Hospice South West at our charity raffle!

Choose your session am or pm

Choose your session am or pm

Choose your session am or pm

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South West’s high-tech industrieshighlightedAlgram hosts ‘best-practice’event

The South West has a range of world-class aerospace manufacturers and suppliers which are playing an increasingly importantrole on the world stage. Yet more still needs to be done to promote these companies and raise awareness of their expertise and innovative approach.

Barry Warburton, Chief Executive of the West of England Aerospace Forum was attending a ‘best-practice’ event staged at the Algram Group headquarters at Plympton. “The aim of today’s event is to promote best practice and to put suppliers together, in the same room with potential customers. “The south west is rightly known for the quality of its beaches and national parks but it also has a superb manufacturing base which is now becoming widely recognised. Events like this help to bolster thatprocess,” he said. Algram is part of the Olympus family of companiesand employs 120 people in the manufacture of high-quality, high-specification plastic components widely used in the aerospace, automotive and medical industries world-wide.

Welcoming delegates, Managing Director Steve Brown said units produced at Algram – from casings and radiator grilles to impellers and medical instrument components – were increasingly replacing metal components in many areas of specialisedmanufacturing. And the future, he said, would see that trend continue as the engineering properties of many of today’s plasticsbecame more widely appreciated. Delegates came from many parts of the country, representing companies large and small,from Rolls Royce and Airbus to Teddington Electronics of St Austell in Cornwall.

Barry Warburton said the Algram way was a model other companies in the region could copy to good effect. “This companyaims to work with its customers from the outset. In practice, this means there is extensive communication and collaborationfrom the concept design stage right through to final production. Algram encourages the same approach with its own suppliers.“This really epitomises everything south west manufacturing success should be based upon,” he said. The ‘best-practice’ eventhad been a tangible success. “You can see the process working. Knowledge is being shared and I know people will go away fromtoday, make contact with other delegates and business will be done.”

Best Practice Event

Left to right - Barry Warburton, CEO of the West of England Aerospace Forum; Cathering Harris,

Operations Director, Algram Group; Stuart Emson,Sales Director, Algram Group’ Jon Carter, Technical

Director, Algram Group.

Delegates to the WEAF best-practiceevent toured the Algram factory

L-r. Richard Harvey, Senior Toolmaker, and RobertArchibald, Maintenance Supervisor, carrying out mainte-nance on an injection mould tool in the Algram factory