AIM Altitude invests in five axis machining Centre of Excellence
AIM Altitude is creating a Centre of Excellence for five axis machining at AIM Composites, in Waterbeach, Cambridge.
Part of the AIM Altitude aircraft interiors group, AIM Composites is investing in a new Belotti five axis milling machine, for the high-speed trimming of complex moulded components. This will be housed alongside an existing UNITEAM five axis, new measurement equipment, and supporting software.
Chris Leese-Wood, Managing Director at AIM Composites, said: “The majority of our projects for the AIM Altitude Group, as well as outside customers, require significant amounts of five axis machining. It is, therefore, important that we invest in an in-house capability. This will support our current production needs, along with the anticipated future increase in this element of our work. Typically, we run hundreds of one-off components each month to complete a single ship-set of parts. These small batch-sizes mean that fast setup and turnaround of components is critical.”
With the target to provide a Centre of Excellence for complex five axis trimming of components, Belotti have specified a purposely-configured machine. In addition, the UNITWAM five axis machine has been transferred from AIM Altitude’s Cabin Interiors division.
“The two machines offer significant capabilities to both our internal and external composites customers,” continued Chris Leese-Wood.
The investment includes associated equipment and software, to support the new processes. The machine has also been configured with MSP probing, to allow significant in-process probing and validation.