An eye for detail

Manufacturers hone next-generation designs with advanced measurement and inspection tools.

The use of CAD files for the production of aircraft has wrought important changes to the way that measurement and inspection is conducted for systems and components that are manufactured for both new-production and legacy aircraft. Vought Aircraft, for example, is taking advantage of digital design to bring new efficiencies to the measurement and inspection of the fuselage and empennage that the company is building for Boeing's 747-8.

“We used to build a master tool and all of our details were based on that,” said Matt Turner, lead Quality Engineer in the Commercial Aerostructures Division of Vought. “Now with CAD-based files, we build the tools with laser tracking. It is quick to go from design to the real thing, and it is easy to make changes because you can set a new detail without making a new master.”