Our Products #5146394

Original design featured too many components3D printing provided hands-on evaluationCustom tools simplified assembly and weldingACE in-house capabilities sped manufacturing processTime to manufacture cut in halfThe Snowline story is a perfect example of ACEs manufacturing expertise. Our customer, Snowline, had a pre-existing design for a sump tank with a detailed and complex inner structure. However, the many individual surface parts and multiple weld joints made the tanks very expensive to produce.

This highly complex air distribution duct is a great demonstration of the capabilities at ACE. It required many technical innovations in order to be manufactured. The base metal of these units is aluminum. That requires a highly skilled TIG welder who joins the pieces with the corrected amount of filler metal. Dozens of complex custom welds require craftsmanship and broad experience working with the metal.

Complex, Custom Built, Made by HandBuilt to Withstand Extreme EnvironmentACE Used 3D Printing Technology to Analyze and Maximize Strength of DesignCNC-Milled Dies for Single Piece FormsReduced Number of Sections in ConstructionMinimized Weld Joints and Maximized Strength and DurabilityThe Boeing 777 relies on just two wing engines to provide thrust for flight. Thus, in its development, engineers determined that no other power should be bled off them for system hydraulics, and designed a space in its tail for a third, auxiliary gas turbine engine, or APU (as found in numerous other aircraft). To remove heat generated by the APU, an axial, vane type fan, driven off the APU gearbox, is usually provided to pump cooling air past the oil cooler and the compartment. But because of the high speeds and rotating parts, these fans are susceptible to mechanical failures. When they do occur, it requires that the aircraft be removed from operation. Further, these fans sometimes leak oil into the cooling flow which then covers the oil cooler fins resulting in reduced heat transfer and the possibility of an APU automatic shutdown because of excessive oil temperature.

Inner Ducts Channel Superheated, Compressed Air 247Thick Inconel Maintains Duct Wall IntegrityOuter Impingement Sleeves Perforated with Precisely Placed Holes and Tubes for CoolingSpecifications Require Extreme Tolerances for Extreme ConditionsEach Turbine Requires 8 to 12 Identical Ducts, Replicated Flawlessly in Our ShopPower is the key word for these massive transition ducts and impingement sleeves, which channel huge amounts of superheated, compressed air from large combustion chambers into turbines. These systems were developed by GE based upon their jet engine technologies for aircraft. Blades inside these turbines both draw air into the system and compress it to mix with natural gas and ignite, forcefully blow through the ducts onto a second set of blades which spins the first set and also spin a core shaft which powers the generator, creating enough power for a city. Larger turbines like these generate around 500, 000 horsepower, and 500 megawatts of electricity.

Honeywell re-engineered the CO2 scrubbing devices neededACE stepped up and did a full-court press on the productionIncredible accuracy and speed were paramountDifficult metals, materials, milled sections, joints all assembled perfectlyACE made the launch, and helped keep our astronauts safeHoneywell came to ACE with a huge problem. The Carbon Dioxide Removal Assemblies (CDRA) were failing in the International Space Station. Three were down, and NASA only had three left. Plus, there were only 42 days before the next launch window. CARBON DIOXIDE SCRUBBERS FOR THE INTL SPACE STATION Carbon Dioxide, what we exhale, can be very dangerous to humans who are off-world in a sealed environment. Usually this unbreathable gas is collected and expelled from the ship. However, for long-term occupancy, this closed-loop CDRA scrubbing system removed CO2 and restored oxygen from it, enabling its recycling. And that significantly reduced the amount of breathable air that has to be delivered periodically to the station in tanks from the surface. [In NASA speak: a 4-Bed Molecular Sieve Air Revitalization System, consisting of a desiccant (drying) bed and an absorbent bed (zeolite)]

Complex Aluminum FormsUniquely Stronger Welds to Withstand VibrationConstructed to Withstand Extremes in TemperaturesThis very sophisticated design was a manufacturing challenge. Made from high-grade aluminum, the original design was soon discovered to react to air pressures at speeds above Mach 1, when the force of the air and the location of the vents created tremendous vibration of the louvers. The sound this generated, behind the cockpit, was so loud it could be heard in the cockpit through the pilots helmet.

Withstands Extreme Pressures At Full ThrottleInsures Engine Thrust Is Vented Away From InstrumentsDrop Hammer Formed 12 Thick Steel Panels Withstand Immense HeatRobust Welding Stands Up To Enormous StressesAircraft engines must be continually tested during development to determine balance, thrust, vibration and durability of the designs. Testing facilities rely on huge structures, or armatures, which hold these massive engines in place at full throttle. Other special equipment, such as nacelles, are installed on an engine in its test cell, which directs the air stream and reproduces conditions close to those of an engine in flight. ACE was called upon to construct the Snecma Cenco Boattail, a crucial part of the equipment added to the GE LEAP-x engine, working in tandem with the armature from which they are tested.

Drop Hammer formedHigh-grade Aluminum5-Axis Laser TrimmedPrecision Rivet Placement to 11000th of an InchThe Sikorsky Black Hawk is the primary medium-lift helicopter for the U.S. Army. They perform a wide range of missions that encompass Air Assault, MEDEVAC, CSAR, Command and Control, and VIP transport. The newest version of the Armys premier combat utility helicopter, the UH-60M, ensures compatibility with the U.S. Armys Future Force. ACE is proud to manufacture several body panels, stiffeners and equipment covers for these hard-fighting military vehicles.