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Continued...
To achieve this, Bennetts concept was for tooling with a heavy,
sturdy base that could then have small, 'finishing shapes' added to it. In this
way, the tools could be 80% complete without detailed knowledge of the finished
surface shape. It was therefore essential to ensure that the tools could be
completed as quickly as possible when the final data became available, or
alternatively, easily changed should the required surface shape be amended at a
later date. Bennetts carried out intensive testing with suppliers of the
finishing elements to ensure that profiles cut straight from the CAD production
drawings could then go directly to a final laser profile check without the need
for a full trial assembly or intermediate checks.
The required surface shapes being generated by the new Airbus
creep modelling process were each defined by over a quarter of a million
reference points, a level of detail too great for CAD systems to handle. The
Bennetts team at this stage turned their hands to a little computer programming,
creating their own programme to convert the Airbus data into workable files that
could be manipulated within the CATIA software the team was using on the
project.
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