Leading the Charge in Washington
By Seattle Business Magazine December 29, 2010
Composite Machining and Toolmaking
Companies in Washington
The composites industry isnt just creating opportunities for companies that make carbon fiber or produce parts from it or other advanced materials. Its also generating business for Washington companies that make the tools or supply the materials for working composite fibers and fabrics into parts. Those include:
>> Electroimpact Inc. of Mukilteo is the company you want if youre looking for giant machines to drill a lot of holes precisely in a wing assembly. Now Electroimpact is building machines to quickly produce aerospace components from composite fibers. Earlier this year, it landed a contract with Bombardier Aerospace in Northern Ireland to provide assembly jigs and other equipment for the advanced composite wings on the new C-series commercial jets.
>> Fiberlay Inc. provides composite materials as well as the supplies and equipment needed to use them. Started in the early 1950s, Seattle-based Fiberlay has grown to a company of 50 employees and about $12 million in annual revenue. It has offices in Portland, San Diego, British Columbia and Beijing, and is opening an East Coast location.
>> Conventional cutting tools dont work as well for composite-based components. But ultra-high-pressure waterjets do, which is why Kent-based Flow International Corp. is targeting the composites market. Waterjets, Flow says, avoid problems caused by heat generation or delamination of layers of composite materials. Earlier this year, the company announced major contracts for composite machining tools from Airbus suppliers.
>> To patch a hole in aluminum is no big deal. But how do you fix a rip or tear in something made of composite fibers? Thats the product niche of Tukwila-based Heatcon Composite Systems, which makes heat blankets, portable autoclaves, temperature controls and other devices, and provides training in repairing composite parts. Its already a presence in the aerospace business; in 2008, it moved into the wind-energy sector.
>> Janicki Industries Inc. of Sedro-Woolley is the company other companies are turning to for the large and complex tools and jigs for making thingsfuselage sections, boat hulls, wind-turbine components, even space capsules. Among its recent projects: a contract with Lockheed Martin to build the tools for fabricating pipes from a fiberglass-resin material for an ocean thermal-energy electric generator.
Other Composite Manufacturing Companies
in Washington
>> Aerojet, Redmond. Makes propulsion systems and fire suppression equipment. Subsidiary of GenCorp.
>> AIM Aerospace Inc., Renton. Manufactures structural and nonstructural composite parts including winglets. Parent company of Precision Aerospace and Composites, Sumner.
>> All American Marine Inc., Bellingham. Makes high-speed passenger ferries, including the ultra-low-wake hydrofoil-equipped ferry for Kitsap Transit.
>> Angeles Composite Technologies Inc., Port Angeles. Supplies advanced structural composite assemblies for commercial and military aerospace.
>> BMW Group and SGL Group, Germany. Two companies building a $100 million plant at Moses Lake to produce carbon fiber for use in a new BMW vehicle.
>> The Boeing Co., Chicago. Manufactures the carbon-composite 787 at its Everett plant.
>> C&D Zodiac, Marysville. Makes aircraft interiors for Boeing and other airplane manufacturers.
>> Composite Solutions Corp., Auburn. Produces advanced composite structures for Boeing, Airbus and Learjet.
>> Cytec Engineered Materials, Bellevue. Produces high-performance carbon materials for high-temperature applications. Also anti-ballistic materials for use in cockpit doors. Business unit of Cytec Industries Inc.
>> Integrated Technologies (Intec) Inc., Everett. Designs, engineers, tests and fabricates advanced materials.
>> Innovative Composite Engineering Inc., White Salmon. Makes wind surfing masts, robotic arms and composite components. Parent company of Nolimitz.
>> James Betts Enterprises Inc., Anacortes. Makes custom cruising and racing sailboats.
>> LP Composites, Bingen. Makes carbon-fiber paddles used by stand-up paddleboarders and bicycle frames.
>> Renewable Energy Composite Solutions, Vancouver, Wash. Produces composite blades for windmills. Sister company of Christensen Yachts.
>> Triumph Composite Systems Inc., Spokane. Produces high-quality composite interiors including floor panels and ducting.
Composites Research and Training
>> Automobili Lamborghini Advanced Composite Structures Laboratory, University of Washington: Composite materials research and education.
>> Center for Advanced Materials in Transport Aircraft Structures, University of Washington: FAA-funded center seeks solutions to problems associated with the use of composites and advanced materials for large transport commercial aircraft.
>> Center of Excellence for Aerospace and Advanced Materials: Program based at Everett and Edmonds community colleges.
>> Certification Program in Aircraft Composite Structural Analysis and Design, University of Washington: Provides working engineers with state-of-the-art training in analysis tools and design methodology.
>> Department of Engineering Technology, Western Washington University: With All-American Marine and Pacific International Engineering, developed a composite-based, low-wake Waverider, a new hydrofoil for Kitsap Transit.
>> Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: Research on hybrid composites for applications in heavy-duty trucks, as well as computer-based modeling and simulation tools for predicting the performance and durability of composite materials.
>> School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University: Has a focus on aerospace composites.