Boeing Proprietary_Faub

Boeing announced today that it’s almost ready to start building the fuselage for its 777X aircraft using a new robotic system that it has been developing at its plant in Anacortes, Wash.

The system, known as Fuselage Automated Upright Build or FAUB, will allow the company to more efficiently build the body of each 777X aircraft by using robots to install the fuselage’s nearly 60,000 fasteners that are currently installed by hand. In addition, Boeing says it should see safety benefits from the launch of the new system: more than half of all injuries on the 777X line occur during the stage of manufacturing that the robots will replace.

full777x-22“This is the first time such technology will be used by Boeing to manufacture widebody commercial airplanes and the 777 program is leading the way,” said Elizabeth Lund, Boeing Vice President and General Manager of the 777 program and Everett site, in a statement announcing the news.

What about jobs? According to a report by Aviation Week, Boeing says the approach will enable higher build rates, which will create additional jobs, and some workers will be retrained to operate the equipment.
Boeing says it plans to implement the system in the “next few years.” The FAUB system will be installed in a section of the Everett plant that is currently under construction at the moment. If everything goes according to plan, the system should be in place in time for Boeing to begin work on building the 777X, which is slated to enter production in 2017.

Today’s announcement comes almost a year after rumors surfaced about the new automated manufacturing system. The system has been under development since 2012, and was designed for Boeing by KUKA Systems, which has also worked on other robotics projects for the company.

The move towards implementing this automated system is another step towards further automation for the 777 line’s production process. Last year, Boeing announced that started using a set of robots to spray paint onto the 777’s wings.

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