AMRC Composites Centre specifies Delcam software

Delcam has announced that the Composites Centre within the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC with Boeing) has chosen to use the PowerMILL CAM system for all its machining operations. AMRC with Boeing is a joint initiative by the University of Sheffield and global aircraft manufacturer Boeing, with a mission to create a world-class Centre of Manufacturing Excellence for the aerospace industry.

PowerMILL will be used to program a large, five-axis CMS router that has recently been installed in the Composites Centre. This will be used to machine tooling for component manufacture and to finish the parts by five-axis trimming and drilling.

“We’re pleased to be using Delcam's PowerMILL software at the AMRC Composites Centre,” said Professor Keith Ridgway, Research Director of the AMRC. “The flexibility and control provided by PowerMILL enable our engineers to develop optimised machining strategies for even the most demanding components.”

“The AMRC’s vision is to become a world-class global research facility, developing innovative and advanced technology solutions for advanced materials manufacture,” added Professor Ridgeway. “Novel and new materials will form an integral part within the development of Boeing’s next-generation planes. Our expansion of the Composites Centre reflects the growing importance of these materials, both in aerospace applications and in general manufacturing.”

Since being founded by the University of Sheffield and Boeing, the AMRC has developed into a multi-million pound partnership together with other aerospace companies, including Rolls-Royce, Messier Dowty and Smiths Industries, based at the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham, UK. The partners are building on their shared scientific excellence, expertise and technological innovation in association with the world-class research centre at the University of Sheffield’s Faculty of Engineering. Delcam has been a member of the AMRC since 2005.

Like its parent organisation, the Composites Centre develops and transfers design and manufacturing technology into companies in the region, and so assists them in becoming members of the aerospace supply chain. The Centre will work with the National Composites Network to provide expertise in product development and process optimisation to companies that wish to enter the composites industry or to expand their business in the sector.