
The 104,000-square-foot Boeing Research & Technology-South Carolina center opened Thursday. The facility will be used for advanced manufacturing. (Image: Prayitno)
Boeing opened a 104,000-square-foot Research & Technology-South Carolina center Thursday.
The company will use the facility to focus on advanced manufacturing, specifically the development of composite airplane fuselage and propulsion improvements.
“This new research center will help us better meet the needs of our customers by enhancing our ability to provide effective, relevant technology in today’s competitive marketplace as we enter our second century of business,” said John Tracy, Boeing’s chief technology officer and senior VP of Engineering, Operations & Technology.
The facility includes two autoclaves which will be used to cure parts developed from composite materials, a paint booth with automation capabilities, and a clean room where composite layers can be integrated
Company scientists and engineers will use a number of lab spaces in the facility to research and develop advanced production system technologies. The workers will also perform work related to nondestructive evaluation and inspection, production analytics and advanced test systems, structural repair technologies, electromagnetic effects, chemical technology, and composite fabrication and materials.
“The people and facilities we’re introducing today will help us apply new technology and solutions to our products across the entire company faster and more efficiently than ever before,” said Lane Ballard, who will lead the facility.
The Boeing Research & Technology-South Carolina will help the company to further develop future aerospace solutions and also improve the performance of its current products.
Including the recently opened facility, Boeing now has 11 research centers worldwide. The other centers are located in the U.S., Australia, Brazil, China, Europe, India, and Russia.
Filed Under: Industrial automation