A prototype collaborative design environment that could contribute to virtual certification is the outcome of a four-year, �75 million ($107 million) European research programme.
Begun in 2004 and set to end in December, the Vivace (value improvement through a virtual aeronautical collaborative enterprise) project is a European Union Sixth Framework (FP6) research programme. The objectives were a 5% overall reduction in the investment to bring a new aircraft to market a 5% decrease in its final development phase costs and a 30% reduction in the lead time. Halving the investment to develop a new turbine engine was also a goal.
Vivace's 63 corporate participants have not realised all these reductions as the collaborative design environment concept has yet to be fully adopted, but the progress made has spurred industry to target 2020 for the introduction of virtual certification.
With �43 million from the European Commission and the remaining �32 million from the industrial partners, Vivace had three main sub-projects: virtual aircraft, virtual engine and advanced capabilities, led by Airbus France, Rolls-Royce and Corporate Research Centre-France respectively. Each in turn had work packages spread among the project's participants.
The project also had seven key areas: design simulation, virtual testing, design optimisation, business and supply chain modelling, knowledge management, decision support and collaboration in the extended and virtual enterprise. "Major improvements have been obtained in terms of [the collaborative design environment's] processes, methods and tools," say the participants.
At the final Vivace technical achievements report event held recently in Toulouse the progress made with these processes, methods and tools was rated in terms of their technological readiness level (TRL). The various projects achieved TRLs of up to six, which is a prototype demonstration.
Vivace participant Alenia Aeronautica is already building on the EU project's results for its own strategic corporate processes redesign project, called Alenia Network for Transformation.
Vivace was the third largest integrated project under FP6 and was preceded by eight related projects worth a total of �85 million spent over 10 years.
Vivace's members are working on developing follow-on projects, with the EU's �40 million Maaximus (more affordable aircraft structure through extended integrated and mature numerical sizing) Seventh Framework programme is seen as a successor.
Source: Flight International
