Ben Passfield
Darwen's Brookhouse Composites is building the side panels of the 'flying bed', ordered by British Airways for its business class passengers. Britax Aircraft Interior Systems has overall responsibility for production of the seat and Marshall Aerospace installs it, but the sub-contract for manufacturing the side panels was awarded to Brookhouse (Hall 1/E29) because of its expertise in the field of composite aircraft components. Brookhouse has quality certification from all of the leading aircraft manufacturers and UK Defence organisations. The side panels for the new seats, which can recline to 1800, are lightweight composite sandwiches, consisting of pre-impregnated phenolic glass fibre skins on a Nomex honeycomb core. Each part of the panel is made by first putting sheets of pre-preg material, cut to a given shape, on a mould tool. The Nomex core is then laid on the prepared bottom skin and the top skin, which is placed on top of the honeycomb. Pressure is applied to the assembly via a vacuum bag, and the sandwich structure is cured in an oven. The cured components are then trimmed and assembled, with pockets and metal brackets completing the panel. Each part of the panel is made by first putting sheets of pre-preg material, cut to a given shape, on a mould tool. The Nomex core is then laid on the prepared bottom skin and the top skin, which is placed on top of the honeycomb. Pressure is applied to the assembly via a vacuum bag, and the sandwich structure is cured in an oven. The cured components are then trimmed and assembled, with pockets and metal brackets completing the panel.
Source: Flight Daily News
