Figeac Aero, a French aeronautical subcontracting company, is involved in a wide range of civil aeronautical programs. Founded in 1989 with a strategy based on performance and investment in industrial machinery, constant upgrades are one of the ways Figeac Aero aims to keep ahead of the competition.
Quality assurance is given as a top priority for the company, with this drive for quality aimed to set them apart in a competitive market. The company recently invested in a new three coordinate measurement machines (CMM). The CMMs interface with Metrolog and Silma X4, Figeac Aero’s choice for 3D metrology software. The upgrade in hardware, paired with their chosen software has led to a significant improvement of 3D quality inspection in the company. The 3D control team shared their experience on using Silma and Metrolog X4 and insights of this application.
Key highlights
- New CMM with larger measurement envelope
- Integrated with Metrolog and Silma X4 softwares
- Increased efficiency with increased range and speed
- Collaboration between Figeac Aero, Metrologic Group and Hexagon
The parts inspected by the 3D metrology team include various frame parts such as 10m, 12m or 14m long wing spars, reverse thruster frames and beams. These large sizes and complex shapes require dedicated measuring solutions. According to Frédéric Moncet, 3D control manager at Figeac Aero, measuring multiple parts is a prerequisite for successful aeronautical subcontracting companies. It’s the ability to work-manufacture various assemblies and components that enables companies like Figeac to compete in the aerospace market.
In addition to managing teams of programmers and quality controllers on a daily basis, Mr Moncet, who is also a university professor, provides his technical expertise for parts quality validation and is in charge of 3D control project management (CMM/ sensors/ 3D measurement software and technology).
In order to seamlessly interface with Metrolog and Silma X4, the CMM required a last generation CN, which was made possible by a collaboration between Figeac Aero, Hexagon and Metrologic Group. “Metrologic Group engineers joined me in Turin when the machine was delivered to verify the integration. The support from Metrologic Group was up to our expectations”, Mr Moncet added.
Figeac reports an enhanced efficiency of the 3D inspection team, thanks to the upgrade in hardware and integration of software. As an example that is given, a 12m long wing spar would previously be measured by a CMM with a 7m longitudinal measuring stroke. This meant that the inspection would have to be carried out in two set-ups, which would total around 20 hours. With the new upgrades, the same part can be inspected on the new CMM in one set-up in less than 5 hours.
The CMM working with both Silma and Metrolog increases productivity using simulation along with high-level metrology functionalities. As Mr Moncet highlighted “for the inspection of 3D parts of medium and large sizes including frame parts, in particular – our need was oriented towards a very powerful software in surface and geometric measurement. Given the numerous comparisons we make between the real part and the CAD – Metrolog X4 is among the best, if not the best in the market.”
“Metrologic Group has been a historical partner of Figeac Aero: we have been using Metrolog II since 2000, then Metrolog XG and today we have Metrolog X4. When I joined the company, the teams and myself, were trained on Metrolog only. Before Metrolog, Figeac Aero used a very basic software with no access to the virtual definitions of the parts, with lots of manual entry and time-consuming programming. The integration of Metrolog allowed the use of CAD files. Moreover, this brought autonomy to the 3D control department, that was subordinated to the Methods department”, explains Mr Moncet.
