8/29/2009
NEWS BRIEFS
Boeing Fastener Suppliers Get Boost From 787 Test Flight News
Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner (photo courtesy Boeing.com)
News that Boeing expects to start test flying the 787 Dreamliner before the end of 2009 sent shares soaring for some of its suppliers, including aerospace fastener manufacturer Precision Castparts Corp.
PCC stock gained $8.20, rising more than 9% on word that the 787 would begin testing this year, with deliveries now rescheduled for the final quarter of 2010.
The bump was not evenly spread among supplier companies however. Alcoa Inc., parent company of 787 supplier Alcoa Fastening Systems, saw its shares edge up slightly.
The new delivery schedule eased uncertainty in the aerospace sector and helped lift the Dow Jones U.S. Aerospace Index by nearly 3%, according to MarketWatch.
Boeing will take a $2.5 billion write-off to scrap the flight-test 787s, which have reportedly undergone too much rework and modifications to have commercial value, the company announced.
Boeing is more than two years behind schedule on the fuel-efficient jet, which has been repeatedly delayed by missteps and inadequate planning. Those delays have already cost Boeing 73 order cancellations for the wide-body aircraft, whose backlog stands at 854 jets.
As recently as two months ago Boeing engineers were adding fasteners to strengthen wing supports that showed a design flaw resulting in delamination of the carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic composite during structural testing.
A shortage of fasteners plagued production of the Dreamliner test planes at the start. Boeing announced an initial six-month delay and promptly replaced the head of its 787 program and deploying engineers into the field to help suppliers boost production. The test aircraft had to be delivered with temporary fasteners.
Months later came the news that Boeing was scrambling to replace other fasteners that had been improperly installed. That problem was traced to an engineering error made at the company’s facility in Everett, WA. ©2009 GlobalFastenerNews.com
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