MTU Aero Engines inaugurates new final assembly line for the PW1100G-JM

MTU Aero Engines has accomplished one of the most significant milestones in its corporate history: The company has delivered the first Pratt & Whitney PurePower PW1100G-JM Geared Turbofan engine assembled on its own final assembly line to Airbus. On October 20th the new assembly line for the A320neo engine at the MTU headquarters in Munich was officially inaugurated by Ilse Aigner, Bavarian State Minister of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and Technology. This marks the completion of the last pivotal stage in the ramp-up of the cutting-edge propulsion program at MTU Aero Engines. The final assembly line developed by MTU is characterized by a high degree of flexibility. Given the high rate of production, the work is carried out at six assembly stations using a system resembling a flow line, where the engine is successively put together from pre-assembled components and modules. This way, several engines in various build stages can be assembled and completed concurrently. The ramp-up of PW1100G-JM engine assembly is expected to be complete by the end of 2018, and around 100 employees will be working in a six-day and multiple shift pattern. A total of about 400 people will then be working in the production of the PW1100G-JM engine program at MTU. “The PW1100G-JM engine is our most important engine down the road,” emphasizes MTU CEO Reiner Winkler. “We are going to profit from the high order backlog for the A320neo and from the strong demand for the PW1100G-JM engine. Predictions are that in the future, the ‘neo' engine aftermarket business will also see above-average growth. For us, this translates into a high sales volume over the entire engine life cycle.” The decisive impetus for the development of a new propulsion system to power the A320 family came in late 2010 when Airbus decided to go forward with the A320neo (new engine option). “We have succeeded in passing a crucial milestone by shipping the first engine for the A320neo. Up to date, we have invested about €15 million into the new assembly line,” reports Dr. Rainer Martens, MTU Chief Operating Officer. “With our stake in the GTF programs, our production volume will double within five years' time. While last year, we handled about 2,000 engines and modules across our entire product range, this figure will go up to around 4,000 by the year 2020 already.” MTU contributes the high-speed low-pressure turbine, the forward four stages of the high-pressure compressor and brush seals to the GTF engines.