GE and India's Tata group have held the ground-breaking ceremony for a Structural Center of Excellence (COE) focused on aero-engine components. The manufacturing facility will be located in Adibatla, Hyderabad.

The COE will incorporate latest technologies from GE and best manufacturing practices to deliver complex high-precision aero-engine components for the CFM LEAP engine. This is part of the strategic partnership signed in November 2017 between GE Aviation and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) to join forces for manufacturing, assembling, integration and testing of aircraft components.

The two partners also plan to set up an aero-engine precision machining training facility in Telangana, to train the workforce in high end manufacturing.

The agreement for manufacturing of LEAP components and the establishment of TASL as a COE provide the opportunity for TASL to expand into other GE product lines in both commercial and military engines in the future.

This year, total production of the LEAP engine will approximately double, to more than 1,000 engines, and the rate is slated to grow to approximately 2,000 engines per year by 2020.