The 10,000m2 facility is expected to open in 2020, as UK government announces further support for aerospace sector.
UK Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Greg Clark, and GKN Aerospace CEO Hans Büthker have revealed plans for GKN Aerospace’s new Global Technology Centre (GTC) in the UK.
The new centre - funded by a £17m commitment from GKN Aerospace and a £15m commitment from the UK Government, through the Aerospace Technology Institute - is expected to open in 2020. The 10,000m2 facillity will host 300 highly skilled engineers, and will include collaborative space for research and development with universities, the UK’s Catapult network and GKN Aerospace’s UK supply chain.
The centre will focus on additive manufacturing (AM), advanced composites, assembly and industry 4.0 processes to enable high-rate production of aircraft structures. The facility will serve as a base for GKN Aerospace’s technology partnership in the Airbus’ “Wing of Tomorrow” technology programme as well as new additive manufacturing programmes.
Alongside its £15m investment in the GTC, UK government announced a new deal with the aerospace sector, including:
-- up to £125m from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund for the Future Flight challenge,
-- a commitment to encourage more women into aviation,
-- £13.7m to support SMEs to boost their competitiveness on the global stage,
-- support from the UK Aerospace Research Consortium of leading aerospace engineering universities to help industry understand emerging technologies, encourage collaboration and boost research and development.