There is a revolution underway in military aircraft assembly. This has been spurred by a combination of customer demands for faster and less expensive solutions, competition in the global aircraft market, and the opportunity to capitalize on technologies that have been developed for other industry segments. In addition, the workforce in military aviation in the US is aging and there is a need to train and educate a new workforce. This paper describes the formation of a unique consortium and the resultant strategic alliance(s) that are formed involving aircraft manufacturers, their equipment suppliers, and education. At the forefront of the educational efforts is Mechanical Engineering Technology. MET is in a unique position to assist in the test, evaluation, modification and technology assessments for their strategic industry and supplier partners. At the same time students are familiarized with the specific processes that the technology addresses and the problems of industry that the technology is targeted to resolve. The involvement of universities in industry research facilitates the familiarization of students with the unique and current problems faced by industry so that graduates enter the work force ready to assimilate into the value stream with minimum training and instruction. The development of a collaborative project between Northrop Grumman Corporation, M. Torres, SA, and the MET Department of Purdue University is discussed. The goal of this project is to develop a lower cost method of fixturing aircraft parts during assembly, with an integrated metrology system. Particular emphasis is placed on overcoming and aligning the scheduling, cultural and business obstacles in bringing together a Spanish machine builder, an American aircraft manufacturer and an academic department to address all aspects of the problem.
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