Producing aircraft composite mouldings using resin film infusion techniques

This standard identifies the competences you need to produce aircraft composite mouldings (such as moulds, components, splashes, jigs) using resin film infusion techniques, in accordance with approved procedures.  It covers both fixed wing and rotary winged aircraft mouldings. You will be required to use appropriate drawings, specifications and documentation to produce various mouldings, using the correct resin film infusion production techniques. 

You will be expected to prepare a range of tooling, apply release agents, and prepare composite materials.  You will produce a range of composite mouldings, incorporating a variety of features and using a range of techniques and processes.  Mouldings produced will include laminates and sandwich structures, using a range of resin, fibre and core materials.

Your responsibilities will require you to comply with organisational policy and procedures for the production activities undertaken, and to report any problems with the production activities, equipment or materials that you cannot personally resolve, or are outside your permitted authority, to the relevant people.  You will be expected to work with a minimum of supervision, taking personal responsibility for your own actions and for the quality and accuracy of the work that you carry out.

Your underpinning knowledge will provide a good understanding of your work, and will provide an informed approach to applying resin film infusion techniques and procedures.  You will understand the production techniques used, and their application, in adequate depth to provide a sound basis for carrying out the activities, correcting faults, and ensuring the work output is to the required specification. 

You will understand the safety precautions required when carrying out the moulding activities and when using the associated tools and equipment.  You will be required to demonstrate safe working practices throughout, and will understand the responsibility you owe to yourself and others in the workplace.

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1. work safely at all times, complying with health and safety and other relevant regulations, directives and guidelines
2. follow the correct component drawing or any other related specifications for the component to be produced
3. determine what has to be done and how this will be achieved
4. obtain and prepare the appropriate tools, equipment and materials
5. carry out the moulding activities using the correct methods and techniques
6. produce mouldings to the required specification
7. complete relevant documentation in accordance with organisational requirements
8. check that all the required operations have been completed to specification
9. deal promptly and effectively with problems within your control and report those that cannot be solved
10. leave the work area and machine in a safe and appropriate condition on completion of the activities

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1. the health and safety precautions to be taken, and procedures used, when working with aircraft composite materials, consumables, tools and equipment in the specific work area
2. the hazards associated with carrying out resin film infusion techniques, and with the composite materials, consumables, tools and equipment used, and how to minimise these and reduce any risks
3. the requirements and importance of understanding and applying human factors as defined by the regulatory requirements and the potential impact if these are not adhered to
4. the protective equipment (PPE) that is needed for personal protection and, where required, the protection of others
5. the application of COSHH regulations in relation to the storage, use and disposal of composite materials and consumables
6. the specific environmental conditions the must be observed when producing composite mouldings (such as temperature, humidity, fume/dust extraction systems and equipment)
7. how to extract and use information from engineering drawings and related specifications (to include symbols and conventions to appropriate BS, ISO or BSEN standards) in relation to work undertaken
8. how to interpret drawings/lay-up manuals, imperial and metric systems of measurement, workpiece reference/datum points and system of tolerancing
9. quality procedures used in the workplace to ensure production control (in relation to currency, issue, meeting specification) and the completion of such documents
10. the conventions and terminology used for resin film infusion techniques (such as material orientation, material identification, material templates, ply lay-up, pressure plates, vacuum bagging, cure cycles, exotherm)
11. the different types of resins, reinforcement, catalysts, accelerators and additives used, and their applications
12. the different types of fibre materials, fabrics, orientations, their combinations and applications
13. how to build up laminates (including orientation and balance of plies) to minimise spring and distortion in composite mouldings
14. the different core, insert and filler materials, and their applications
15. the visual identification of both raw and finished composite materials
16. identification of materials by product codes
17. the different types of production tooling used for producing composite mouldings, and their applications
18. the identification and rectification of defects in production tooling
19. methods of preparation for patterns, moulds and tooling, including the correct selection and use of surface sealers and release agents
20. the correct methods of storage, thawing and handling of resin film infusion materials (including monitoring temperature, storage life and out-life)
21. the methods used in the application of resin film infusion materials to tooling surfaces (including methods of tailoring and cutting)
22. correct methods of storage and handling of ancillary and consumable materials
23. how to select and use  ancillary and consumable materials (such as release films, breather fabrics, bagging films, tapes) to meet performance requirements (such as temperature and compatibility)
24. the tools and equipment used in the resin film infusion activities, and their care, preparation and control procedures
25. problems that can occur during the lay-up process (including modifications to the ply lay-up, and defects such as contamination and distortion)
26. how modifications and defects can be overcome during the resin film infusion activity
27. cure cycles (including temperature and pressure ramps, dwell times, post curing)
28. the need for monitoring the cure cycle (using thermocouples, probes, chart recorders and data logs)
29. the procedures and methods used for removing mouldings from production tooling
30. the identification of defects in the composite moulding (such as de-lamination, voids, contaminants)
31. the care and safe handling of production tooling and composite mouldings throughout the production cycle
32. the production controls used in the work area, and actions to be taken for unaccounted items
33. how the composite moulding relates to its own quality documents, and the production tooling used
34. the extent of your own responsibility and to whom you should report if you have problems that you cannot resolve

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1. Carry out all of the following during the moulding activities:

   1. obtain and use the appropriate documentation (such as job instructions, drawings, material data sheets, specifications, planning and quality control documentation)
   2. adhere to procedures or systems in place for risk assessment, COSHH, personal protective equipment and other relevant safety regulations and procedures to realise a safe system of work
   3. provide and maintain a safe working environment for the moulding activities
   4. obtain and check that all tools and equipment to be used are correct for the operation to be carried out and are in a safe, tested and usable condition
   5. follow safe practice/approved moulding techniques at all times
   6. return all tools and equipment to the correct location on completion of the moulding activities
   7. segregate and dispose of waste materials using the correct procedure

2. Carry out all of the following activities when preparing production tooling:

   1. check that tooling is correct and complete
   2. clean tooling and remove resin build-ups
   3. check for surface defects
   4. correctly apply sealers/release agents
   5. clean and store tooling suitably after use

3. Carry out all of the following activities to prepare materials for production:

   1. obtain correct materials for the activity
   2. thaw material removed from freezer storage
   3. identifying defects in resin film materials
   4. check that materials are fit for purpose and in life
   5. check availability of ancillary materials required
   6. cut materials to correct shape and orientation
   7. check materials when provided in kit form
   8. identify and protect materials in the work area

4. Produce a range of mouldings, using four of the following types of tooling:

   1. pattern
   2. mandrels
   3. metal
   4. tooling block
   5. wet lay-up
   6. infused tooling
   7. glass pre-preg
   8. carbon pre-preg
   9. female tooling
   10. male tooling
   11. multi-part tools
   12. matched tooling
   13. closed tooling

5. Produce a range of mouldings incorporating four of the following in the lay-up:

   1. butt joins
   2. overlap joins
   3. staggered joins
   4. orientated plies
   5. inverted plies
   6. inserts
   7. balancing plies
   8. fixtures
   9. other (to be specified)

6. Produce a range of mouldings incorporating four of the following shape features:

   1. internal corners
   2. external corners
   3. vertical surface
   4. double curvature
   5. concave surface
   6. horizontal surface
   7. convex surfaces
   8. return surfaces
   9. joggle details
   10. nett edges
   11. other specific feature

7. Produce a range of mouldings using three of the following methods:

   1. production of ply templates
   2. nesting of ply templates
   3. material cutting & kitting
   4. shaped locators
   5. joining boards
   6. loose tooling
   7. intensifiers
   8. vacuum de-bulk
   9. moulded datum features
   10. placement jigs
   11. laser projection placement
   12. video feedback placement

8. Produce a range of mouldings using two types of resin from:

   1. bio resin
   2. thermoplastic
   3. epoxy
   4. phenolic
   5. bismaleimide
   6. cyanate ester
   7. vinyl ester
   8. other (to be specified)

9. Produce a range of mouldings using techniques for two types of fibre from:

   1. natural fibre
   2. thermoplastic
   3. glass
   4. aramid
   5. carbon
   6. hybrid
   7. other (to be specified)

10. Produce a range of mouldings using two types of reinforcement from:

    1. continuous
    2. uni-directional
    3. tapes
    4. tissues/veils
    5. woven
    6. braids
    7. multi-axis
    8. other (to be specified)

11. Produce a range of mouldings using two types of core material (where applicable to the Sector or process):

    1. solid timber
    2. end grain balsa
    3. thermoplastic core
    4. syntactic core
    5. rigid foam
    6. expanding core
    7. fibrous honeycomb
    8. aluminium honeycomb
    9. other (to be specified)

12. Use two of the following methods when using core materials (where applicable to the Sector or process):

    1. core templates
    2. pre-shaping core
    3. core chamfers
    4. core splicing
    5. peel plies
    6. bonding paste
    7. edge filling
    8. adhesive/resin films
    9. potting/filler compound
    10. single stage curing
    11. multi-stage curing

13. Using two of the following for applying temperature during the cure cycle:

    1. oven
    2. autoclave
    3. heated tools/moulds
    4. heat mats
    5. heated press
    6. curing lamps
    7. infrared heating
    8. electro-magnetic inductance
    9. micro-wave
    10. other (to be specified)

14. Using two of the following for applying pressure to consolidate the moulding:

    1. vacuum bags
    2. pressure bags
    3. thermal mould expansion
    4. fibre tensioning
    5. press
    6. autoclave

15. Where vacuum bags are used, use four of the following processes/methods:

    1. check vacuum integrity
    2. surface bagging
    3. envelope bagging
    4. multi-part envelope bags
    5. internal bagging
    6. through-tube bagging
    7. pleats and tucks
    8. reusable bagging
    9. use of reusable vacuum fittings

16. Produce mouldings which comply with one of the following standards:

    1. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)/European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)
    2. Ministry of Defence (MoD)
    3. Military Aviation Authority (MAA)
    4. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA)
    5. Aerospace Quality Management Standards (AS)
    6. BS, ISO or BSEN standards and procedures
    7. customer standards and requirements
    8. company standards and procedures
    9. manufacturers standards and procedures

17. Complete the relevant paperwork, to include one from the following and pass it to the appropriate people:

    1. build records                 
    2. job cards             
    3. log cards       
    4. aircraft log
    5. other specific recording method

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You will be able to apply the appropriate behaviours required in the workplace to meet the job profile and overall company objectives, such as:

• strong work ethic
• positive attitude
• team player
• dependability
• responsibility
• honesty
• integrity
• motivation
• commitment

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2

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2024

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Current

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Original

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Enginuity

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SEMAE3227

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Engineer, Engineering, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, Engineering Technicians

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5234

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Engineering; aeronautical; produce; composite; mouldings; components; laminating; resin; fibre; resin film infusion

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