composite components

260 nosecones later...

2011-08-22T17:49:00.003+08:00

After another Avon decent the composite nosecones we make for Spirit Paddle sports were in demand again. Since we began making these parts for Spirit they have proven to be tough and reliable when it comes to bashing into rocks! Neither Spirit nor us thought we would make so many and after 260 parts its time to retire the old moulds and move into RTM.
The new nosecones will look and prove to be better than the originals with a clear finish to reveal the kevlar reinforcements and an RTM (resin transfer moulding) method of construction to efficiently mould the both the outer and internal shapes to ensure a correct fit to the kayak and a more streamlined leading edge to part the way.

2011 International Moth World Championships

2011-02-03T15:19:00.004+08:00

I had 2 weeks off work early this year to make my way to Lake Macquarie (NSW) to participate in the Moth World titles.

Preparation prior to the event was unfortunately non existent, but the journey was well worth it as I had 2 whole weeks to learn how to sail the boat and conduct boat prep, which to date has never happened

The regatta was quite windy and with multiple races per day - my lack of sailing over the past 5 years and low level of fitness showed and this did not help any of my race results.

I was happy to say the boat held together and as the regatta went on I felt more comfortable with all the systems and controls.

Now that I am back there is a list of new parts to make and refine in order to get the boat to some sort of race pace.

I look forward to have a working boat again and spending some time on the water this summer(whats left of it).

completed projects and recent events

2011-01-29T16:14:00.012+08:00

Forlano Design http://www.forlanodesign.com/ engaged us to manufacture 3 furniture pieces last year to made to be made from Walnut. Although composites is our main line of work, years as a pattern maker, boat builder and model maker mean I can still accomplish wood craftsmanship when required.

The 3 pieces are: 'Ruby' for the 3 dimensionally faceted stool, 'Stride' the chest of drawers hall unit, and 'Terrain' the fractal set of shelves.

For Stride I enlisted past employee, friend and wood craftsperson Evan Gist, he selected the walnut from the yard, machined and dressed the wood and superbly built and coated the carcass and door fronts. I took over from there and aligned and installed the drawers into the carcass and designed and integrated the rebated and angled handles.

To create Ruby was a challenge, my first thoughts were to look at 5 axis CNC machining, however it proved an extremely difficult and expensive exercise to machine all 56 pieces both sides with variations on the champers. So I fell back to doing it by hand - with a 4" grinder and some 80 grit sandpaper.

Using the CAD model to help with reference points for both sides of the 56 pieces I got through most of the pieces in an intense 5 hour session. The alignment of all three parts was tricky but was worth the effort. The piece looks amazing and complex ...a great design.

Terrain, was much simpler, based on the same method of manufacture as Ruby, the shelves came together quickly and were painted in an off white, they are able to fit on a wall in a variety of combinations and rotations. (4 of the six pieces are shown)

As a parting note, 2 of the 3 pieces - Ruby and Terrain - have been selected to be shown at the 'Embracing Innovation' exhibition held in Canberra from 31st of March to the 7th May at the Craft & Design Centre ACT.

completed projects and recent events

2011-01-29T15:34:00.004+08:00

Thales is one of Australia's largest defence suppliers and working with them on high level projects has been and continues to be a great experience. Early last year we were designing and building a carbon fibre housing for a collection of electrical and computer equipment. The 'ATAC system' objective was "to create something small and lightweight that would offer almost the same power as one of our (Thales) existing 100 kg servers". The arrangement of internal parts and overall design and composite material selection was very much a collaboration between Thales technical staff and composite components working together.

Although it looks simple the design and manufacture of this housing was not, many elements had to be taken into consideration from the electrical resistance properties of the selected composite materials to how Thales technical staff can work on and upgrade the components and how to keep the operators from tampering or accessing the very same internal components!

The ATAC project was seen as a success by the Thales 'deployables team' and has now led to further work for us on similar defence oriented electrical and computer based projects for Thales.

completed projects and recent events

2011-01-29T14:26:00.008+08:00

We have been quite busy since the last post and keeping the 'news' up to date has unfortunately slipped way behind.
We completed some major works and a lot of minor works in the time that has passed, and I have listed with images some of these projects.
UAV Vision: after working with UAV Vision for the past 3 years we were contracted to create a complete set of steel production tooling and component parts for a new design. The steel tools were based on 3D models received from the client and from these we drew the 3D mould models and organised all the CNC machining. The moulds were made over a 2 week period and shipped to us polished and ready for use. The quality of the moulds was great and we have not needed to rework or maintain the moulds other than the occasional re-prep of the release agent after a series of parts.

Some of the details were quite small with rebates for 2.5mm machine screws and 3mm 'O' ring seals on 4 of the parts. Photos of the moulds receiving a release coat and the prototype camera housing and a 'primed' camera housing are shown

The Cerebral Palsy Association has kept us busy over the last 5 years we have been suppling their composite seats and last year was no different. After discusioins with the specialists we made some changes to the manufacture of the seats to improve the build time and quality and they now come out better than ever, coincidentally a study conducted by Curtin University (for the Cerebral Palsy Technical department) demonstrated that the composite seats we produce were superior in most aspects to the traditional materials and the existing seat construction method for the particular tasks they must perform. We look forward to continuing to produce these seats in the coming years.

long time between posts

2010-03-23T19:24:00.008+08:00

Its been longer that I would like between posts. Its been pretty busy and I don't see it letting up anytime soon.

So to recap the last 3 months, whisper sailed and unfortunately broke 2 days prior to the nationals, a plastic component was the culprit. To say I was disappointed would be using far less words to describe the situation than I did on the day.
After some thought, I decided not to rush around and fix the boat as I think that could've been a pre cursor to a heart attack, there was just too much else going on at the time with the recent birth of our second boy and moving into a new house in the following week. So with insurance paid up I decided to 'use their services' and just recently I received the money to repair the hull (the rig was undamaged).
I look to being back on the water in the next month.

To current projects, we have been tendering on some large scale projects of late, and one to come off has been the manufacture of a 12m sculpture in the heart of the city. It borders on the 'can't be done' in terms of complexity but we have a good team at hand to see it through. I will post images when I am allowed and as they come. No doubt it will be on the news as they have to close St Georges Terrace for the delivery truck - apparently the road has only been closed a few times, the last was delivery of a vary large tree to Kings Park!

Latest news would be the launch this week of our new website www.carboncyclerepairs.com.au we have been repairing carbon fibre bicycles for about 2 years now with good results and good relationships with over the 60 stores in Perth, so with a growing audience we are now dedicating a section of our staff and time to this business, we will be taking this venture national in the very near future.

Another coup of late was getting to know Thales (Australia's largest defence supplier) and hosting a meeting with the Australian Managing Director in our factory. Fresh off that meeting we completed our first project for the 'deployables team' the ATAC system that 'sets new standards for size, weight and computing power'. That's about all I can say about that project.

This is going to be the biggest year for Composite Components and Carbon Cycle Repairs in terms of growth and capital expenditure as we make a concerted effort to get involved in larger markets with bigger requirements and higher expectations.

We have a top staff on board with 2 of us having Formula 1 experience and a can do attitude that always sees the job completed right. I'm excited. See you next post. BTW: Happy new year

Finally sailing

2009-11-25T09:42:00.003+08:00

Yesterday in dying wind conditions. I launched my new moth foiler - Whisper.
It all went well, few little things, but really a relief to finally sail the boat which has taken so long to plan and build with no major issues.
Thanks, to all who have either helped or supported me during the build.

The link to the video is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9-EyI6u8Xg

more power, more power!

2009-10-12T18:40:00.004+08:00

Work on my International Moth has been furious... by comparison to the usual pace of this "seems too much like my day job" project.

I have had the rig up and working, the mast over-rotates well and the "one rope" raking system also works to plan.

The rig seems to have plenty of power and the 'no shrouds-quick exit off the front' should be a painless almost enjoyable ride, we'll see.

Our second baby is due on Monday, so the push is on for a weekend sail, then a break from work (and play) before getting back on the water just in time for the warmer weather!

See you on the water.

Architectural projects

2009-08-26T09:29:00.004+08:00

Work has been continuing on the composite cladding for a Perth Transit Authority building throughout the last months. We are now at a stage where test fitting on site of the components is underway prior to painting and final installation.

The segments themselves are a good mix of materials combining an aluminium honeycomb core to increase panel stiffness and resistance to damage and a resin system reinforced with glass fibres that meets the demanding FST (fire, smoke, toxicity) standards required by the rail sector.

Pictured is one of the longer corner mouldings assembled in the factory confirming dimensional accuracy prior to delivery to site for test fitting.

Constant upgrades

2009-08-26T08:57:00.006+08:00

After a fairly intensive and late round of R&D and hydrofoil prototyping. Bladerider emerged with a best placed second at the recent World International Moth Championships held at 'The Gorge' in the USA and first place at the preceding US National Championships.

During the event - which saw a range of conditions - a few of the new designs did get used in the races, most notable was the green 'tuna fin'. This particular design was conceived by Bethwaite Design who supplied the foil sections and profile plan. We completed the CAD model and oversaw the prototyping stage to deliver a part in 6 days from first contact.

Although the heavily raked leading edge design did throw up new issues and peculiarities around the race course, it adds to our knowledge base and ultimately helps us home in on improvements in performance for the future.

The work will continue on new designs and with Whisper to be launched in the coming weeks, a new round of ideas are planned to be built and tested.

1 Ton of foam

2009-08-26T08:33:00.003+08:00

But this is no ordinary foam, is made specially for undersea applications.
We are now in the last stages of building the floatatation component for the the the new 'Typhoon' deep sea ROV.

The main float block (pictured) weighs approximately 800kg, and when the other segments are attached and fixed into place it will bring the gross weight of the floatation into the 1 ton vicinity.
When the block has been machined to final size and attached to the ROV unit, the complete ROV will be capable of sustaining depths of over 1000m for prolonged periods of time.

A best friend lost

2009-06-29T08:29:00.005+08:00

Last evening my friend Mika left us. He died suddenly and without incident at home.

I will miss him very much, especially on the drives to and from work where he would sit in the front seat and on the late nights at work when everyone else had gone home.

He kept me company when the business was just me in a shed and was friendly to all whom came to visit.

I'm sure I'm not going to be the only one who will miss him, the factory will not be the same without him.

So long buddy.

Target Drones

2009-06-28T14:21:00.006+08:00

A significant order was placed last month for more target drones from one of our clients.

Although we can't show images and get into details at this time, we can say these particular unmanned aircraft have an all composite airframe, with a single micro jet turbine as a power plant resulting in a seriously fast and manoeuvrable aircraft.

New weapons for Bladerider

2009-06-28T13:59:00.009+08:00

In order for Bladerider to remain at the front of the fleet for the upcoming world titles to be held in the USA in August, a new round of R&D and on water testing has been underway.

Composite Components has been designing and testing using CAD and CFD a raft of new shapes and foil designs for the hydrofoil element of the sailing boats.

With the benefit of accurate CNC rapid prototyping of the foils - a first for International Moth component manufacture - we are seeing just how important on water testing is, over just purely computer based analysis.

Some amazing results are being posted by Rohan Veal (Bladerider team member and multiple world/national champion) on his website http://www.rohanveal.com/ with upwind boat speeds not usually seen by any sailing boat.

Progress is ensured to continue right up to the start of the world titles on multiple component design fronts to ensure that the last few percent are dragged out of each of the new designs.

Architectural mouldings

2009-06-28T13:28:00.005+08:00

Composite components announces contract to manufacture architectural mouldings for construction of public buildings valued at around $1 million.

Work has been completed on CAD modelling and component manufacture is about to begin for this prestigious construction within Perth City.

Further details will be posted during the construction period.

Deep Sea ROV

2009-06-28T13:12:00.005+08:00

Earlier this month we finished work on a floatation unit for a Deep sea ROV. It involved sourcing and building the large block, getting it CNC machinied, hand finishing and then co-ordinating the sealing and painting. The images here are of the test article, however the real unit made of >300kg/per cubic metre density foam will be capable of handling depths of over 1000m, were it will be subjected to prolonged pressures of over 1437 psi or 9907 kpa.

This is our first work for TMT and their underwater remotely operated vehicles, and we are excited to have made a contribution to their project in this demanding field.

Wing mast

2009-05-15T17:51:00.006+08:00

This week we made the new composite wing mast for the whisper project.

This mast was a true composite, made of 6 different fabrics and materials. It is an improvement on the first, better suited to the application of a free standing over-rotating wing mast.

To estimate time of the launch, I am aiming for about a month pending work load and little things like family and getting a sail made. There hardly seems a rush, the hull was made over the Easter of 2007, fitted out and bonded Xmas of 2008. What is it they say about mechanics and their cars?

I've enjoyed this build, its experimental in a lot of areas and this has pushed me into engineering, CAD modelling, design and analysis much further than I thought I would go. With all the hard work behind the scenes, It seems unlikely I'll sell this boat, let alone its taken 4 years to replace the last one, now with kids...

I am looking forward to getting it wet, photos will follow....

UAV's in Thailand

2009-04-02T14:51:00.004+08:00

Some photos of the Cybereye 2 sold to the Royal Thai Air force have filtered back to us.

The aircraft have had a succession of flights, and training exercises. Performance has been improved from the initial prototype, increasing the top speed to 160kph and while reducing the stall speed. By first hand accounts the new design composite wings have made the big difference to the aircraft.

Avalon Airshow report

2009-03-17T10:30:00.008+09:00

Just back from the Airshow at Avalon Airport, Melbourne. For my first visit to the show I was certainly kept busier than expected.

Our work was represented by Air Affairs, Cybertechnologies, DSTO, Entecho and UAV Vision.
Air Affairs had their Phoenix Target drone on display.

Cybertechnologies had a full stand with cybereye 2 & cybird 5 (#3) fully assembled.
DSTO had Cybird 5 (#2) on display with their 'Bioseeker' hardware installed in the nosecone under a clear hatch for all to see.

Entecho were showing 2 'Mupod' hovering micro UAV's and UAV Vision had their suite of cameras on show

For us it was good to see our work getting out there as well as having a look at what the competition are up to. The usual suspects were there Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop etc. but the coup was Cybertechnologies trumping them all to win best stand at the show!

Now its all over, the dust will settle and we will see what comes of all those meetings, I can say though that I had a great time and I look forward to attending the next show.

published!

2009-02-27T18:59:00.003+09:00

Cybereye 2 makes it onto this months front cover of Unmanned vehicles.

It's a great achievement, and with good feedback from subsequent flight tests we are sure it wont be last time cybereye appears on a front page.

Planes & boats

2009-02-18T14:56:00.005+09:00

More planes left the factory in the last few months, we finished another "Cybird 5" to complete the order, although we are a little concerned about the experience of their pilot!

Another "Phoenix" target drone made its way to the client, and 2 wing sets for the "Cybereye 2" UAV are destined for export in the coming months.

All this and I managed to squeeze in some time to work on the hydrofoil moth hull to have it almost completed.

So, after an extended (!) build time with pattern work starting in October 2005 we are nearing the moment when the boat will finally get wet. The Australian national titles are set for Perth this year in December/January, I have 10 months to get the boat finished and shake-out all the bugs... could be tight.

Lux at PICA

2008-12-04T08:28:00.004+09:00

We are excited to have one of our Lux tables on exhibition at the Perth Institute for Contempoary Arts. The installation is part of the Better places Exhibition open from 3 Dec - 1 Feb and features artists work from all over Australia. www.pica.org.au/view/Better+Places/726/.

The particular work by Jurek Wybraniec is one of the larger pieces featuring a 2100 x 1100 carbon fibre Lux table - to give a sense of scale.

In the words of the artist , "the work explores a notion of the everyday and a desire to move out of that grounding situation. It explores the divide between high and low in art, design and architecture. These concerns and observations are not new but it is the quotidian and wishes of something materially “better” that resonates with me at the moment. The table is a fantastic example of a refined aesthetic and of engineering excellence, and a “design classic”. It’s something “better”. In the PICA artwork the table will be surrounded and supported by an inflated, carnivalesque structure which could be seen as its antithesis."

We had a great time attending the opening night and are proud to have our product included in this work.

Busy times

2008-12-02T19:03:00.006+09:00

It has been a busy couple of months. We have delivered another UAV to cybertechnologies - (the second) cybird 5, with the remodeled intake and tailcone (refer earlier post) the new plane came in 5 kg lighter then the previous and standing out from the crowd in a high visibility orange.

Also underway are wingset patterns, moulds and parts for cybereye 2. A larger UAV with a wingspan of over 4 meters. The prototype has flown extremely well, and the new planes are due for flights in the new year.

Completed only today, is the first the carbon fibre wing mast for the 'whisper' International moth class project, the mast came out of the mould better than expected weighing 4kg for a 5.5m length, the overall stiffness of was impressive, considering the lightness of the laminate and surface area of the mast.

The complete boat is scheduled for completion before Xmas. Pending good results from sailing tests, a trip to Melbourne for the national titles in late January could be likely.

CFD for hydrofoils

2008-09-13T17:40:00.006+08:00

We were asked by Bladerider http://www.bladerider.com.au/ earlier this month to gather some baseline lift/drag data on their current hydrofoils, we sent out 3D models of the foils for CFD (computational fluid dynamics) analysis and now have the results back.

The purpose of this primarily, is to establish were the current foils are in relation to performance at differing speeds and angles of attack. After getting the baseline data we can now set about improving the speed and handling of the boats by either tweaking the design or creating new designs. It's interesting stuff and another great application of CAD software.

Over time we will generate some definitive answers and have some prototypes out there for real world testing that will then flow into production for the bladerider range of sailing hydrofoil boats.

CAD revision

2008-09-13T17:31:00.003+08:00

In a previous posting we mentioned the reworking of the 3 metre UAV CAD file. After a solid week of work we completely resolved the structural and mechanical layout of the plane and tweaked some of the components either aerodynamically or mechanically.

We reviewed the jet intake aero package and made significant changes to the tailfin/horizontal stabiliser arrangement to better suit a full composite assembly.

I've attached some renderings of the revised plane.

V8 Dirt Drag Bike

2008-09-02T09:42:00.003+08:00

We are doing some more parts at the minute for Attitude racing's nitro harley and it reminded to me to ask, how was the V8 dirt drag bike going. It was a wicked looking machine like something out of MAD MAX.

We completed the bodywork for them and the bike performed really well, and I've just been told in the off months the guys have been re-tuning the motor to increase the power almost 600 horsepower! I've included a photo of the bike as it appeared last year.

prosthetic leg

2008-08-18T17:57:00.004+08:00

Prosthetic limbs are becoming another part of our client base these days, we already supply to podiatrists custom fitted composite orthotics, and custom fitted composite seats for the cerebral palsy association.

Now we are having good results with our prosthetic legs. We have just completed another composite leg for a patient. We are utilising a unique method where the mould (leg profile) is 'washed' out after manufacture to create a hollow structure that is sealed by the leg socket at one end and the reinforced foot attachment at the other. This means the leg can meet the weight target set for us by the prosthetist while maintaining an extra strong construction to meet the rigours of everyday movement.

3 metre UAV

2008-08-18T17:38:00.005+08:00

We have just finished another UAV for Cybertechnologies PtyLtd. With a 3 meter wingspan and weighing approx 20kg its the largest one we've completed to date. This plane features retracting undercarriage, removable wings, tailcone and nose cone for transport and is powered by a small jet turbine.

The inbuilt autopilot means this plane can manage take-offs, flightpaths and landings back on the runway without any human assistance.

Composite Components, designed the laminate schedule, manufactured the components, handled the sub-assembly and then went back to edit the CAD model to reflect any changes arising from the build.

The plane was completed in 2 and a half weeks.

UAV helicopter

2008-07-20T21:39:00.006+08:00

We had been supplying UAV Vision http://www.uavvision.com.au/ with critical carbon fibre components for the helicopter chassis, so to supply the fuselage halves for their next helicopter - a collaboration with Cybertechnologies Pty Ltd. was great as we already had a good relationship.

The moulds were supplied so it was a quick build time for the 2 heli's.'

We didn't get to see them fly but I was sent the images from uav vision who told me everything went well at the flight tests and subsequent presentations.

Bladerider FX

2008-07-20T21:13:00.007+08:00

Bladerider have launched the new FX, http://www.bladerider.com.au/ A fibregalss one-man sailboat on hydrofoils.

As part of the Research and Development team for Bladerider we were asked to come up with a really tough, economically priced epoxy resin based hull, with a hardwearing gelcoat finish. The weight limit was set at 20Kg.

After looking at several manufacturing processes we selected resin infusion, for a few key reasons: consistency between hull weights and less expansion/shrinkage issues relating to the mould/hull relationship among others.

We made a hull in Perth, shipped it to Melbourne for testing and some ''heavy weather'' abuse. We got some really positive feedback, but what stood out for them was how tough the hull construction was.

The FX has since sailed in the 2008 International Moth World Titles http://www.moth-sailing.org/ and came a credible 17th out of 94 starters. A pretty impressive result considering that the boat is probably 10kg heavier than most others, which really counts when a complete boat in this class can weight less than 30kg fully rigged.

lightweight rotor

2008-07-20T20:47:00.005+08:00

Februry, saw the completion of our first 'mupod' rotor for Entecho http://www.entecho.com.au/ The brief was to improve on the previous rotor by making the next one stiffer and lighter, but mostly lighter. This was quite a task as the original one weighed only 380grams. a good weight for a 400mm dimeter part.

We were more than pleased when we met their challenge and come in a smidge under 260grams. The rotor looked really smart in a clear carbon fibre finish, which is in large part due to Entecho assisting with inhouse machining of aluminium tools dedicated to the pre preg process we selected, good communication and working time frame.

New Website

2008-07-20T11:30:00.004+08:00

Well the new website is finished and we're fairly excited, we hope the site explains to customers what we can do and where we see ourselves fitting into the composites industry. The news attachment is to keep customers and interested parties informed about happenings on a weekly / monthly basis. The first post is primarily a catch up from the last six months (without the boring bits). We hope you enjoy the posts and visit back from time to time to see what we and our clients have been up to.

Thanks, Glen.