On Wall Street: Dominic Rushe: Flaws in 787 turn dream into Boeing's nightmare
According to Business Week magazine, last month, engineers at Boeing’s Developmental Centre in south Seattle discovered worrisome bubbles developing in the skin of the fuselage. The Dreamliner’s body is fabricated from a wide tape made from loosely woven, super-strong carbon fibres soaked in a mixture of polymers. The gooey tapes are cooked in a mould where the heat transforms them into a super-hard structure. But the size of the fuselage sections means multiple layers of carbon-fibre tape are required and each added layer increases the likelihood of flaws such as bubbles. These are bad enough in wallpaper but, at altitude, they could freeze and expand, raising the possibility of cracks.
Boeing told Business Week its engineers were confident the problem would be fixed — and blamed a bad mould. But there have also been problems with the vast network of suppliers, some of whom are usually fierce competitors, now working as team-mates.
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