Order for F-35 fighter assembly line is KUKA Systems North America's largest aerospace contract

Order for F-35 fighter assembly line is KUKA Systems North America's largest
aerospace contract

STERLING HEIGHTS, MI/AUGSBURG, Germany, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ - A contract from
Northrop Grumman Corp worth over $100 million for installation of an
integrated assembly line for the F-35 Lightning II jet fighter program is the
largest ever received by the aerospace division of Sterling Heights/MI-based
KUKA System North America.
It's also believed to be the first time a major aerospace manufacturer has
contracted with a vendor to supply and install a complete assembly line and
underscores how major aerospace companies are embracing large-scale
automation.
The line, designed by the four-year-old aerospace division of KUKA Systems
North America in Clinton Township, MI, in close collaboration with Northrup
Grumman's engineering staff, will be installed between 2010 and 2014, and
enable Northrop Grumman to achieve a production rate of one center fuselage
per day for the F-35 program. The US Department of Defense is committed to
acquiring more than 2,400 F-35s in three variants: the F-35A for conventional
land-based operations, F-35B with short takeoff and vertical landing
capability and F-35C for carrier-based operations. Several countries,
including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Italy and the Netherlands,
are contributing development funds towards the estimated $40-billion cost of
the project. Lockheed Martin Corp is prime contractor and Northrop Grumman a
major partner.
KUKA Systems' contract covers the supply, installation and commissioning of
all assembly tooling and equipment to manufacture the F-35 center fuselage.
That's over 500 tools required for 78 tool positions occupying 200,000 sq ft
of floor space. KUKA Systems is supplying some of its own KUKA Aerospace
automation tools and solutions as well as KUKA robots, the most widely used in
the aerospace industry. The company also will be sourcing equipment from some
of Northrop Grumman's regular suppliers on the US West Coast and regular KUKA
Systems vendors, particularly in Michigan.
When completed, the center fuselage assembly line will represent the
culmination of many person years of development by KUKA Systems and Northrup
Grumman, working collaboratively, to design and install an aircraft
manufacturing line as a fully optimized system rather than as a conglomeration
of independent tooling stations. "The contribution of Northrup Grumman's
extremely talented, dedicated team, working with our own great group, has been
instrumental in making this concept and design a reality," says Robert Reno,
Director Aerospace, KUKA Systems North America.
The contract leverages KUKA Systems' considerable expertise as a leading
automation supplier and systems integrator for the automotive industry. "No
major aerospace company has ever really contracted a supplier like us to
design and build an entire integrated assembly line," says Reno. Typically
large aerospace manufacturers are their own integrators, bidding specific
parts of the assembly line from different suppliers and then integrating them.
"In this case, Northrop Grumman wanted the most efficient process design
layout to produce one center fuselage per day and sought out our expertise in
automation," says Reno.
"This really is a significant step for the industry, but for KUKA Systems,
it's just one of many integrated automation solutions we're developing for
improving the productivity and efficiency of aircraft manufacturing."

KUKA Systems at SAE AeroTech 2009, November 10-12

KUKA Systems will be attending the SAE AeroTech 2009 Congress & Exhibit. From
November 10-12 it will be presenting a selection of state of the art KUKA
Aerospace tools and solutions at the Washington State Convention and Trade
Center in Seattle, Washington.
KUKA Systems is located at Booth #501
More Information: www.kuka-systems.com
www.kukanao.com
www.sae.org/aerotech

About KUKA Systems

KUKA Systems is an international supplier of flexible production systems to
the automotive, aerospace, renewable energy and other industries in which
highly automated processes are required. A workforce of around 3,700 worldwide
works on ideas, concepts and solutions for automated production, as well as
supplying products and services for virtually all tasks in the industrial
processing of metallic and non-metallic materials.
In aerospace, KUKA's worldwide network of specialists develops and markets
innovative solutions, including the provision of engineering services,
automated production systems, process technology, flexible robot cells for
individual functions, tools and standard components.
Its range of products and services is marketed internationally by subsidiaries
and distribution agents in Europe, the Americas and Asia. KUKA Systems posted
a total order volume of around (euro)855m in 2008.

SOURCE KUKA Systems Corporation North America

KUKA Systems GmbH, Marketing/Corporate Communications, Markus Meier, Tel. +49
821 797-2483, Fax +49 821 797-1951, email: markus.meier@kuka.de, Web:
www.kuka-systems.de; PR Toolbox Inc., Martin Wendland, Phone (416) 368-6636,
Fax (416) 368-5306, eMail mwendland@pr-toolbox.com, 2234 Queen Street, Suite
4, Toronto, Ontario M4E 1G2/Canada