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Technology update
Unigraphics for new Indian trainer
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The Aircraft Research and Design Center (ARDC) of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) in India will use advanced 3-D CAD/CAM and product data management facilities for the design and development of a new trainer aircraft. Unigraphics Solutions is providing the software for the Intermediate Jet Trainer program. It will be used throughout the aircraft development project, from single component design through large assembly modeling to the complete electronic mockup of the aircraft, together with the management of all the associated product data.
The trainer, also known as the Hindustan Jet Trainer-36 (HJT-36) is scheduled to replace the Kiran Trainer, which was used by the Indian Air Force for about 20 years. Completion time for the HJT-36 project is three years. Unigraphics Solutions says it will be providing ARDC HAL with more than 10 "seats" of its integrated CAD/CAM software suite, Unigraphics, and the web-enabled iMAN PDM software, together with system implementation and support services by Tata Consultancy Services. The use of the systems is expected to reduce product development and production times, said Unigraphics. Key to this setup is Unigraphics' Virtual Product Development (VPD) model, which supports aerospace product development process threads. VPD represents an environment in which a full and exact representation of a product, together with its associated data, is created, tested, documented, and manufactured in a completely digital manner. Design, analysis, manufacturability, servic-ability, and marketability studies are performed collaboratively and concurrently across departments, sites, divisions, partners, and countries using the "master model" concept that underlies the Unigraphics software suite.
Stuart Birch
Aerospace Engineering June 2000
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