Strata expand collaboration with Boeing to include training and R&D

The new deal with the Mubadala subsidiary will now include engineering training programmes and research development (R&D) capabilities. The announcement by the two companies was made at the inaugural Global Manufacturing & Industrialization Summit (GMIS) currently taking place in Abu Dhabi.

Bernard Dunn, president of Boeing Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, said: “The expansion of Boeing’s collaboration with Strata strengthens our longstanding relationship and advances our shared commitment to the development of the UAE aerospace industry. Our collaboration will benefit industry capacity and help develop capabilities that support greater efficiency in manufacturing within our industry.”

To develop Strata’s engineering talent and capabilities, Strata employees will take part in training focused on manufacturing engineering and design and stress engineering in Boeing facilities in the United States and Russia. The program is expected to kick off in September with two Strata engineers, beginning an eight-month training program at a Boeing facility in Salt Lake City, Utah. The program will continue for about 4- 6 years and will train up to 12 Strata engineers in Salt Lake City, USA and 12 Strata engineers in Moscow, Russia.

Building on their existing strategic agreement for collaboration on R&D initiatives, Boeing and Strata have confirmed research into the future of lean automation and digital manufacturing for the aerospace industry. Two manufacturing pilot projects are already underway with the participation of Khalifa University and Masdar Institute of Technology related to automated assembly of composite structures.

Commenting on the news, Badr Al-Olama, CEO of Strata, said: “Our strong relationship with Boeing has provided both value and growth to the UAE’s expanding aerospace sector. Building on a foundation of knowledge and innovation, this new agreement will not only further cement the alliance between our two companies, but aid in developing future Emirati talent for the industry with training that will come from one of the top leading aircraft manufacturers in the world.”

Boeing’s relationship with Mubadala began in 2009, when the company entered into a strategic framework agreement to develop mutually beneficial initiatives in areas of strategic alignment, including composite manufacturing, engineering, research and technology and people development. In 2012, Boeing and Mubadala Aerospace announced a 10-year direct contract for Strata, to produce commercial composite aerostructures for the 777 and the 787 Dreamliner.
Serving as Boeing’s first direct composites supplier in the Arab world, Strata currently delivers 777 empennage ribs and 787 vertical fin ribs to Boeing factories in the U.S.