16T project team determines more efficient process for disconnect panel fabrication

  • Published
  • By Deidre Ortiz
  • AEDC/PA
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, TENN. --  The team leading the Improve Transonic Test Capability (IMTTC) Improvement and Modernization program at AEDC has found a better, more cost-effective way of fabricating disconnect panels for the 16-foot Transonic Wind Tunnel (16T).

The disconnect panels, which are part of the 16T Test Article Control System (TACS) and Data Acquisition System (DAS), are used to provide a clean interface between system input/output hardware and field devices. These panels are typically 19 inch wide, 1/8 inch thick aluminum panels that contain connectors, terminal blocks and servo amplifiers, among other components.

Fabricating these panels has been done in-house at a cost approximately $1,300 per panel.

According to Elijah Minter, Air Force acquisition program manager for the Flight Sustainment Branch, the old process for fabricating was also very time-consuming.

"You have to take into account the scheduling availability of multiple skills and shops for machining and painting, in addition to external fabrication support to develop the silkscreen for each panel," he said. "The process takes several weeks to get a panel from raw material to finalized product."

It was Terry Rayfield, ATA senior controls engineer, who made the suggestion to research how to obtain disconnect panels at less cost. Rayfield received an ATA monetary reward for his idea.

By using an off-base company that has an assembly-line manufacturing shop and specializes in making electronic panels and enclosures, the panels are fabricated in two weeks' time or less at a fifth of the cost.

"As opposed to more than $1,300 a panel, we are now able to get panels at $300 apiece," Keith Holt, ATA project manager, said. "This cut costs tremendously, and because this company's services can be used all over base, it will potentially save AEDC millions of dollars in the long run."

Replacing the panels for the 16T TACS and DAS alone is projected to have a net savings of $338,207.