Engineer wins multimillion-dollar contract with Airbus

Stockport-based ASG Tooling has won a key $2.4m contract with aircraft manufacturer, Airbus.

It said it solidifies the firm’s position as a trusted partner in the aerospace industry and highlights its expertise in providing innovative solutions for complex transport container requirements for both land and sea.

Under this agreement, ASG Tooling will be responsible for the design, fabrication, and machining of bespoke shipping containers.

The project encompasses a lead time of 12 months, during which ASG Tooling will incorporate design changes and manufacture the containers at its Manchester facilities.

ASG Tooling’s group managing director, Simon Weston, said: “Winning this contract with Airbus is a testament to ASG Tooling’s commitment to excellence and our ability to deliver cutting-edge solutions.”

The bespoke shipping containers, more than 18 metres in length, are designed to meet Airbus’s specific needs to transport major airframe assemblies using bespoke quality jigs and work holding and will undergo an extensive fabrication and machining process, including hydraulics, air conditioning and electrical lighting.

Airbus employs around 4,500 staff at its wing-making plant in Broughton, near Chester. Wings are then shipped to Europan assembly plants in Toulouse and Hamburg.

ASG Tooling will ensure the containers can withstand highly corrosive environments.

The company has successfully won similar previous packages of work manufacturing air freight jigs for the Airbus Beluga, the specialist aircraft that flies completed wings from Broughton.

This latest contract win completes the ASG Group firm’s offering in air, land and now sea.

Once manufactured in the UK, the shipping containers will be transported to Hamburg, where they will be assembled and rigorously tested in accordance with Airbus’s stringent quality standards.

Garry Parks, operations director of ASG Tooling, who has overseen the project, said: “The ASG Tooling team will dedicate approximately 14,000 manufacturing hours to complete this project.

“Our experienced professionals are committed to upholding ASG Tooling’s reputation for excellence, leveraging their skills and knowledge to deliver on time and with unwavering precision, it’s been a real privilege to work on this project, a project that is totally unique with a high degree of complexity that has given us a great opportunity to showcase our capability.”