Industry, Logistics & Shipping

Strata plans new ‘Factory of the Future’ in Al Ain

Strata Manufacturing, the advanced composite aero-structures manufacturing facility wholly owned by Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Development Company, has unveiled plans for its second facility at Nibras Al Ain Aerospace Park.

 The ‘Strata 2.0’ facility will be designed as a ‘Factory of the Future’ that will feature a range of Smart technology solutions and equipment to support Strata’s ambition in becoming one of the top aero-structure companies globally.
 
Ismail Ali Abdulla, deputy CEO of Strata said: “Today is a true milestone for the company, aligning achievements with future opportunities. Since its inception in 2009, Strata has been a catalyst for socio-economic growth, delivering on Abu Dhabi’s Economic Vision 2030.

“As we look to build upon our success to date, the ‘Factory of the Future’ vision is centered around the 4th industrial revolution. We have identified key guiding pillars for the new factory; Smart Building, Smart Manufacturing and a Smart Workforce. Strata 2.0 will unify these pillars inside the new iconic facility.”
 
The ‘Strata 2.0’ vision will nurture a ‘Smart Factory Ecosystem’ that will cultivate a new philosophy for the company. The new model is in-line with the growing needs from the burgeoning global aerospace community and crucially, will utilize new connected and smart technologies that can unlock analytical insights from gathered data intelligence and add ongoing transformational value to the business.   
 
This new factory will deliver on innovative solutions that will seek to revolutionize traditional production methods in aerospace by introducing Smart technologies and additive manufacturing to create a unique and seamless flow, combining real time visibility on operations with cognitive decision making, to drive efficiencies, eliminate waste, elevate quality and unlock greater value for the shareholder, customers and employees.
 
The new facility will more than double Strata’s existing capacity and sets the company on a strong path towards Abu Dhabi’s long-term goal of achieving economic diversification and driving global competitiveness for the UAE’s manufacturing sector. Located adjacent to Strata’s existing facility, the second site will have a final size of approximately 60,000 sq m. Construction on the Strata facility is expected to start in 2018, and is set to become fully operational by 2020.
 
Abdulla continued: “Strata has developed an ecosystem of its own in Al Ain, and it has been built on the trust and confidence of our global partners. We are proud to have fostered an Emirati manufacturing talent base, now employing hundreds of highly-skilled male and female UAE nationals in a very dynamic setting, and they themselves will lead the introduction of Smart technologies in Strata 2.0.”
 
The new facility will manufacture two of the most complex work packages that include the Horizontal Tail Plane (HTP) for the Airbus A320 and the Vertical Fin for Boeing’s B787 airliners. These work packages will be manufactured, fully equipped, tested and delivered directly to the final assembly lines of both Airbus and Boeing. – TradeArabia News Service