Mitsubishi Opens Aero-engine Components Factory in Nagasaki

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has completed construction of a new factory for aircraft engine components at its Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works.

The factory will mainly manufacture engine components for short and medium range commercial aircraft, with further expansion planned to grow as a new facility for the aero engine business once aircraft demand resumes following recovery from the coronavirus crisis.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Aero Engines, Ltd. (MHIAEL), which handles the aero engine business of MHI Group, began operations at the facility in November 2020 as its Nagasaki Plant, and is gradually expanding production.

The newly completed factory occupies the former site of the Propeller Factory (Ship Propeller Factory) adjacent to the Nagasaki Shipyard Museum (formerly the Pattern Shop), which has been registered as a World Heritage Site, a MHI release said.

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The plant has fully integrated production lines for combustor components, from receiving of raw materials to machining and assembly. To achieve the high degree of precision and quality required for aircraft engine components, MHIAEL is introducing automation and labor-saving technologies such as cutting-edge machine tools, and automated conveyance and tool changing systems.

The company is also actively utilizing IoT (Internet of Things), AI (Artificial Intelligence), and other technologies cultivated at its main mother factory to ensure an aircraft engine components factory with world-class productivity and efficiency.

The Nagasaki Plant is manufacturing combustors for the PW1100G-JM engine that powers the Airbus A320neo, including replacement demand for overhauls. The opening of this cutting-edge factory as scheduled will strengthen both in-house manufacturing capabilities and cost competitiveness, as well as establish a structure able to accurately meet the industry's needs.

MHI Group is also working to expand its aero engine MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) business, with preparations steadily moving forward to add new engine type to its aero engine MRO services business portfolio at MHIAEL's head office plant in Aichi Prefecture.