Company type | Public |
---|---|
ATCN | |
Industry | Aerospace Defense Space Energy |
Founded | 1953 |
Headquarters | Stafford, Texas, USA |
Number of locations | 10 |
Products | Engine Test Cells Hush Houses Control Cabs Data Acquisition Systems Engine Support Equipment Cryogenic Rocket Valves Spaceflight Components Downhole Tools Surface Equipment Large Weldments |
Brands | Celtech Hager Machine & Tool Vital Link |
Number of employees | 302 (2018) |
Atec, Inc. specializes in the design, manufacture, construction and maintenance of precision components, large fabrications, systems and facilities. Atec provides solutions[ buzzword ] for low to medium volume requirements involving engine test, aero support equipment, spaceflight components, and energy service products. Over 20,000 Atec products have been used by the United States Armed Forces and others, including the Federal Aviation Administration. [1] Atec was named NASA Small Business Subcontractor of the Year for 2016, in recognition of contributions to NASA and Boeing Manned Spaceflight Programs. [2]
Atec was founded in 1953 as Accurate Instrument Co. and was officially incorporated in the state of Texas on July 13, 1956. Accurate Instrument Co. primarily manufactured instrumentation for the aviation industry. Some notable products included a standard day instrument (used to provide automated correlations to standard sea level atmospheric conditions), signal generators, frequency counters, oscillators, and pressure test sets.
In the 1960s, Accurate Instrument Co. was renamed Atec, Inc., in concert with a shift from custom instrumentation to aerospace and energy equipment, such as hush houses, jet engine test stands, spaceflight components, control systems, exploration surface equipment and wireline tools. Atec operates to ISO 9001, AS 9100D and ISO 14001 standards.
Since its founding, Atec has made many notable acquisitions, including Lymco Electronics in 1976 (oil patch systems), Kestran in 1989 (energy service manufacturing), Celtech in 2013 (aeroengine test stands) with Space Corp. (aero support gear), Hager Machine & Tool in 2016 (energy & general machining), and Vital Link in 2017 (aerospace & industrial enclosures and fabrication). Locations in Oklahoma City, Singapore, Dubai and Istanbul also service international customers.
Atec has manufactured, assembled, and tested cryogenic flow control valves for the RL10 liquid-fueled rocket engine since 1995. The RL10 is currently used on the Centaur upper stage on both the United Launch Alliance Atlas V and Delta IV launch vehicles, and is planned for use on the Vulcan Centaur launch vehicle. Northrop Grumman has recently indicated plans to utilize the RL10 on their Omega rocket.
As of December 2017, Atec-manufactured valves have flown on 140 consecutive successful flights. [3] Notable RL10 missions which launched with Atec-manufactured valves include NASA’s New Horizons probe to Pluto, the LCROSS Lunar Impactor, and the Orion Exploration Flight Test 1.
In 2013, Atec began work on 27 lithium-ion battery adapter plates to be used on the International Space Station. The electrical system of the International Space Station previously used 48 nickel–hydrogen (Ni–H2) batteries, which are being replaced with 24 lithium-ion batteries, built by Aerojet Rocketdyne. [4] Six adapter plates were launched on HTV-6 in December, 2016. These adapter plates were installed by Peggy Whitson, Shane Kimbrough, and Thomas Pesquet over the course of two spacewalks in 2017 as part of Expedition 50.
Atec, from a 2015 contract, began designing and manufacturing an electrical polarity and flow control unit for the next generation Crew Capsule, which will carry astronauts to the ISS and other manned-flight destinations. [5]
Atec is a participant on several new development and heritage rocket engine programs including the AR1 and RS-25 engines.
In 2013, the United States Air Force and Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex awarded Atec a 5-year repair and support contract for A/M37T-20 & A/M37T-21 type test stands worldwide. [6] Such test cells are in broad use for intermediate level test of F100, F101, F110, F119, F124, F125, F135, F404, F414, J79, J85, TF30, TF33, TF34, TFE731, T38, T53, T56, 501D, AE2100, PT6, CT7, TPE331, PW100s, W-M601, MK532/6, AI-24T and other military aircraft turbine engines. Renewed in 2018 for 5 more years, this IDIQ contract includes 24/7 hotline support, procurement, shipment, and on-site repairs in support of the United States Air Force.
Atec has designed and manufactured many modular turbine test cells for APU, turboshaft, and turbojet engines. Notably, Atec designed and fielded 2 modular, regenerative turboshaft test cells for Rolls-Royce. [7] These test cells were developed for the M250 engine and were tailored to Rolls-Royce’s Indianapolis production facility. [7] Typical turboshaft test cells often utilize a water brake or other type of dynamometer to place a load on the engine, absorbing (and wasting) the produced energy. [7] The Atec test cells use 500 hp electric generators to convert the rotational energy of the turboshaft into electrical energy. This allows Rolls-Royce to power the engine facility and sell excess generated power back to the Electric utility. [7] Other electric regenerative system installations include those for Bell and Bristow. Atec, Celtech and Vital Link Europe are also very active in worldwide helicopter and APU test cells.
Atec has designed and constructed multiple large turbine engine test cells. One notable example was contracted by Kalitta Air. This 10-meter Tilt up concrete engine test cell is rated at 100,000 pounds of thrust and is sized for testing Pratt & Whitney JT9D, 1000G, 2000, 4000, V2500, and GP7000 series; General Electric CF-6, CF-34, CFM-56, smaller GE-90, GEnx, LEAP, [8] and CFM-56; Rolls-Royce RB211 and smaller Trent engines. This test cell is 240 feet long by 33 feet wide. The inlet height is 45 feet, and the exhaust is expelled at a height of 56 feet. [8] Recent large turbofan projects include a data acquisition system in Zurich and an eight-meter test cell in Miami.
In 2011, Atec was awarded a contract for the relocation of multiple T-9 noise suppressor test cells from Aviano Air Base and Cannon Air Force Base to Tinker Air Force Base. [9] This effort included design of engine test equipment to accommodate the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine (used in the Joint Strike Fighter Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II) in these upgraded T-9 test cells.
In 2016, Duncan Aviation selected Atec to design, manufacture and field a Phoenix Series Modular Turbofan Engine Test Cell rated for 20,000 lb. thrust class engines. [10] This environmentally friendly test cell will be used primarily for MRO testing in response to Duncan Aviation's designation as a Honeywell TFE731 Heavy Maintenance Facility. Duncan Aviation and Atec jointly announced this program at the National Business Aviation Association Conference, 2016. The cell was completed in August 2018. [11]
Atec, Inc.
Celtech Corp.
Hager Machine & Tool, Inc.
Vital Link, Inc.
A turboprop is a gas turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller.
Pratt & Whitney is an American aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of RTX Corporation. Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation and military aviation. Its headquarters are in East Hartford, Connecticut. The company is the world's second largest commercial aircraft engine manufacturer, with a 35% market share as of 2020. In addition to aircraft engines, Pratt & Whitney manufactures gas turbine engines for industrial use, marine propulsion, and power generation. In 2017, the company reported that it supported more than 11,000 customers in 180 countries around the world.
A turbofan or fanjet is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft propulsion. The word "turbofan" is a combination of references to the preceding generation engine technology of the turbojet and the additional fan stage. It consists of a gas turbine engine which achieves mechanical energy from combustion, and a ducted fan that uses the mechanical energy from the gas turbine to force air rearwards. Thus, whereas all the air taken in by a turbojet passes through the combustion chamber and turbines, in a turbofan some of that air bypasses these components. A turbofan thus can be thought of as a turbojet being used to drive a ducted fan, with both of these contributing to the thrust.
An aircraft engine, often referred to as an aero engine, is the power component of an aircraft propulsion system. Aircraft using power components are referred to as powered flight. Most aircraft engines are either piston engines or gas turbines, although a few have been rocket powered and in recent years many small UAVs have used electric motors.
The Pratt & Whitney PW2000, also known by the military designation F117 and initially referred to as the JT10D, is a series of high-bypass turbofan aircraft engines with a thrust range from 37,000 to 43,000 lbf. Built by Pratt & Whitney, they were designed for the Boeing 757. As a 757 powerplant, these engines compete with the Rolls-Royce RB211.
The General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 was an afterburning turbofan engine being developed by General Electric, Allison Engine Company, and Rolls-Royce as an alternative powerplant to the Pratt & Whitney F135 for the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. The two companies stopped work on the project in December 2011 after failing to gather Pentagon support for further development.
The Rolls-Royce T406 is a turboshaft engine developed by Allison Engine Company that powers the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey tiltrotor. The engine delivers 6,000 shp (4,470 kW).
General Electric Company, doing business as GE Aerospace, is an American aircraft engine supplier that is headquartered in Evendale, Ohio, outside Cincinnati. It is the legal successor to the original General Electric Company founded in 1892, which split into three separate companies between November 2021 and April 2024, adopting the trade name GE Aerospace after divesting its healthcare and energy divisions.
A turboshaft engine is a form of gas turbine that is optimized to produce shaft horsepower rather than jet thrust. In concept, turboshaft engines are very similar to turbojets, with additional turbine expansion to extract heat energy from the exhaust and convert it into output shaft power. They are even more similar to turboprops, with only minor differences, and a single engine is often sold in both forms.
The General Electric J79 is an axial-flow turbojet engine built for use in a variety of fighter and bomber aircraft and a supersonic cruise missile. The J79 was produced by General Electric Aircraft Engines in the United States, and under license by several other companies worldwide. Among its major uses was the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, Convair B-58 Hustler, McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, North American A-5 Vigilante and IAI Kfir.
The Allison T56 is an American single-shaft, modular design military turboprop with a 14-stage axial flow compressor driven by a four-stage turbine. It was originally developed by the Allison Engine Company for the Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport entering production in 1954. It has been a Rolls-Royce product since 1995 when Allison was acquired by Rolls-Royce. The commercial version is designated 501-D. Over 18,000 engines have been produced since 1954, logging over 200 million flying hours.
The General Electric GE38 is a gas turbine developed by GE Aviation for turboprop and turboshaft applications. It powers the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion as the T408.
The Honeywell T55 is a turboshaft engine used on American helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft since the 1950s, and in unlimited hydroplanes since the 1980s. As of 2021, more than 6,000 of these engines have been built. It is produced by Honeywell Aerospace, a division of Honeywell based in Phoenix, Arizona, and was originally designed by the Turbine Engine Division of Lycoming Engines in Stratford, Connecticut, as a scaled-up version of the smaller Lycoming T53. The T55 serves as the engine on several major applications including the CH-47-Chinook, the Bell 309, and the Piper PA-48 Enforcer. The T55 also serves as the core of the Lycoming ALF 502 turbofan. Since the T55 was first developed, progressive increases in airflow, overall pressure ratio, and turbine inlet temperature have more than tripled the power output of the engine.
The Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), formerly the Advanced Affordable Turbine Engine (AATE) program, is a United States Army project to develop a General Electric T700 replacement for the UH-60 Black Hawk and AH-64 Apache, improving fuel consumption, power, durability and cost. Honeywell and Pratt & Whitney formed the ATEC joint venture to develop the T900, while GE Aviation builds the T901. In February 2019, the US Army selected the GE T901 as the winner of the program.
The General Electric Passport is a turbofan developed by GE Aerospace for large business jets. It was selected in 2010 to power the Bombardier Global 7500 and 8000, first run on June 24, 2013, and first flown in 2015. It was certified in April 2016 and powered the Global 7500 first flight on November 4, 2016, before its 2018 introduction. It produces 14,000 to 20,000 lbf of thrust, a range previously covered by the General Electric CF34. A smaller scaled CFM LEAP, it is a twin-spool axial engine with a 5.6:1 bypass ratio and a 45:1 overall pressure ratio and is noted for its large one-piece 52 in (130 cm) fan 18-blade titanium blisk.
The Packard XJ49 was the first U.S. designed turbofan aircraft engine, and was developed by the Packard Motor Co. in the 1940s.
The Airbus/Rolls-Royce/Siemens E-Fan X was a hybrid electric aircraft demonstrator being developed by a partnership of Airbus, Rolls-Royce plc and Siemens. Announced on 28 November 2017, it followed previous electric flight demonstrators towards sustainable transport for the European Commission’s Flightpath 2050 Vision. A BAe 146 flying testbed was to have one of its four Lycoming ALF502 turbofans replaced by a Siemens 2 MW (2,700 hp) electric motor, adapted by Rolls-Royce and powered by its AE2100 turboshaft, controlled and integrated by Airbus with a 2 t (4,400 lb) battery. In April 2020, the programme was cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The General Electric T901 (GE3000) is a turboshaft engine in the 3,000 shp (2,200 kW) class currently under development for the United States Army's Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP). The ITEP plans after 2025 to re-engine over 1,300 Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and more than 600 Boeing AH-64 Apache, and was intended to power the now-canceled Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA).
The ATEC T900 (HPW3000) was an American turboshaft engine in the 3,000 shp (2,200 kW) class under development for the United States Army's Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP). The ITEP plans to re-engine over 1,300 Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and more than 600 Boeing AH-64 Apache, and to power the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft, beginning after 2025. The T900 was developed by the Advanced Turbine Engine Company (ATEC), a joint venture between Honeywell Aerospace and Pratt & Whitney. In February 2019, the US Army selected the GE T901 as the winner of the program.