Turnkey manufacturer bridges composite needs in defense

MTCcorp – Metalcrafters Transparencies and Composites Inc. (Fountain Valley, Calif., U.S.) is a turnkey composites manufacturer, addressing engineering, material, CNC tooling, composites manufacturing and production. MTCcorp specialize in providing precision manufacturing solutions and delivering high-quality components and assemblies tailored to the demanding requirements of the aerospace industry. 

View and learn about composites-intensive equipment racks especially designed for use in Northrop Grumman’s (Falls Church, Va., U.S.) EQ-4B Global Hawk battlefield airborne communication node (BACN), a high-altitude, remotely piloted surveillance aircraft using carbon fiber to reduce weight and increase durability to handle 9G’s of force.

BACN is said to bridge the gap between disparate systems, platforms and sensors, enabling essential situational awareness ranging from small ground units in contact with enemy forces to high command levels. In response to a joint urgent operational need (JUON), Northrop Grumman accelerated the integration of BACN onto manned aircraft and provided this capability to the warfighter in 9 months. The BD700 aircraft integrated with BACN were delivered in theater ahead of already aggressive schedules.

Developed in conjunction with Northrop Grumman for the U.S. Air Force, MTCcorp was engaged to conceptualize and engineer mission-critical equipment racks for the BACN network. Designed to handle 9G’s of force while carry 250-lb payloads, the racks had to meet very specific engineering requirements, including being stackable with built-in securing features. MTCcorp’s engineering team was also able to minimize the the weight from 45 to 14 lbs. MTCcorp designed the racks, fabricated all the tooling, created a process development and delivered the end product to Northrop Grumman’s Mission System team.