Peter Masefield MA, CEng and FRAeS
AIRCRAFT ENGINEERING'S first half‐century has spanned three‐quarters of the Aviation era since the Wright Brothers first flew on 17th December, 1903. Those 50 active years have…
Abstract
AIRCRAFT ENGINEERING'S first half‐century has spanned three‐quarters of the Aviation era since the Wright Brothers first flew on 17th December, 1903. Those 50 active years have seen a transformation of every aspect of the engineering scene — materials, structures, power‐plants, ancillaries and equipment. Yet still today, the art and the science of aeronautical engineering —and it is certainly both—are advancing as fast as any group in the past, while costs soar.
Components for the ground‐launched weapons produced at the British Aerospace Aerodynamics Group factory at Stevenage must be produced to precision engineering standards from high…
Abstract
Components for the ground‐launched weapons produced at the British Aerospace Aerodynamics Group factory at Stevenage must be produced to precision engineering standards from high grade materials, which are often aluminium alloys with a high silica content which wears tools rapidly. To meet this problem, the machine shop and quality control departments at Stevenage have developed very close co‐operation in the introduction and integrated use of new CNC machine tools and electronic measuring equipment capable of assuring quality with improved work flow. Every workpiece produced by CNC machining is gauged after each machining operation or multi‐gauged as it comes off the machine. This constant monitoring detects sudden errors due, for example, to chipped tools and allows the correction of trends before they go outside set tolerances.
Aslib's annual report, which was considered at the Annual General Meeting in London on 7th June, made interesting reading and showed the association's steady progress. Membership…
Abstract
Aslib's annual report, which was considered at the Annual General Meeting in London on 7th June, made interesting reading and showed the association's steady progress. Membership is now 2,500, comprised chiefly of 922 industrial concerns, 221 Government departments and organisations, 295 public and national libraries and 301 universities and colleges. A point of interest is that there are only 403 individual members and this figure seems to be static having risen by only 5 in the last two years. Subscription income rose by £1,864 and Aslib's reserves are now £7,500. Some concern is expressed in the report about the finance of the Annual Conference, which showed a loss of £272. Many members are of the opinion that the conference fee is already too high, but the report suggests that rising costs may result in an even higher fee in the future.
DRUCK LTD, have been involved in the design and production of pressure transducers, transmitters and instrumentation for a variety of applications since the 1970s and were…
Abstract
DRUCK LTD, have been involved in the design and production of pressure transducers, transmitters and instrumentation for a variety of applications since the 1970s and were innovators in solid‐state silicon diaphragm sensor technology. At an early stage in their inception the Company became involved in the development of precision digital pressure indicators for the Royal Air Force, for the replacement of mercury column sensors then in service and it was only a matter of time before their technological advances attracted the attention of the civil aviation industry.
DESPITE the fact that the number of new aircraft appearing at Farnborough is an unreliable yard‐stick with which to measure the progress of the British aerospace industry, it is…
Abstract
DESPITE the fact that the number of new aircraft appearing at Farnborough is an unreliable yard‐stick with which to measure the progress of the British aerospace industry, it is nevertheless true that these new aircraft give a valuable indication of emphasis within the industry and as pieces of finished ’hardware' they obviously deserve pride of place in any report on this year's S.B.A.C. Show.
The International Federation of Airworthiness in an issue of its introductory brochure is presenting a new image, that of a link in the Airworthiness Chain.
The management of children′s literature is a search for value andsuitability. Effective policies in library and educational work arebased firmly on knowledge of materials, and on…
Abstract
The management of children′s literature is a search for value and suitability. Effective policies in library and educational work are based firmly on knowledge of materials, and on the bibliographical and critical frame within which the materials appear and might best be selected. Boundaries, like those between quality and popular books, and between children′s and adult materials, present important challenges for selection, and implicit in this process are professional acumen and judgement. Yet also there are attitudes and systems of values, which can powerfully influence selection on grounds of morality and good taste. To guard against undue subjectivity, the knowledge frame should acknowledge the relevance of social and experiential context for all reading materials, how readers think as well as how they read, and what explicit and implicit agendas the authors have. The good professional takes all these factors on board.
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It is a great privilege and honour to be asked to deliver the annual Chester Beatty Lecture, particularly in the presence of Mr Chester Beatty himself. The theme of these Lectures…
Abstract
It is a great privilege and honour to be asked to deliver the annual Chester Beatty Lecture, particularly in the presence of Mr Chester Beatty himself. The theme of these Lectures is “metals in the service of mankind” and, in this respect, the material which I will be covering in this lecture has been serving mankind for a relatively short time compared with other metals such as copper, zinc, iron, etc. Titanium is a metal which has only achieved direct engineering usage, as distinct from some minor applications as a strengthening alloy in other metals, since the Second World War. Its rise in importance for structural purposes has been very rapid and the purpose of this paper is to outline its history, to indicate the reasons why designers are so impressed by its potential, and to give some examples of present and future applications.