Rolls-Royce has launched an engine controls capability at Purdue University in the US to assemble and test electronic engine controllers.
The new capability will support the company’s US defence business and will be installed in the engines competing for the US Air Force (USAF) B-52 programme.
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Rolls-Royce noted that the controllers will help manage in-flight engine operations.
The company completed the first controller in the Purdue Research Foundation’s Discovery Park District located adjacent to the Purdue campus at West Lafayette, Indiana.
It will be installed onto a Rolls-Royce AE 3007H engine, which was manufactured at the company’s facilities located in Indianapolis, US.
Rolls-Royce North America CEO Tom Bell said: “Rolls-Royce has partnered with Purdue University for decades and we are excited to launch our new controls capability on campus to assemble and test these high-tech engine components.
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By GlobalData“Whether for the Rolls-Royce AE family of engines or for our competitive F130 engine for the B-52, these new controllers will support US military pilots as they fly around the world, offering the highest-quality technical product.”
Northrop Grumman will receive the first engine equipped with the new controller for installation on a US Navy Triton aircraft.
The controllers will also be installed on AE 3007 engines designated for the USAF Global Hawk and the US Navy MQ-25 Stingray aircraft.
If Rolls-Royce wins the engine competition later this year, the facility located at Purdue will also assemble electronic controllers for the company’s F130 engines for the USAF B-52 strategic bomber re-engining programme.
The company will manufacture these engines at its Indianapolis facilities.
Additionally, the company is completing a $600m investment in modernisation and technology programmes in Indiana.
