Boeing expands Helena site for 777X parts production

Boeing’s Helena, Montana, manufacturing site is set to install new machinery for manufacturing critical titanium parts for 777X production, the US manufacturer said Aug. 17.  The new 90,000 sq. ft. expansion of Boeing Helena brings the site’s total footprint to over 257,000 sq. ft.

Machine parts for the 777X to be manufactured at Boeing Helena will include side-of-body chords and terminal end fittings which connect the wings to the fuselage, Boeing said. The site has become a vital part of Boeing’s commercial airplane supply chain, the company said, specializing in complex machining of hard metals for Boeing’s 737, 747, 767 and 787 aircraft models.

“Our investment in Boeing Helena … further positions our … Montana team of nearly 150 employees as a key partner for Boeing Commercial Airplanes,” Boeing Commercial Airplanes VP and GM-fabrication Kim Smith said.

Boeing’s 777X family aircraft will have 12% lower fuel consumption and 10% lower operating costs than its competitors, the company said, and will include a new high efficiency wing. To date, Boeing’s 777X program has orders for 326 aircraft, nearly half of which (150) are from Emirates Airline, alongside big orders from Qatar Airways (60), Etihad Airways (25), Cathay Pacific Airways (21), ANA Holdings (20) and Lufthansa (20).

Boeing purchased the former Summit Aeronautics Group facility in December 2010 and renamed it Boeing Helena. The facility is part of Auburn, Washington-headquartered Boeing Fabrication, a division of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and is one of 12 Boeing Fabrication sites located around the world.