I saw more carbon fiber today in one place than the rest of my life put together...
 

...toured the Boeing factory in Everett, Washington. It's the facility where they build their "big" planes -- 747's, 777's, and the new carbon fiber 787 Dreamliners were all on the lines when we went through today.

As you probably know, the 787 program is way behind the time schedule in getting built and certified for operation. Six are flying, and another 25 have been built (but haven't been finished due to problems getting all of the components in from suppliers). The plane is largely built out of carbon fiber; has components made all over the world and shipped into Everett for final assembly; and apparently uses so much carbon fiber that the program has helped drive up the price of carbon fiber on the world market.

We saw numbers 28, 29 and 30 being built today. Most of the rest of the non-flying fleet appeared to be sitting around on the grounds of the factory. That's a lot of plastic airplanes.

According to a Seattle Times article that ran this week, the Dreamliner development program will cost $12 billion to $18 billion *more* to get off the ground than Boeing originally estimated.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...amliner19.html

Beautiful planes, though. I remember when the 777 was being built, Boeing had all kinds of early production problems with them, too. I expect they'll get it sorted and we'll all just pay an extra baggage handling fee or something to pay for the over-runs.

Meanwhile, tons and tons of carbon fiber used for each plane: think of all the bicycles that had to die to make one airplane.

Oops, I forgot to make this more bicycling related.

3 bike-relevant facts:

1. We have a number of BF posters who work at Boeing (hi, guys).

2. The Boeing bike commuting team typically kicks everyone's butt in Seattle during the annual bike-to-work competition in Seattle each May. Usually they are *way* ahead of all the teams in total mileage, and they have one team there that is just crazy. I think the top Boeing rider did something like 1,000 miles last May in a month, just commuting to work.

3. Their plant parking lots are so large that at their Renton plant some people use bicycles to commute *from* the farther edges of the parking lot into the plant (Renton is where they build the 737; I bike by this plant frequently).

Do you know why I own Boeing stock? Here's why. With all the interminable delays on 787 production, they still have a backlog of something like 800 orders for the plane. There have been very few cancellations. Why aren't the customers canceling their orders to sign up with the competition? Because there is no competition for this product, even with a 3 year delay.

When Boeing straightens out the production woes (and they will) and the planes start rolling off the assembly line, BA goes straight to $100/share.

Probably will in the short run, but keep an eye on 'upstarts' Bombardier and Embraer; both are in the process of developing jets to compete with the Boeing 737 and Airbus 320, the current workhorses of the commercial aviation industry. Both have regional jets with solid track records, so I wouldn't be surprised if they produce a viable competitor to the 737/320 duopoly in the near future. That's sure to temper Boeing's (and Airbus') overall profit margins.

Boeing has always been a fascinating tour for me. It was always amazing to see the 747-400 assembly process. As far as competition goes, niether Embraer nor Bombardier has products that compete directly with the 73 series. They are both still competing with their own products in the commuter segment. The A318 through 321 are direct competition but are largely seen as disposable aircraft. I would keep an eye of China for the emergence of the next true competition in the fastest growing marketplace.

Composites have been flying a long time now in commercial, business and military applications. Once the bugs are worked out, the 787 will be the dreamliner it was supposed to be for Boeing. I wasn't too quick to join the CF bike craze and won't be too quick to climb aboard a 787 either. Let the bugs work their way out first. Boeing has never built a lemon and I don't expect they will in the 787.

They're now making the 747-800 - 19-feet longer. That's a big plane. They had 3 or 4 in the plant being built yesterday, even though this plane is still in the certification process as well. One of the first 747-800's we saw being built is a "private business jet" being built for an undisclosed owner.

I work for Boeing and I happen to work on the 787 currently. I am not on the design team even though I am a structures designer. As has been noted, the 787 concept is truly ground breaking in many ways. There is an unspeakable amount of engineering that is involved in a project like this, mind boggling actually, with some very talented people involved. I happen to be extremely confident in our ability to get the airplanes delivered, but not until they are safe and ready, completely, for passenger operations. If the original schedule had been pushed further out, we probably would have extended beyond that as well. In my years of experience, tight schedules are a good thing, as it will keep the work focused and driven. And as Pcad noted, we have a HUGE backorder of airplanes. Our customers know us as one of the most capable and experienced engineering and manufacturing outfits in the entire world. I am looking forward to the delivery of our 1st 787 and watching the stock take off.
As a side note, the (small) fire that occurred on one of our test airplanes is regarded as a good thing ironically. It helped us find something that was obviously an issue and it proved the functionality of the emergency equipment in an uncontrolled environment. Blessed are the failures, as we learn 10x more that we do from success.

I work at a plant in Georgia where many of carbon fiber parts you saw are made. We make control surfaces and other parts for most of the planes mentioned in this thread and many more. We LOVE that backlog and we are gearing up to build more parts and at higher rates to help satisfy that demand.

edit - We usually refer to the material as "graphite" rather than carbon fiber.

I've taken the tour that BengeBoy mentions, and if you are ever visiting the Seattle area, it's well worth the time to make the trek up to Everett for the tour.

Many in my wife's family work at Boeing, so we ocassionally get invited to accompany them to events, family open house days, etc. My father-in-law used to work in the mockup/simulation group before he retired and I once got to fly both the 767 and 747 simulators during a family open house - that was very cool! I'll never forget going to the 777 rollout ceremony, and the "private" tour of the Everett plant with my brother-in-law afterward, that was one heck of a show.

I too am amazed by the Boeing "commute to work month" teams and the miles that they put in. Microsoft also has a couple of teams that put up crazy big numbers...

Another bicycle-related fact: The Everett factory is so big they ride bicycles inside to get around.

That may go back to the bomber plant at Willow Run during WW2...