L&T's Robotic Drilling Machine Automates LCA Tejas Wing Production, Slashing Drilling Time by Over 95 Percent

India's indigenous defence manufacturing sector has received a major boost with the introduction of a new robotic drilling system by Larsen & Toubro (L&T).

This advanced technology significantly accelerates the production of wings for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, a crucial fighter jet program for the Indian Air Force (IAF).

In collaboration with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), that manufactures the Tejas, L&T has implemented a robotic drilling machine that reduces the time to drill each hole in the aircraft's wings from a previous average of 25-35 minutes to a mere one minute. This represents a dramatic increase in production efficiency.

The wings of the LCA Tejas each require around 8,000 holes for assembly, fastening various components, and integration with the aircraft's frame. Traditionally, these holes were drilled manually. This labor-intensive process was a significant time constraint, taking thousands of hours per aircraft and slowing down HAL's production schedule, especially as it aims to increase the delivery rate of the advanced LCA-Tejas Mk1A variant to the IAF.

L&T, a major Indian engineering and manufacturing firm, and a key supplier of wings for the LCA Tejas program, recognized the need for improvement. The company invested in cutting-edge automation technology to address the inefficiency of manual drilling. The resulting robotic drilling machine has dramatically reduced the drilling time, achieving an improvement of over 95% compared to manual methods.

The robotic system uses precise automation to maintain accuracy, consistency, and quality, all vital in aerospace manufacturing. It incorporates sophisticated sensors and control systems. These systems dynamically adjust the drilling process to account for differences in material thickness and type. This not only makes the process faster but also reduces errors, the need for corrections, and material waste, ensuring the wings meet the exacting standards for combat aircraft.

Currently, the robotic machine drills approximately 66% of the 8,000 holes needed for each wing set, totaling around 5,280 holes. The remaining holes, presumably those in locations requiring specialized techniques or manual attention, are still drilled by hand. Nevertheless, automating a substantial portion of the drilling process has significantly shortened the overall wing production time.

The impact of this automation is substantial. Manually drilling 5,280 holes, at an average of 30 minutes each, would take an estimated 2,640 hours. The robotic system completes the same task in just 88 hours, representing a time savings of over 2,500 hours for each set of wings.

This increased efficiency enables HAL to accelerate wing production, contributing significantly to its goal of delivering 16 to 18 LCA-Tejas Mk1A aircraft to the IAF annually. This advancement is crucial for strengthening India's indigenous defence capabilities and reducing reliance on foreign suppliers.

 

[Ammoman]

Who drills holes by drill. Are we still in the 20th century? Robots have been doing this for over 20 years. It proves HAL is an archaic company that is harming the defence of the country.

If I was HAL, I would never admit I was drilling thousand of holes by hand. We are relying on this company for the defence of India? Is that in their Union contract?

Do you think Tata or the Kalyani Group would do that? They are businesses that produce and meet schedules.

 

[sanket]

That's nice, but what about the engine? Where is it? Lots of big talks happened last month about it reaching within a few days, but it hasn't arrived yet. Last month, February 13th, there was news about the first GE-404 being shipped. Even after one month, the shipment hasn't arrived.

 

[swatkats_razor]

This should have been implemented since, like, 1998. What were the HAL using previously? Hand drills?
Such a waste of time and energy. Strangely, both those qualities hold no value in a Sarkaari firm.

 

[Hari Sud]

LCA should have been a private sector project and non Babu dominated project of last 30 years at DRDO.

 

[abhinav srivastava]

Is HAL stuck in 70's and 80's tech?. It should upgrade its production tech.

 

[KINDA SUS]

Give 90% of defense contracts to the private sector.. especially aircraft manufacture.

 

[Abs29]

Is HAL stuck in 70's and 80's tech?. It should upgrade its production tech.

Even that's being too generous. HAL, until very recently, did not even use standardized jigs for drilling holes, and often multiple samples of aircraft or helicopters belonging to the same platform family would have deviations in the exact place of machining and fasteners, which obviously made interchangeability a totally foreign concept.

 

[SK]

This is a really good news & shows that important of Tejas-MK1, it's not just a 4th Gen jets but the program that developed Indian Aerospace industry.

I hope that HAL also solves the existing issues with Dhruv to reduce the accidents & again make it the workhorse for Indian Security Forces.

 

[Shiva]

Great.
This is a phase of complete automation of such manual process.
Resistance from existing team, as it will lose their employability, resistance from HAL resource managers, will contribute for this split of holes into two parts.
But now, L&T will furher focus on additional remaining and will definitely pave a way in next phase for complete autiomation.
This will speed up activities.
and also this will make a way, for other major activities, which often requires manual intervention, could gain similar change.
It all depends on encouragement from Government, CEOs of the activities.

A good trend to speed up strategic asset development activities.

 

[Kira]

If private firms can use modern assembly techniques and be a little innovative at that, then they can certainly produce, assemble, and maintain foreign aircraft designs and, in due course, depending on order sizes, perhaps even start making their own planes (although this will require a consortium of firms rather than a single company).

 

[Ayush raj]

HAL should adopt modern manufacturing and assembling tools. It will increase the quality of the product while reducing the time. It is the AI age; HAL should integrate AI machining and tooling into production. It will increase precision, lower labor costs. These AI machines can work 24/7 if needed, and they are many times faster than a normal human. HAL should have started upgrading its production facility when it got orders for the first batch of MK1 jets.

 

[Roberto]

If private firms can use modern assembly techniques and be a little innovative at that, then they can certainly produce, assemble, and maintain foreign aircraft designs and, in due course, depending on order sizes, perhaps even start making their own planes (although this will require a consortium of firms rather than a single company).

At least modernize — like Rafale, with DSI and L-band radar in the canard root ("horn"); Su-30, too.

 

[Narendran]

Whenever some positive news about Indian defence manufacturing surfaces there emerges a swarm of professional cynics to inform us that the positive news is in fact a negative one. The real intention of these cynics is to nurture a sense of despondency in the minds of the Indians.

 

[GMR]

That's the strength of Pvt. Sector partnership.👍. Hope one day we will move out of socialistic mindset and stop feeding the white elephants...

 

[Aayush Pratap]

8000 holes in each wing, how does it maintain structural integrity?

 

[Shanker]

After supplying a couple of squadrons for Tejas MK1A, the whole process must be optimised as much as possible through automation, AI, etc. for higher output with improved reliability! 🙂

 

[Sandeep]

Cutting down on any delays helps a lot and other companies should use a similar technology and approach. Using more robots or automation to carry out any precision drilling or other tasks can do the work quickly and better.

 

[Leored]

What babus will do with screwdrivers 🪛 then. They can't lunch on wings. And gossip on wings. They have already plan of damaging new fighters. They need to retire. What about people joking eating and dinner in pilot seat. Remove them too.

 

[Yogindra]

People are making comments without having correct information. This shows their lack of knowledge in aircraft production technology.

The information provided here is totally wrong. There can not be saving of 2500 hrs amounting to 3 months cycle time reduction. Author may verify the facts and write artucle correctly. This is totally wrong information

HAL is having robotic drilling machine since beginning of the LCA programme (since 2013 onwards). All first two batches of 40 aircraft sets of wings have been produced with this machine.

Now L&T may be buying same machine. Thus could be the fact.

 

[Gaon ke chhoro]

I'm amazed and also mildly amused by the proclivity of this motley bunch of folks, who are commenting at this portal, to jump up and down, and blow hot and cold the whole time. In the process common sense also goes for a toss. I really don't know what's the personal achievements listing for each one in this group but the confidence everyone has in berating the top scientists and engineers of this country for their idiocy, incompetency and non performance is nothing short of astounding. And of course when the group feels generous they do some charity too by doling out free advices on what's the way ahead that the idiotic scientists and the engineers should take so that they can restore some of their lost pride!

Of course, HAL and DRDO are the favorite whipping children who need to be kept on the leash by this group so that they don't go astray. HAL has been drilling holes on the wing assemblies using hand drills all these years! What a sacrilege. Even my carpenter used a motorized, electric drill the other day... Well gentlemen I have some stale news for you. The opposite of using highly sophisticated CNC machines that can self configure and self-correct themselves based on the material, it's thickness etc is not a hand drill. And second, Tejas cleared it's FOC on L&T manufactured wings in 2019. And since then it's L&T who has manufactured these wings. Boo hoo hoo...

Words are cheap but be careful when you open your mouth to deliver them because the mouth is yours. Enough said....

 

[Ammoman]

I'm amazed and also mildly amused by the proclivity of this motley bunch of folks, who are commenting at this portal, to jump up and down, and blow hot and cold the whole time. In the process common sense also goes for a toss. I really don't know what's the personal achievements listing for each one in this group but the confidence everyone has in berating the top scientists and engineers of this country for their idiocy, incompetency and non performance is nothing short of astounding. And of course when the group feels generous they do some charity too by doling out free advices on what's the way ahead that the idiotic scientists and the engineers should take so that they can restore some of their lost pride!

Of course, HAL and DRDO are the favorite whipping children who need to be kept on the leash by this group so that they don't go astray. HAL has been drilling holes on the wing assemblies using hand drills all these years! What a sacrilege. Even my carpenter used a motorized, electric drill the other day... Well gentlemen I have some stale news for you. The opposite of using highly sophisticated CNC machines that can self configure and self-correct themselves based on the material, it's thickness etc is not a hand drill. And second, Tejas cleared it's FOC on L&T manufactured wings in 2019. And since then it's L&T who has manufactured these wings. Boo hoo hoo...

Words are cheap but be careful when you open your mouth to deliver them because the mouth is yours. Enough said....

Unfortunately, this is true. This reported by many technical journals a while back. Just because it seems unbelievable, but it is true and a joke. If you think it is not true, then you offer the evidence.

This is from a technical journal "While the two existing lines are already operational—one at Bengaluru and another at Nashik—the third assembly line has received a major boost with the installation of a robotic drilling machine by Larsen & Toubro (L&T), dramatically accelerating the production of wings for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas program. “The robotic drill assembly line has reduced the time required to drill each hole in the wings from 25-35 minutes to just one minute, enhancing efficiency and supporting the accelerated production of the LCA-Tejas Mk1A variant,” explained a senior HAL engineer, adding that each wing of the LCA-Tejas requires approximately 8,000 holes to be drilled for assembly, fastening, and integration with other airframe components."

 

[Strongman]

Hopefully, this will result in a lesser number of people (one drilling and three supervising the one driller) and fewer screw-ups and cost reductions.