Free Example of Modern Aircraft Designs Essay

Free Aviation Essay Example

Abstract

The aviation industry is continuously evolving by combining traditional methods and modern techniques of creating aircrafts. New materials are increasingly being used to suit the new designs of aircrafts that have come up. All these changes are attributed to the new market conditions, financial environment and customer requirements. In the past, none of these factors was prevailing; however, due to globalization, the aviation industry is adapting to the pre-existing conditions to be able to survive in the challenging marketing conditions. As a result, the competitive environment of the aviation industry is undergoing major changes. The changes are also causing the aviation industry to adapt to the new financial environment and safety regulations.

New Material in Aviation Industry

The new global changes that are taking place are significantly affecting the aviation industry. To adapt to the new situation, the aviation industry is increasingly using newer and lighter materials, which results in a number of challenges. The first challenge is that the new materials are extremely expensive, as compared to the previously used ones (Upham, 2003). Thus, direct costs are increasing, causing an increase in expenses. The second challenge is that flaws in the new materials are difficult to detect and repair (Upham, 2003). However, some of the new materials do have their advantages, such as effectively absorbing moisture. Therefore, new materials have a significant impact on the aviations industries.

The new safety considerations are affecting the aviation industry, too. The first factor of the safety regulations affecting the aviation industry is design changes (Upham, 2003). Engineers are having troubles creating aircrafts that are cheap to manufacture and able to meet all the safety regulations. Installing safety equipment in aircrafts is extremely expensive and results in minimum profits (Upham, 2003). Laws relating to safety regulations are also affecting the aviation industry, causing aircraft manufacturing companies to either close down or follow the regulations (Upham, 2003). This might be expensive for the companies, but they have to follow regulations. Given the above, laws and regulations are affecting aviation industries as well.

The aviation industry is also affected by customer requirements. In the past, customers had different requirements in comparison to the current situation. Nowadays, customers are considering safety and comfort as their priorities when choosing an airline. As a result, the aviation industry is extremely affected, because it is expensive to build aircrafts that are comfortable and at the same time safe (Upham, 2003). Secondly, designing aircrafts that incorporate these features is challenging to engineers. Therefore, customer requirements can be said to affect the aviation industry.

The usage of new materials for manufacturing aircrafts is making a significant impact on the aviation industry. According to researchers, older materials are weaker and heavier, as compared to the new materials. Test results indicate that new materials can help aircraft manufacturing companies cut down fuel consumption. Fuel consumption is also high in the transportation industry, because a lot of energy is required to transport heavy objects. On the other hand, lighter materials require less fuel because the energy required to transport them is low. In this case, the new materials are more reliable than old materials.

New materials make it much easier to design aircrafts, as opposed to the old ones. According to different engineers across the globe, they prefer using new materials to create aircraft designs because they are easy to shape (H, Marie-Laure & Bernard, 2009). Additionally, new materials are stronger and lighter than old materials. According to aircraft engineers, old materials do not have the properties they need to create a lot of aircraft designs. In addition, being weaker than new materials, they pose a lot more safety hazards. Therefore, new materials are more reliable than the old ones.

New materials are corrosion resistant, and they can withstand high pressure. Old materials comprise metals, while the new ones comprise composite materials (H, Marie-Laure & Bernard, 2009). According to research studies, metals are extremely corrosive. Aluminum is one of the old materials, and it is more corrosive than composite materials. Therefore, its corrosion properties reduce the depreciation period of the plane. On the other hand, composite materials are not corrosive; hence, they can last longer due to their durability. For this reason, new materials are more reliable than the old ones.

Modern Aircraft Design and Safety Regulations

Currently, new safety features are being incorporated to protect people from injuries in case of an accident. The first safety feature aircrafts are being fitted out with is an automatic fire extinguisher in the engine (Godfrey, 2003). If there is an accident and the engine catches fire, the fire extinguisher automatically extinguishes the fire before the plane explodes. This system uses the same principle that home fire extinguishers, but it is more sophisticated. It is filled with different liquids that can put out oil fires and any other fire that could cause the aircraft to explode.

The second safety feature is electronic gadgets installed in all sections of an aircraft. They are extremely sensitive to temperature, wear and tear, and air pressure. With their help, pilots are able to detect or foresee any problem and prevent any potential accidents (Godfrey, 2003). For example, the electronic gadgets can detect depressurization, thus enabling pilots to stabilize the aircraft and prevent an accident.

The third safety feature is new probe lights to make the aircraft more visible in any kind of weather and at night. According to aircraft engineers, many accidents occur due to poor visibility (Godfrey, 2003). Installed in the front, wings and rear of the aircraft, the lights make it more visible at all times, thus helping other airlines to easily identify the aircraft and reduce accidents by more than half. According to engineers, this has had a massive impact on safety features, because they are making aircrafts safer.

Given the above, safety regulations and materials used for building aircrafts are constantly changing. The safety regulations and materials used a decade ago are not applicable in the current environment (Wells, 2001). New materials that are lighter and stronger are being used to build aircrafts. In addition to this, safety regulations must be followed. As a result, aircrafts are fitted out with new safety features to meet customer requirements and aircraft safety regulations. It is in the best interests of the aviation industry to put in place measures that would allow it to adapt to the new situation.

To adapt to the new environment, the aviation industry will have to use new materials that cost a lot of money. It will also have to come up with new ways or strategies to adapt to the current and future changes (Wells, 2001). This will prevent aircraft manufacturing companies from closure or making losses.

The aviation industry engineers are looking for new ways to create the most reliable and less costly material. This would ensure that the financial environment does not affect the industry, despite the cost of the materials (Wells, 2001). According to engineers, composite materials are among the best materials for building aircrafts. They ensure that airlines are provided with excellent aircrafts at cheap prices. Having engineers research for the most reliable and cost-effective materials is one strategy that the aviation industry is using to adapt to the new changes.

Finally, the aviation industry is seeking collaboration with airlines, so that they can build aircrafts that are in line with the customer and safety regulations (Australian Government, 2012). The aviation industry is relying on the information provided by airlines for the purpose of creating new aircrafts. Airlines are also providing financial support to the aviation industry to make it possible for the latter to adapt to the current changes (Australian Government, 2012). Thus, airlines are becoming partners or forming an integral part of the aviation industry. As a result, the aviation industry is able to easily adapt to the situation and be prepared to timely respond to any future changes.

As far as air transportation is concerned, businesses will be able to operate across borders, since this is one of their main goals. By moving from one region to another, most of their customers encounter different terminologies, cultures, regulations and safety processes (Strauch, 2010). Therefore, the aviation industry must ensure that it does not violate any of these unique environments. It must also ensure that its own unique culture is maintained.

The aviation industry has always seen collaboration as one of the most reliable options that ensures adaptation to unique cultures (Australian Government, 2012). Therefore, it is seeking contact with relevant organizations across the globe to come up with terminologies that would suit all cultures. The aviation industry is studying different cultures to avoid offending a certain group or society. This way it is able to survive and adapt skillfully to unique environments.

An excellent example of this is how the Australian aviation industry has been continuing to adapt to different environments with a clean safety record for the last decade (Australian Government, 2012). The Australian aviation industry is collaborating with governments across the globe for the purpose of identifying themselves with different cultures and safety regulations. In the process, they are coming up with different terminologies to suit different regions (Australian Government, 2012). As a result, the Australian aviation industry is able to meet safety regulations, as well as maintain a clean safety record.

Conclusion

Materials and safety regulations that were used in the past are extremely different from the ones used nowadays. Based on the above analysis, the aviation industry has come a long way, and it still has a long way to go. To achieve this, new and durable materials are being increasingly used. Safety regulations and culture considerations are also being taken into account in the design process. To always remain on top, the aviation industry needs to adapt to the challenging financial environment, as well as other unique environments. Therefore, it strives to ensure continuity in production of excellent aircrafts that meet all the requirements.