Ducommun Receives Airbus A350 XWB Contract

On February 17, 2015, the global aerospace and defense manufacturer Ducommun Incorporated was awarded their first direct contract from Airbus. The contract calls for Ducommun to provide titanium components for the Airbus A350 XWB wide body aircraft with an end goal of making the aircraft lighter, stronger, and more energy efficient. These new parts will be produced in Coxsackie, New York and have an end use installation on the aft fuselage of the aircraft. Ducommun currently serves the A350 XWB program as a subcontractor for Airbus. The company also supplies A320 and A330 structural components along with A321 airliner aluminum fuselage skins. The Airbus A350 XWB is a family of long-range, twin-engine wide body jet airliners. There currently exists 3 different models—A350-800, A350-900, and A350-1000—with primary differences being in the amount of seating each can provide. As the successor to the A330 and A340, this new-generation airliner competes with the Boeing 787 and 777 families. The A350 is Airbus’ first aircraft to feature a carbon fiber reinforced polymer fuselage and wing structures—offering 25% in fuel efficiency when compared to current generation aircrafts. Currently, Airbus has received 780 orders from 40 different customers worldwide for the A350 aircraft. Established in 1849, Ducommun is the oldest company in California. The company’s influence is seen through usage and contracts made by the United States military, Homeland Security, and NASA. Their manufactured products are used in a variety of applications including commercial, military, and space aircraft. Some notable aircraft that use Ducommun components and sub assemblies include the Boeing 737, Boeing 777, C-17, Apache, Chinook, Blackhawk, and the Space Shuttle. Headquartered in Carson, California, the company has 2,000 employees with facilities located in California, Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, and New York.