Rolls-Royce Launches New Electronics Manufacturing Capability at Purdue to Support U.S. Defense Engines

    March 12, 2020
    Purdue University photo/Rebecca McElhoe
    Unveiling an electronic engine controller for the Rolls-Royce AE 3007H jet engine during an announcement of a new engine controls facility in Discovery Park District are from left Brian Edelman, president of Purdue Research Foundation; Tom Bell, president of defense and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America; Mitch Daniels, Purdue University president; and Candice Bineyard, director of defense programs for Rolls-Royce North America.
    Unveiling an electronic engine controller for the Rolls-Royce AE 3007H jet engine during an announcement of a new engine controls facility in Discovery Park District are from left Brian Edelman, president of Purdue Research Foundation; Tom Bell, president of defense and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America; Mitch Daniels, Purdue University president; and Candice Bineyard, director of defense programs for Rolls-Royce North America.

    Rolls-Royce has created a new engine controls capability near the campus of Purdue University to support its U.S. defense business, including the F130 engine competing for the U.S. Air Force B-52 program.

    Rolls-Royce will assemble and test electronic engine controllers, which help manage in-flight engine operations. The first controller has been completed at Rolls-Royce in the Purdue Research Foundation’s Discovery Park District adjacent to the Purdue University campus in West Lafayette, Indiana, and will be installed onto a Rolls-Royce AE 3007H engine, manufactured at the company’s facilities in Indianapolis.

    Tom Bell, Rolls-Royce, president - Defense and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America, said, “Rolls-Royce has partnered with Purdue University for decades, and we are excited to launch our new controls capability near the campus to assemble and test these high-tech engine components. Whether for the Rolls-Royce AE family of engines or for our competitive F130 engine for the B-52, these new controllers will support U.S. military pilots as they fly around the world, offering the highest-quality technical product.”

    Rolls-Royce has created a new engine controls capability near the campus of Purdue University to support its U.S. defense business, including the F130 engine competing for the U.S. Air Force B-52 program.

    Rolls-Royce will assemble and test electronic engine controllers, which help manage in-flight engine operations. The first controller has been completed at Rolls-Royce in the Purdue Research Foundation’s Discovery Park District adjacent to the Purdue University campus in West Lafayette, Indiana, and will be installed onto a Rolls-Royce AE 3007H engine, manufactured at the company’s facilities in Indianapolis.

    Tom Bell, Rolls-Royce, president - Defense and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America, said, “Rolls-Royce has partnered with Purdue University for decades, and we are excited to launch our new controls capability near the campus to assemble and test these high-tech engine components. Whether for the Rolls-Royce AE family of engines or for our competitive F130 engine for the B-52, these new controllers will support U.S. military pilots as they fly around the world, offering the highest-quality technical product.”

    Electronic engine controllers are responsible for control of complicated gas turbine engines, monitoring and adjusting multiple factors such as air and fuel flow. The high-tech controllers, which are about the size of a laptop computer, are safety-critical technical components that reduce pilot workload and enhance fuel efficiency. The very first engine equipped with the new controller will be delivered to Northrop Grumman for installation on a U.S. Navy Triton aircraft. Additionally, the new controllers will be installed on AE 3007 engines bound for the U.S. Air Force Global Hawk and the U.S. Navy MQ-25 Stingray aircraft.

    The facility at Purdue also will assemble electronic controllers for Rolls-Royce F130 engines for the Air Force B-52 strategic bomber re-engining program, if the company wins the engine competition later this year. F130 engines also would be manufactured at the company’s Indianapolis facilities, and Rolls-Royce would add more than 150 new jobs in manufacturing, engineering, program management and other positions for the F130 program. Additional photos and video can be found here.

    Rolls-Royce has delivered more than 7,000 engines in its AE family from Indianapolis, for a wide variety of defense and commercial aircraft. Defense aircraft powered by Rolls-Royce AE engines include the revolutionary V-22 tiltrotor, the global C-130J fleet, and the Global Hawk high-altitude, unmanned aerial vehicle. On the commercial side, AE engines power Embraer 135 and 145 aircraft, the Cessna Citation X+ and other aircraft.

    A $600 million Rolls-Royce investment in modernization and technology programs is nearing completion in Indiana, including state-of-the-art advanced manufacturing at its Indianapolis facilities – paving the way for optimized production of an engine in the F130 size class.

    Rolls-Royce employs 6,000 people in 27 states across the U.S, literally coast-to-coast, from southern California to Walpole, Massachusetts. In addition, Rolls-Royce business supports more than 52,000 jobs across the US, adding nearly $9 billion to the nation’s economy each year.

    Rolls-Royce has invested nearly $1 billion in research and development in the US since 2013.