Volvo Aero

Volvo Aero was a Swedish

It was originally established as Nohab Flygmotorfabriker AB in 1930 to produce aero engines. The firm became a part of SAAB during 1937; Volvo later purchased most of the stock, thus it was renamed Svenska Flygmotor AB (SFA) and later Volvo Flygmotor. It became the major engine supplier of the Swedish Air Force during the post-war period. During the 1970s, Volvo Flygmotor branched into the commercial aerospace sector, offering overhauls and subcomponent production for several international engine manufacturers, as well as into the European space sector.

During the 2000s, Volvo Aero focused on cooperative ventures with various partner companies around the globe. As a result of the Great Recession, Volvo Aero experienced a sustained downturn in business, resulting in layoffs and contributing to the firm's sale. Parent company Volvo decided to sell their aerospace division amid the economic downturn; GKN emerged amongst several bidders as the frontrunner, finalising its purchase of Volvo Aero during 2012.

History

Nohab Flygmotorfabriker AB was founded in Trollhättan, Sweden, in 1930 to produce aircraft engines for the Swedish Board of Aviation. As reflected in the name of the company, it was a subsidiary of the Swedish manufacturing and railway locomotive specialist NOHAB.^[4] In 1937, the firm became a part of the newly-founded SAAB; however, during 1941, Volvo acquired a majority of the stock. Accordingly, the company's name was changed to Svenska Flygmotor AB (SFA), and later on Volvo Flygmotor.^[5]

During the 1950s, the company leveraged partnerships with foreign engine manufacturers, helping it to acquire expertise in the recently developed

Seeking to further growth of its commercial operations, Volvo Flygmotor became involved in the European Space Program, producing a number of components for the rocket engines that power the Ariane of heavy launch vehicles.^[5] The firm successfully expanded significantly beyond its domestic market. Recognised that that its name needed to be easily recognised internationally, the company changed its name to the Volvo Aero Corporation during the early 1990s.^[5]

By the late 1990s, Volvo Aero's component range included fan cases, fan-compressor structures, compressor rotors, shafts, combustor structures, vanes, low-pressure turbine (LPT) cases, turbine structures, rocket nozzles, combustion chambers, and rocket engine turbines for both civilian and military purposes.^[5] By 2003, the firm's workforce comprised 3,600 employees, it also recorded total sales of 0.9 billion euros during that year. Presently, Volvo Aero is a partner in more than ten commercial engine programmes and components produced by the company are installed in more than 90% of all large commercial aircraft engines sold.^[6]

During the 2000s, further efforts were made by Volvo Aero towards close cooperation with various industrial partners.

By 2011, Volvo was seeking to dispose of its aero engine division to focus on its production of trucks and construction equipment. In March 2011, British engineering group GKN was reportedly being regarded as the frontrunner to acquire the company as several other bidders, including German engine specialist MTU Aero Engines, as well as private equity firms The Carlyle Group and Nordic Capital, decided to withdraw from their own acquisition ambitions.^[4] On 6 July 2012, Volvo Aero was acquired by the GKN in a SEK 6.9 billion deal.^[10][11] The sale was viewed as one step in a wider trend in the aerospace industry towards consolidation.^[4]

Following the Volvo Aero acquisition, GKN entered into a 15 month period of restructuring.^[12] During 2012, Volvo Aero declared that it intended to expand its engine component production range over the coming years.^[13]

Test facility

In the 1950s, the Swedish Air Board constructed an unusual test facility at Flygmotor. This was an engine test facility, a form of wind tunnel, which could operate at high inlet pressures, thus high Reynolds numbers. This tunnel was unique in being water-powered. A sealed underground chamber was blasted out of the granite beneath the Göta Canal. When the canal was allowed to flood the chamber, air was driven from it at high pressure and through the test chamber. A supersonic test of an engine could be carried out for around 10 minutes, after which it took 24 hours to pump the chamber dry again.^[14] Use of this test facility was shared with Rolls-Royce, who used it in 1953 to develop the afterburners of the Avon RA7 engine for the Supermarine Swift F3 and Saab 32 Lansen.^[14] The Avon RA14 afterburner would also be tested here, produced as the Flygmotor RM6B for the Saab 35 Draken.^[15]

Products

Aircraft engines and components

Volvo Aero is a supplier of single-engine systems for military aircraft. These have largely been in partnership with other engine manufacturers, such as the RM1 (de Havilland Goblin) for the Saab 21R, RM2 (de Havilland Ghost) for the Saab J29, RM5 and RM6 (Rolls-Royce Avon) for the Saab 32 Lansen, the RM6B for the Saab 35 Draken, and the RM8 (Pratt & Whitney JT8D) for the Saab 37 Viggen. The Saab JAS 39 Gripen's RM12 engine is a derivative of the General Electric F404.

Svenska Flygmotor also designed the B42, a horizontally-opposed four-cylinder engine, intended for the

The company have produced the F-series hydraulic motors under the Volvo Flygmotor, "Volvo Hydraulics" and VOAC brands. The main feature of these products are the spherical pistons each with a laminated segment. This technology permits a large angle (40°) between the shaft and the cylinder barrel.

Locations

Volvo Aero subsidiaries are located in the United States and Norway, in addition to Volvo's home country, Sweden. The Norwegian plant, in Kongsberg, is the former Norsk Jetmotor, itself formerly a part of Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk.

References

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