KMM Lincoln factory. Courtesy: Kawasaki

Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. has recently announced that it will establish an assembly line for the cargo doors of Boeing's state-of-the-art commercial airplane, the 777X, at Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp., U.S.A. (KMM), which is Kawasaki's U.S. local subsidiary located in Lincoln, Nebraska.

This is the first time for Kawasaki to establish an aerostructures production line in the U.S. The necessary equipment is scheduled for installation in the work area of about 2,800 square meters in the existing building prior to March 2017, so that the factory can start the operation from May 2017.

The 777X is the newest member of Boeing's bestselling 777 family, the market-leading twin-engined large passenger airplane. Production is set to begin in 2017, with the first delivery targeted for 2020.

Kawasaki is engaging in the development and manufacturing of forward and mid fuselage panels, main landing gear wells, pressure bulkheads and cargo doors for the 777X. For the assembly work of the cargo door at the Lincoln factory, Kawasaki will use an automatic riveter and a painting robot developed in-house to enhance the automation and speed of production and ensure high quality, thereby increasing the efficiency in production.

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