Aircraft X Ray Laboratories

Aircraft X Ray Laboratories - That was back in 1985 and over the next three decades, Guzman worked his way up the ladder at the Huntington Park, California, metal finisher, located near Los Angeles. He held almost every position at the facility, including plant operations manager for many years, before ascending to become president of the company in 2018.

AXL made its name in the early days of the Southern California metal finishing industry by pioneering the concept of offering a full range of inspection and surface treatments at one location, thereby reducing transportation costs and ensuring delivery dates.

Aircraft X Ray Laboratories

Fast forward to 2018 and current owner Gary Newton felt he needed a change at the top to keep AXL in competition with other regional aerospace metal finishing operations. That meant promoting Guzman from plant manager to president.

A Look Back At Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories

In 1938, George Newton had an idea while working with the Douglas Company as a purchasing agent; he identified a need for the inspection of castings before the machining process. He believed that he could x-ray castings and eliminate the bad parts prior to incurring the expense and spending the time allotted in the final machining process.

It was from this very vision that Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories came into existence. Please make sure that Javascript and cookies are enabled on your browser and that you are not blocking them from loading. "Rinses that should take 1-2 minutes are no longer done in 10 seconds or 10 minutes," Peterson says.

"The pencil whipping exercise of signing the paperwork has been replaced by automatic documentation. There is no question of how long the parts were in the tank. This profile is powered by Birdeye. Over 90,000 businesses use Birdeye everyday to get more reviews and manage all customer feedback.

Birdeye helps millions of local businesses to be found online with all their reviews and accurate business information. Learn more about Birdeye Copyright © 2023 Privacy Policy [Log On] In addition to bringing the latest in process automation to AXL, Guzman is also seriously concerned with environmental issues facing California plating operators, as well as reducing costs where he can.

Pioneering Inspection And Surface Treatments

AXL recently partnered with Miles Chemical and Liddell Engineering to improve the shop's waste treatment facility by reducing the cake they were hauling to the landfill by over 80%. Its supplier, Miles Chemical, worked with AXL on the project, even though it dramatically reduced the chemistry it needed to purchase from them.

AXL made its name in the early days of the Southern California metal finishing industry by pioneering the concept of offering a full range of inspection and surface treatments at one location, thereby reducing transportation costs and ensuring delivery dates.

Since his promotion to lead the company, Guzman has made many significant changes to Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories (AXL), many of which have propelled the shop into becoming one of the premier facilities in the U.S. and earning it a Products Finishing Top Shops award from the annual benchmarking survey.

"Name it and I've done it," Guzman says. "It's helped me truly relate to everyone who works here, because I've been in their shoes and probably done that job, too. It was very good experience for me.

"The changes that Justin has put into place have just been fantastic," says Gary Newton, the CEO of the company and whose father, George, founded the shop in 1938. "Justin had a lot of great ideas and initiatives that weren't

getting heard and acted on, so it was important to make him the leader of the team and get those changes put into place." It was George Newton who initiated many of the inspection methods the industry now uses every day, such as chemical conversion coating, painting, anodizing, etching and surface treatments.

While working with the Douglas Company as a purchasing agent, Newton identified a need for the inspection of castings before the machining process, believing that he could X-ray castings and eliminate the bad parts prior to incurring the expense and spending the time allotted in the

final machining process. Glassdoor gives you an inside look at what it's like to work at Aircraft X-ray Laboratories, including salaries, reviews, office photos, and more. This is the Aircraft X-ray Laboratories company profile. All content is posted anonymously by employees working at Aircraft X-ray Laboratories.

During World War II, Newtown expanded AXL to multiple locations across the U.S., opening additional X-ray plants in Wichita, Kansas; New Orleans; and Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. He also opened two magnetic particle inspection plants in Los Angeles county for the growing aerospace market in California.

Guzman says the high-tech automation upgrade was a necessity, and now Workflo provides the means to incorporate its experience and success into its business processes. It reduces AXL's supervisory oversight, eliminates opportunities for human error and reduces the blame, shame and frustration of repeating mistakes.

"We thought we understood how to run our waste treatment facility, but we were wrong," Guzman says. "Going it alone, we did not realize how much technology had changed and what could be done through those advances.

But working with great suppliers, we got to where we needed to be." BeyondRelations implemented its Workflo/Worx software at AXL to provide improvements in planning and tracking the work through the shop. Guzman says the biggest impact is in the planning department with improved turnaround, greater confidence and consistency.

Items such as contract review are now a real part of the process, as Workflo will not allow them to plan a part for a specification of which they are not approved. In operation for more than 60 years, Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories is a provider of a range of certified nondestructive testing services.

It offers radiographic, fluorescent, penetrant, magnetic and mechanical testing services and inspections. The company also provides chemical coating, painting, anodizing, etching and surface treatment. In addition, it offers electro conductivity, X-ray, proof loading, priming, painting and fuel tank coating services.

Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories is located in Huntington Park, Calif. "I'm finding out that the metal finishing industry is a bit of a dinosaur," Guzman says. "It was always, 'We're doing the job, we're making money, so let's leave it alone.' For example, people would leave or retire and take a lot of knowledge with them and that needed to change.

One of the things we are looking to do is divorce the operator from that control and make it more so that our system controls everything, no matter who is here. We control the secret recipe, we control every nuance."

AXL worked with Scott Peterson, president of BeyondRelations, to develop and implement Workflo/Worx for real-time operator guidance, data collection and documentation that removes burdens and time from the operator as Guzman wanted. Peterson says the system's Automation Assist feature takes the mind of the operator off the clock, making room for the parts that are being processed.

Guzman says the biggest impact is in the planning department with improved turnaround, greater confidence and consistency. Items such as contract review are now a real part of the process, as Workflo will not allow them to plan a part for a specification of which they are not approved.

Guzman says the implementation of TrueLogic's TrueChem system has significantly improved efficiency in many areas, particularly standardization and traceability. By organizing procedures, documents, formulas and data in its user-friendly and controlled single repository, the software greatly helps in daily operations, preparing for audits, and improving audit results and customer reviews as the data is turned into useful information, which is easily

viewed and understood. Matt Akin, TrueLogic's president, says one of the many benefits of TrueChem is how the AXL team is empowered with a proactive approach to managing the processes the way Guzman wants. Whether it's based on historical experience or engineering standards, Akin says an unlimited number of TrueChem rules and real-time data analysis can be utilized to automatically look for discrete events or trends.

Starting out more than 35 years ago on the loading docks and driving a forklift at Aircraft X-Ray Laboratories, Justin Guzman has seen firsthand how almost every facet of the finishing industry was run, albeit the good, the bad and the ugly.

"The program will then alert AXL team members about the situation and recommend courses of action, and this enables them to act before a problem occurs," Akin says. TrueChem continuously watches for events and trends with every new data point recorded with every shift, every day.

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Allegiant Aircraft Seating

Allegiant Aircraft Seating - While several airlines have moved to ensure families can sit together for free, each airline has its own policy. Delta Air Lines, for example, offers its own version of a dynamic seat map that blocks off certain rows in the main cabin so only groups of three or more people traveling together can book them.

And in December, Southwest said it will start testing a new pilot program that will allow families with children to pre-board the plane first. “Airlines are trying to convert leisure customers to high-end leisure customers,” said Kevin Stamler, the founder and chief executive of SeatBoost, an auction service that currently works with three airlines, and has plans to start working with seven more this year.

Allegiant Aircraft Seating

“It’s the cheapest way to upgrade.” Department of Transportation Sec. Pete Buttigieg applauded American for putting the policy in its customer service plan and tweeted the DOT would publish a family seating dashboard next week that details policies for all major U.S.

How Auctions Work

airline The DOT published a similar dashboard last year that showed airline policies during delays and cancellations. But the big three legacy airlines — American, Delta and United — don't participate in premium class auctions. Often, empty seats in the forward cabins of planes are filled by frequent flier upgraded by the airlines as a perk of loyalty.

The why-nots among economy flier are now generating what analysts believe may be millions of dollars for participating airlines that offer automated auctions for premium class seats on planes. The practice — growing among foreign carriers with scant pickup domestically — offers economy flier the chance to upgrade at a discounted rate and improve what could be a cramped and sleepless long-haul flight.

How prices are set is vague. Last year on Austrian Airlines, I bid the minimum of 400 euros (then about $400) to fly in business class from Vienna to Chicago. My original economy ticket cost about $1,200 round trip;

business class was close to four times that. My bid was accepted and in addition to getting a lie-flat seat and better in-flight food, I gained access to the airport lounge, with more food and drink, work stations and sleeping pods, and my bag was among the first to come off the baggage carousel.

What About Domestic Flights?

For the start-to-finish 14-hour journey that spared me from the cramped coach class I experienced on the flight to Vienna, I thought the indulgence was worth it. “I would definitely recommend it to people who wish to fly business and are not sure if it's worth it,” said Shamarel O.E.

Odusanya, a psychologist based in Dubai, who won a business class upgrade for about the price she paid for her economy seat (995 Emirati dirhams, or roughly $270) on an Etihad Airways flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv and avoided a hefty fee for an extra checked bag because it was included in the upgrade ticket.

“I particularly enjoyed the calm of the lounge, which made what can be a stressful experience a rather enjoyable one.” Plusgrade began working with Norwegian Cruise Line in 2016. Since then, several lines have adopted the technology, including Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Virgin Voyages.

In September, Princess announced its partnership with Plusgrade to offer cabin upgrades. Don Terris, an Ontario-based travel agent who analyzed the cruise upgrade bidding process in a YouTube video, won a bid at $1,500 on top of his basic fare to stay in a grand suite aboard a Royal Caribbean ship, which he said saved him more than $5,000 over booking the suite outright.

“Travelers are happy to pay for things if it's an experience they're excited about,” said Ken Harris, the founder and chief executive of Plusgrade, a technology company founded in 2009 that currently works with about 125 travel businesses, including Qantas, Japan Airlines and Etihad Airways, to run upgrade auctions.

The email usually sets a minimum bid, which is the threshold for participating, and sometimes a suggested bid above that. Bids apply to the total number of passengers in a reservation, so, for example, a $300 upgrade offer for a couple traveling together on the same booking would be $600 total.

Bidding passengers supply a credit card for the payment in the event that it wins. “I upgraded both directions after an excellent first experience,” said Ms. Gifford, a Toronto native who lives in Riga, Latvia, where she runs a content marketing and public relations agency.

She reported the food, the space and the mood of the flight attendants was much improved. “It was so worth it.” “A parent should be able to sit next to their child without paying extra fees, asking other passengers to swap seats, or facing a last minute scramble at the gate,” Buttigieg tweeted.

“That's why [the DOT] is moving to require airlines to guarantee fee-free family seating.” On two separate flights on foreign carriers last year, I was offered upgrade opportunities and made both winning and losing bids, which inspired me to look more closely at the practice.

The following is what I learned, and explains why you might find upgrade auctions on your next flight, train ride or cruise. The airline, which included the new policy in its updated customer service plan, announced it would “guarantee children 14 and under will be seated adjacent to an accompanying adult at no additional cost, including Basic Economy fares.”

To qualify, families need to be booked on the same reservation, adjacent seats must be available at the time of booking, and customers cannot make changes to their seat assignments once they are assigned. Though participating airlines can set the terms and timing of the sales, most work like this: Within a week of departure, passengers get an email notifying them of an opportunity to bid on an upgrade.

(Upgrades often are to business class but may also cover premium economy, a step up from economy with more legroom and often improved food and beverage service.) Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

And sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter to receive expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places to Go in 2023.

“Ultimately, it's a win-win for the airline and the traveler,” said Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst who runs Atmosphere Research Group and recently won an upgrade auction to business class for $100 on a flight from Vienna to Warsaw, bringing the total cost of the ticket to $350, a third less than the $525 business class ticket available when he booked economy.

“Airlines are collecting incremental revenue and being paid for a premium product. The passenger is winning because he or she is paying a price they feel is fair and meets their budget needs.” On a shorter flight in October, I bid the minimum, $200, on an Azores Airlines upgrade when returning from Ponta Delgada in the Azores to Boston, though the suggested starting bid was $250.

I lost that campaign. “The U.S. carriers can't fulfill demand for upgrades that they promised elite loyalty members,” Mr. Harteveldt said, adding that the airlines have been successful in pricing their premium and economy cabins in such a way that enough customers are upgrading during the booking stage.

“We absolutely felt like we were splurging,” said Ms. Meeks, a travel blogger in St. Louis, who paid $910 a person for her round-trip economy ticket from Chicago. Business class on the entire route can be five times that amount.

“It was very much the 'It's our honeymoon, we only do this once, why not?' mind-set.” You're more likely to buy an upgrade with cash or loyalty points on carriers based in the United States, where auctions are rare.

Exceptions include Hawaiian Airlines, which operates many long-haul flights from the mainland to the islands. Given the variety of cabins on a cruise ship, passengers have options to upgrade from a standard inside cabin to a balcony cabin and beyond, including deluxe suites.

Mr. Harris, the Plusgrade chief executive, said cruise upgrades have been popular, driven by the length of the trip. While airline prices are notoriously dynamic, looking at the same routing on current flights, the difference between economy and premium economy prices for standard fares before any auction is usually more than $300.

According to recent prices, a successful upgrade bid of $300 appears to save between 7 to 30 percent over the price at the time of booking. American's decision to codify the family seating policy in its customer service plan comes days after United Airlines and Frontier Airlines made similar guarantees.

Frontier Airlines also put the updated policy in its customer service plan. Businesses like Plusgrade, which generated $3.5 billion in business last year, according to the company, are booming in the post-lockdown return to travel as flier look to treat themselves, and airlines have more premium seats available because of the continued slowdown in business travel .

“Airlines have done a remarkable job of making flying hell 30,000 feet above the earth,” Mr. Harteveldt said. “Auctions work because they start with the fact that economy class sucks and travelers will consider all reasonable options to escape it.”

With SeatBoost, which works with Lufthansa, Avianca and TAP Air Portugal, auctions take place within three hours of a flight on the company's app, which shows competing bids and where they rank. As at a live auction, bidders can raise their offers.

Auctions normally end just a few minutes before boarding. Flying to Tanzania for her honeymoon on Ethiopian Airlines in November, Amanda Meeks was ready to celebrate. So, when an email arrived inviting her to bid on business class seats for the leg of the journey between Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, she jumped on it, getting two seats for the less-than-three-hour flight for $590.

Since 2021, Spirit Airlines has been using Plusgrade to auction its Big Front Seats (larger seats in the front rows) and exit row seats through a program it calls SeatBid. Fliers submit a bid through the website and are notified of its acceptance between 48 and two hours predeparture.

Some flights offer an “Instant Level-Up” option at a discount to secure the upgrade immediately, similar to eBay's “Buy It Now” option.

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Airpower Aircraft Engines

Airpower Aircraft Engines - "The 787's engine-start and APU-start functions are performed by extensions of the method that has been successfully used for the APU in the Next-Generation 737 airplane family. In this method, the generators are run as synchronous starting motors with the starting process being controlled by start converters. The start converters provide conditioned electrical power (adjustable voltage and adjustable frequency) to the generators during the start for optimum start performance."

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The MQ-28 has enough capability to get the job done – from ISR to tactical early warning and more – but with a low-cost design that allows operators to confidently put it on the front line.

In Use Since The First World War

"Unlike the air turbine engine starters in the traditional architecture that are not used while the respective engines are not running, the start converters will be used after the respective engine is started. The engine- and APU-start converters will function as the motor controller for cabin pressurization compressor motors."

Just as the APU is started using battery power to turn the blades, the blades of the main engines must be turning before they can be started. This is achieved using bleed air (essentially high-pressure exhaust) from the APU turbine.

This will generate sufficient airflow through the main engine to allow the fuel and air mixture to be ignited and start the engine. If the engine was started without airflow, it could be damaged by overheating.

APUs have been around for decades, although their use has increased significantly with modern jet aircraft. Many military aircraft in the First and Second World Wars (including the British Supermarine Nighthawk in the First World War, the B-29 Superfortress of the Second World War, and later German Junkers aircraft) had forms of APU.

Using The Apu In Flight

This could also be achieved by running the main engines, but at a higher cost and wear to the engines. It could also be provided by an external supply, but having your own power supply is much more convenient.

Some of the earliest jet aircraft did not have APUs, though. The Boeing 707, for example (widely regarded as the first highly successful aircraft of the jet age), did not initially have one, although some were later fitted with them.

The 727 that followed it was built with an APU, located in the main landing gear bay, not the aircraft tail. This was added to help increase the locations where the 727 could operate. Starting the APU is a simple procedure.

Power from a battery will start the engine motor spinning. Fuel is added, and the engine starts quickly. This video shows a great sequence of how an APU is started on a Boeing 767. Journalist - With almost a decade of experience in the publishing sphere, Justin has built up a deep understanding of the issues facing aviation today.

Providing Power On The Ground

With a keen interest in route development, new aircraft, and loyalty, his extensive travels with airlines such as British Airways and Cathay Pacific has given him profound direct comprehension of industry matters. Based in Hong Kong and Darlington, UK.

Pressure then builds up to further spin the engine and, once it reaches its idle power speed, the supply from the APU is removed. The other engines are then started, using either the APU or high-pressure air from the already started engine.

This is known as 'cross bleed' and is also a technique used for restarting a failed engine. The APU can also be used during flight, although it usually is inactive for the flight duration. In the event of engine failure, it can be used for either electrical power or bleed air to restart the engines.

The landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River is one such example. Although the engines were not restarted, the APU was used to provide electrical power and was later cited as critical to the outcome.

Why Locate It In The Tail?

The first and most straightforward use of the APU is to provide power when on the ground. It can be run when engines are shut down and when boarding before the engines are started. The APU will run a generator that provides electrical power for the cockpit and cabin systems.

It will also produce pneumatic pressure to operate the cabin air conditioning systems. And Concorde, one of the most famous and powerful jet aircraft, did not have one. It was designed to be as light as possible and operated to well-equipped airports where it could rely on ground power sources.

Designed to provide a transformational capability for global defense customers, it is the company’s largest investment in a new uncrewed aircraft program outside the United States. This purpose-built aircraft can be missionized to suit country-specific needs.

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Apu - The Little Turbine Engine

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You may unsubscribe at any time. You may have noticed the hole in the tail of most aircraft. It's probably no surprise to know that it's an exhaust outlet. But this is nothing to do with the main engines.

It is for a second, much smaller, turbine engine that all commercial jets have. This auxiliary power unit (APU) provides important electric power for aircraft systems and bleed air to start the main engines. It may seem strange to locate the APU in the aircraft tail, far from the main engines.

But it makes sense to keep it away from ground crew and operations (as it usually operates on the ground). And it frees vital space for cargo and fuel in other parts of the aircraft. Air supplied from the APU to the engines is at very high pressure, so traveling the distance to the engines has minimal effect.

All large commercial aircraft have an auxiliary power unit onboard, usually located in the tail of the aircraft (although some regional jets vents to the side). This is a small turbine engine, essentially the same design and operation as the main aircraft engines but on a smaller scale.

However, unlike the main engines, the APU does not provide thrust (hence it would be wrong to call it a jet engine). Instead, it powers an electric generator and provides air pressure.

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