National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR)CUSTOMER CASE STUDY

Expanding Full-Scale Structural Testing
MTS helps NIAR establish one of the world’s largest aircraft structural test labs

C US T OM E R CH A LLEN G E

Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) is the largest
university aviation research and development institution in the U.S. Building on along-standing tradition of aviation excellence in Wichita, Kansas, the “Air Capital of theWorld,” NIAR provides aerospace manufacturers with the state-of-the-art facilities,
equipment and expertise they need to conduct complex tests that can lead to breakthroughsfor the entire aerospace industry.

“We chose MTS equipment for the ASTEC facility
because of its reliability and accuracy, as well as
the versatility of the software and hardware.”— Tim Hickey
Director, Aircraft Structural Test and Evaluation Center
National Institute for Aviation Research
Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas“One of the many reasons clients choose NIAR is that they can perform all of their tests
here, in one place, instead of traveling to multiple facilities to get the data they need,”said Tim Hickey, a test lab director at NIAR. “When more of our clients began to require
full-scale testing, we had to make a change. We knew we had the experience, equipment
and people to perform these complex tests, but we needed more space.”
To accommodate larger aircraft and perform more simultaneous full-scale structural tests,
NIAR procured the former Britt Brown Arena at the Kansas Coliseum, just 11 miles
away from the university’s main campus. NIAR spent 15 months gutting the arena andremaking it into the Aircraft Structural Test and Evaluation Center (ASTEC), which
opened in the spring of 2013.
At 130,000 square feet, ASTEC is twice the size of NIAR’s former full-scale structural testlab, and is one of the world’s largest aircraft structural testing centers. It has the capacity
to host full-scale tests on aircraft as large as a Boeing 787, with room to spare.
“Once we had the facility planned, our next step was finding test equipment we couldtrust,” Hickey said.
M T S S OL UT IO N

To run a high-performance facility offering virtually any kind of aerospace test – fromfull airframe durability and tolerance testing to coupon and component testing – Hickeyand his team rely on an extensive array of MTS testing solutions. These run the gamut
from the floor-standing load frames used to test aircraft components and innovative
materials to the MTS AeroPro™ Software, MTS FlexTest® Controllers, MTS FlexDAC™
Data Acquisition Systems and MTS SilentFlo™ Hydraulic Power Units used in a wide
variety of full-scale structural applications.
“We chose MTS equipment for the ASTEC facility because of its reliability and accuracy, as
well as the versatility of the software and hardware,” Hickey said. “We have a long-standing
relationship with MTS.”

be certain.

CUSTOMER CASE STUDY

At 130,000 square feet, ASTEC is one of the world’s largest aircraft structural testing centers.

Comprising a full-scale structural lab, anengineering craft lab and a mechanical testlab, the ASTEC facility enables NIAR’sclients to commission tests on all mannerof commercial and military aircraft. As aresult, ASTEC test teams must be able toaccommodate an equally wide range ofclient testing needs. MTS controls anddata acquisition systems help with thissignificantly, giving test operators the abilityto add data channels very easily in between
set-ups and use all available channels more
efficiently.
“In the past, we had to assign an entire boxof 48 data acquisition channels to a specifictest station,” Hickey said. “The FlexDAC
system from MTS lets us efficiently utilize
available channels across the entire spectrumof tests. We can assign channels from any box
to any test station. If the client decides to add
a few more strain gages at the last minute, wecan do that.”
The FlexDAC system is also tightly integrated
with the digital controls, which helps ensure
precise synchronization and eliminates theneed to synthesize data manually after testingis complete.

lMTS Systems
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Telephone: 1-952-937-4000
Toll Free: 1-800-328-2255
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100-300-623 NIAR_Aircraft2 • Printed in U.S.A. • 09/21“The integrated control and data acquisition
stream helps to simplify post-test processes,”
Hickey said. “It enhances the speed and easeof data processing.”

A high-force, floor-standingMTS load frame provides
component and materials
testing capabilities

C US T OM ER B EN EFI TS

ASTEC gives NIAR the space to help
aircraft manufacturers realize newopportunities in full-scale structural
testing. Specifically, it empowers NIAR
clients to complete virtually any test
program at a single, high-performance
facility, saving both time and money.
“We have a lot of repeat clients,” Hickey said.
“Once they come to ASTEC and realize thefull scope of capabilities and equipment wehave, they want to do more kinds of testingon additional projects. It’s more efficient, andit’s much less expensive than performing allof these different tests in-house. We have
yet to find a client need we haven’t beenable to meet.”
ASTEC will not only help manufacturers
optimize designs faster, but will accelerate
validation and certification, all of whichhelps push research and development
further. Acceleration is happening at thetest program level as well, because MTS
solutions enable NIAR teams to processdata faster and keep the testing process
moving forward at a crisp pace.
“Often we have several OEM section chiefs
monitoring the strain gages during the test,
and as soon as it’s over they want to see theTightly integrated FlexTest controls and MTS FlexDAC
data acquisition provide the versatility needed to meeta diverse range of client testing needs

data,” Hickey said. “With MTS hardware
and software, we can deliver the complete
data set in three minutes instead of the usual
30. This makes it faster for clients to put thestress analysis back into the model, verify
that the test was successful and move on.”As ASTEC continues to pursue even greater
full-scale structural testing endeavors,
Hickey is confident he can rely on MTS toprovide expertise when needed.
“We worked closely with MTS during thedesign of the ASTEC facility to figure out
our needs for power, hydraulics, electrical
drops and more,” he said. “We continue tofind the MTS team to be responsive andhelpful in supporting our mission at ASTEC
and at NIAR as a whole.”

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RTM No. 211177.