Northwest Aerospace News April | May 2019 Issue No. 8 | Page 24

Aircraft assembly equipment lift.
A
s an example of the company’s products, he described a huge platform the
company built for Boeing, used in the final assembly of commercial jetliners.
“Basically, you can think of it like a large sawhorse,” said Grim. “It has
hydraulics and electrical controls, which we source from outside suppliers.
We machine all of the components and do the final assembly. It has platforms
where employees can stand and move around when they are putting different
components on airplanes.”
Aviation and space flight make up a significant proportion of the work done by
Machinists Inc., according to Grim.
“We also build holding fixtures for Boeing: tooling assemblies that are used
to lift and hold the external skin panels into place during the final phase of
construction. In addition, we build tools that are used in product testing, like
assessing the structural integrity of airplane wings, and launch support equipment
for heavy-lift vehicles.”
Machinists Inc. has also done considerable work outside the aerospace sector,
over the years, including repairs and upgrades to the Washington State ferries
and United States Navy submarines, as well as wind turbines and hydroelectric
generating stations.
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NORTHWEST AEROSPACE NEWS
The left landing gear
strut in the photo is
part of a complete
set of landing gear
for the 787 static
and load testing pro-
gram. MI provided
machining, assembly
and finishing for this
project.