Aleris to provide aluminum for COMAC C919 prototype aircraft

Aleris today announced it has received orders to provide aluminum to Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Co., Ltd, a manufacturing subsidiary of Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) for the production of multiple sets of COMAC's C919 test planes. Aleris will provide conventional aluminum alloys as well as an advanced aluminum alloy with high-damage tolerance to be used on the lower wing covers for a single-aisle commercial aircraft as part of the COMAC C919 program.

"This announcement is an important step forward for Aleris as we look to capitalize on the significant growth that is occurring in the aerospace industry in Asia," John Zhu, senior vice president and president of Aleris China said. "We appreciate COMAC's partnership and look forward to delivering innovative, quality materials that will enable them to produce this high-performance aircraft."

Initially the material for the COMAC test planes will be delivered from the Aleris plant in Koblenz, Germany. Long-term Aleris plans to supply the aluminum for production from its new rolling mill that is currently under construction in Zhenjiang, China, a $350 million state-of-the-art facility designed to meet regional and global aerospace, and other commercial plate demand. The company plans to begin non-aerospace commercial plate production at Zhenjiang in the first quarter of 2013, while it establishes qualification programs for key global customers to begin selling aerospace material in 2014.