Collaboration proves a high flier

A new Russian-Italian airliner, powered by Russian-French engines, has successfully taken to the skies, thanks to collaborative design, using 3D CAD and PLM management. The Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional airliner is designed to be 10% more fuel-efficient and have 10% lower operating costs. According to Victor Subbotin, president of the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company, it represents a triumph of collaborative development. It was designed in conjunction with Italian company Alenia Aeronatica, using engines produced by Power Jet - itself a collaboration between French company Snecma and Russian company NPO Saturn - to create the SaM146 propulsion system. 1,500 engineers worked on the project from a design office in Moscow, with production in Novosibirsk and final assembly in Komsomolsk na Amur in Eastern Siberia, while Alenia Aeronautica has its R&D department in Naples. Parts are supplied by several suppliers, including Parker hydraulic systems, Messier Dowty landing gear and Hamilton Sundstrand electrical systems.