AEROPLANES should spend more time flying and less time stripped down in hangars under a development led by North-East technology experts.

The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) is working on a project to transform aircraft maintenance.

Bosses say the scheme, which is seeing the CPI produce printed sensors at its base in NetPark, Sedgefield, County Durham, will focus on improving components’ manufacture, their performance and safety.

They say the electronics, which use conductive inks instead of wires to create circuits, offer a low-cost alternative to existing methods of tracing and monitoring parts in the finest detail, allowing engineers to check the running of equipment, such as the fuel tank, tyres and wings.

The work is part of a two-year Government-backed collaboration, known as Intelligent Tooling, which is developing electronic sensors and components in machining for the aerospace industry, as well as the rail, automotive and energy sectors, and includes BAE Systems.

The project aims to develop a prototype, complete with embedded sensors, which could then be scaled up and taken to market.

Dr Peter Tune, CPI business manager, said: “Our role is to design and print the electronic sensors.

“Conventional electronics will be integrated to drive the sensors and transfer data to the control systems.

“Printed sensing is an interesting area as the flexible nature of the technology allows for robust, lightweight sensors to be incorporated into curved structural designs and to be printed in unique configurations in high volumes and at low cost.

“This project represents a tough challenge (but) the learning will be directly transferrable to other sensor applications where there are similar challenges.”

Mark Wilson, BAE Systems’ principal technologist for advanced manufacturing, said the programme has great potential.

He added: “Developments like this are aiming to take machining to the next level by getting to the heart of the cutting process and then being able to adapt the cutting parameters accordingly.

“We pride ourselves on being at the forefront of machining technology.”

Earlier this year, the CPI revealed its NetPark base is supporting a project focused on transforming diabetes treatment by creating a breathalyser capable of monitoring patients’ glucose levels.

The organisation, which has sister bases in Darlington and Wilton, near Redcar, is also supporting US firm Calysta on a £30m project to develop a product that could revolutionise the fish farming industry.

Calysta will build a centre, next to CPI’s Wilton base, to work on a protein ingredient that aims to reduce the salmon fishing sector’s dependence on fishmeal.