I guess it’s probably obvious by now that I’m a fan of machinery, particularly elegantly designed fit-for-purpose machinery on a large scale.  So when visiting Seattle, I couldn’t possibly miss the Boeing Future of Flight Aviation Center for a factory tour!  The factory is at Mukilteo, about half an hour’s drive north of the city.  Unfortunatly no cameras were allowed on the tour itself, but I can tell you that we visited the production line hangers for the 747-8, the 777, and the 787 Dreamliner.

As part of the introduction to the tour we watched a short film about the history and products of Boeing, and that was where I learned that the 787 Dreamliner can perform the most insane combat aircraft vertical take-off!  Check this out and be amazed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EniTCmJlVEo

Some of the things that I learned on the tour that stood out in my mind include:

• Each 747-8 takes about 4 months to produce, and the production rate is about one per month
• Boeing employs about 35,000 people at this site, working in three shifts around the clock, five days per week
• The factory itself, comprised of six hangers, is the largest building by volume in the world
• There’s currently a production backlog (placed orders) of over 700 Dreamliners, placing the delivery date of new ones ordered now at about 2021
• The approximate cost of each plane (in US$) if ordered today is:
  • 474-8 –> $380mil
  • 777 –> $370mil
  • 787 –> $306mil
• The 787 Dreamliner is assembled from large fuselage sections that are produced elsewhere and flown in to the factory on specially built Dreamlifter cargo planes
• The approximate fuel savings of the 787 Dreamliner is 25% over the 747-8, with greater cargo capacity, increased passenger comfort, and significantly reduced emissions
• There was lots more, but without taking pictures or notes, there was too much to absorb!  If you want to see any of the production lines in action, including the moving production line of the 777, you can find them on YouTube.

Here’s the factory from the outside.  You can see its six large hanger doors on the left, and the painting line is in the building on the right.

Back in the visitor center, I stopped to check out some of the static displays, including this cross section of the 787 Dreamliner — I understand that the actual skin is about the same thickness as a US nickel.

There were also displays of the engines, including the most powerful turbofan engine in the world, the GE90, with a maximum thrust of 115,300 lbs.  The overall diameter of the engine is 11.25 ft, and it’s almost 24 feet long.

Visitors could also participate in ongoing research about improving passenger experience on aircraft.

There was an observation deck on top of the visitor center, and just as I arrived there a Dreamlifter was taking off!  It looks a bit ungainly, like a flying beluga whale, but as a piece of machinery designed and built to perform only one role, to transport fuselage sections for the Dreamliner, it had a unique beauty and elegance of it’s own.

Overall this wasn’t the most exciting thing I’ve done — plane production isn’t a fast moving process, and I didn’t arrive on a day when major parts were being moved, or completed planes were being rolled out — but I still enjoyed gaining insight into how the big systems of the world that we often take for granted are put together.  What amazingly complex machines they are, and the infrastructure that supports their production and maintenance is just as remarkable!