Mr. Vernon M. Benson

This work was done by Jonahira Arnold of the Air Force Research Laboratory and Vernon M. Benson of ATK Space Systems, Inc.

Vern Benson of
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VERNON BENSON - Chief Engineer, Composite Structures Development

Mr. Benson received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Utah State University, with a minor in Business Administration. He has spent the last 27 years at Alliant Techsystems (ATK), here in Utah, developing manufacturing technology for composite structures and building a wide variety of composite parts. He has experience with a number of key composites manufacturing processes, including: filament winding, fiber placement, belt wrapping, automated stiffener forming, hand lay-up, cure, machining, and inspection.

Mr. Benson's presentation will focus on Composites Automation and the background leading up to the development of the Automated Fiber Placement Process, a process that is in wide use today in the Aircraft and Aerospace Markets. He will also introduce a new automation process recently patented by ATK for producing composite stiffener shapes for reinforcing various structures.

Vern is one of the primary inventors and developers of the Automated Fiber Placement Process and related equipment. The automated fiber placement process has become one of, if not the most significant breakthrough in composites automation in the last 30 years. Alliant Techsystems (ATK) holds patents on Fiber Placement equipment and processes and other composites processes and designs. Vern is an inventor on many of these patents.

He has recently been involved in the development of a new automated stiffener forming process and is one of the inventors on the Patented Equipment and Process. This process has the capability of impacting the world of composite stiffener automation is similar manner that automate fiber placement has with large composite skins and shells.

Vern is active in composite structures manufacturing development and acts in an advisory role to the development and manufacturing engineering organizations at ATK who are building composite structures and manufacturing automation equipment for many different applications.

Vern Benson e-mail