Cold-weather test centre opens in Thompson

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This article was published 29/10/2010 (3333 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRING on the deep-freeze.

A one-of-a-kind, high-tech cold-weather testing centre is open for business in Thompson to test aviation engines. The $42-million facility will be home to the Environmental Test, Research and Education Centre (EnviroTREC) and the Global Aerospace Centre for Icing and Environmental Research (GLACIER).

EnviroTREC is a non-profit test centre specializing in supporting engine icing certification and research, while GLACIER is a joint venture between Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney, two of the world's largest aerospace engine manufacturers.

The new facility will be the only one in the world capable of doing ice crystal ingesting testing, a situation that occurs, for instance, in tropical storms. Aviation regulators are expected to soon require engines to be certified to operate in such conditions.

Rolls-Royce is planning to use the centre for certifying its new Trent XWB engine, developed to power the Airbus A350 aircraft. Pratt & Whitney will test the new Geared Turbofan PurePower engine that will fly the new C-series line of jets built by Montreal's Bombardier.

The facility will also be used for a variety of performance, endurance and specialty testing on a year-round basis outside of the icing season.

Funding for EnviroTREC and GLACIER includes $13.4 million from the federal government and a $9-million secured, repayable loan from the provincial government, with the rest financed by the aerospace industry.