Fire at Boeing in Everett not expected to affect 777X assembly schedule

By Dan Catchpole
Everett Herald Writer

EVERETT — A two-alarm fire Saturday night at Boeing’s Paine Field plant is not expected to affect the production schedule for the 777X, which is first to be delivered in 2020.

The fire was in the unfinished Building 40-58, where Boeing plans to make the composite-material wing for its newest jetliner.

No one was injured by the fire.

Boeing Fire crews found a roof fire about 20 feet by 40 feet when they arrived at about 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Boeing spokesman Paul Bergman said.

With help from other local fire departments, firefighters quickly got the blaze under control, he said.

The cause is under investigation.

Boeing knocked down several single-story office buildings last year to clear the way for Building 40-58, which it also calls the Composite Wing Center.

The building will house three massive autoclaves for cooking the composite materials used in making the 777X’s wings.

As many as 1,500 workers and 17 cranes have been on site during construction, which was begun in late 2014 and is to finish in May.

The fire did not affect the construction schedule, Bergman said.

Production of the 777X is still expected to begin in 2017, he said.

The building is 1,200 feet long and 950 feet wide and covers 27 acres. The roof is 100 feet high, and the highest open space inside is 60 feet above the floor.

Boeing’s decision to make the advanced wings here put the region at the forefront of composite material manufacturing, industry analysts say.

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