Texstars began as a supplier of military hardware shortly after the end of World War II in downtown Fort Worth, Texas. As ownership changed in the next decade our long and storied history in thermoplastic fabrication began. By the late 1950s, we became the nation’s largest recreational boat window fabricator made from acrylic. Texstars continued our heritage in non-metallic material processing when a new transparent material called polycarbonate was invented.
We developed an autoclave process in the 1960s that could transform standard aerospace-grade extruded polycarbonate sheet into high-quality optical thermoplastic sheet for subsequent forming into aircraft transparencies and other optical products. From that launching pad, we fabricated the helmets and visors for NASA astronauts on the Apollo and Gemini space programs. When man first set foot on the moon, they explored Earth’s only natural satellite wearing our helmets and looking through our visors.
When the new and revolutionary F-16 Fighting Falcon jet was developed with General Dynamics in the 1970s, we pioneered methods and production techniques to laminate, form and coat the world’s first bird-impact resistant bubble canopy system for use on a fighter aircraft. This primary and fundamental process laid the groundwork for countless other military and commercial aircraft windshield, windscreen and canopy programs that include F-14, F-15, F-5, F-4, AH-1W, B-1B, B-2, A-6, A-10, EA-6B, E2-C, T-37, T-38 and the F-117 Blackhawk. Pilots from across the globe have expressed their gratitude through the years which is testimony to the quality and consistency of our transparencies.
In the mid-1970s, Texstars entered a new market in thermoplastic interior components for passenger rail car builders that met stringent fire, smoke and toxicity requirements similar to aerospace regulations. We built the interior systems for 301 subway transit cars for the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority (WMATA) in our nation’s capitol. This project led to many other programs for transit authorities and rail car builders throughout North America including a refurbishment of, coincidentally, these same cars 14 years later.
In the 1980s, we applied our aerospace transparency laminating capabilities to military ground vehicles by being the original supplier for ballistic windshields and side windows for a new vehicle called HMMVE or better know as the Humvee or Hummer. We also went into production and supplied the transparent armor for the military’s Light Armored Vehicle – Air Defense (LAV-AD). In addition to ballistic resistance, this window contained laser-resistance, radar-absorption and de-ice/de-fog capabilities. Years later, we teamed with United Defense (now BAE Systems) to supply Transparent Armor Gun Shields (TAGS) for many armored ground military vehicles in the war in both Iraq and Afghanistan theaters.
In the late 1990s, Texstars pioneered a proprietary molding process version of VARTM (vacuum-assisted resin-transfer molding) that uses a closed-mold production setting to permanently laminate a decorative film that is very durable, graffiti-resistant and easily maintained. This efficient one-step environmentally-friendly process was used to supply Bombardier Transportation with interior liners and window panels for 1,300 rail transit car for the Long Island Rail Road. This initial use of this material/process combination set the new standard for passenger rail vehicle applications.
As new aramid composite fiber reinforcement materials and advanced-chemistry resin systems began to emerge, Texstars entered the market in building strong, lightweight parts and assemblies for most major aircraft builders and airframe original equipment manufacturers. When the new class of VLJ (Very Light Jet) aircraft burst onto the scene, Texstars entered the world of high-volume advanced composite assembly fabrication.
As Texstars began our journey into the next millennium, lean principles and practices were engrained into every activity, process and operation companywide. We had become a learning organization with a shared-thinking culture. The initiation of this business philosophy forever changed the approach and execution of new product introduction. The evolution of Texstars’ history is testament to the indisputable desire to succeed and our journey for continuous improvement will never end.
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