How Have Battery Shops And Providers Boosted Capabilities?

1. Lithium-Ion Battery Portfolio

Company: True Blue Power

Product: True Blue Power provides lithium-ion batteries for emergency cabin lighting, auxiliary power and engine start applications. The company says its batteries are compatible with any 24V aircraft, ranging from business jets and commercial aircraft to defense platforms and unmanned aerial vehicles. True Blue Power recently released two intelligent battery chargers called the True Blue Charger PRO and True Blue Charger MX, and the Wichita-based battery-maker has just unveiled its new True Blue Power Gen5 TB60 lithium-ion aircraft battery.

2. Ultra-Low-Maintenance Batteries

Company: Saft

Product: A few years ago, the company introduced a new nickel-based battery technology called Ultra-Low Maintenance (ULM), which it says offers longer maintenance intervals and lower total cost of ownership. Saft began delivering ULM EverSky batteries for the Boeing 777 and 777X in 2019, and it will also supply ULM batteries for the Comac C919 over the next 20 years. Saft will be offering a new form of virtual training, called Battery Maintenance Basics Online, in the second quarter of 2021. 

3. Battery OEM and MRO

Company: Aero Design/Battery Shop LLC

Product: HEICO subsidiary Aero Design/Battery Shop LLC manufactures and supplies FAA parts manufacturer approval (PMA) mainship and emergency batteries for general aviation, business jet, regional and commercial aircraft applications. It also offers battery maintenance and overhaul services for both OEM and PMA batteries through Battery Shop LLC, its in-house FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) repair station. Battery Shop’s capabilities include more than 700 line items, and its services range from testing and repair of batteries and battery packs to deep cycle, capacity testing, disassembly and cleaning.

4. Servicing New Battery Types

Company: Sky Aerospace Engineering

Product: Sky Aerospace Engineering is a certified FAA and EASA Part 145 maintenance organization based at Orlando International and Sanford International airports in Florida. Its in-house battery shop provides repair, testing and overhaul of aircraft nickel-cadmium batteries manufactured by Aero Design, MarathonNorco and Saft, including periodic services, capacity tests and deep charge.

5. Growing Battery Shops

Company: Duncan Aviation

Product: Duncan Aviation has been growing its battery capabilities over the last few years, and in 2020 it added mainship and emergency-power battery capabilities at 19 of its avionics satellite locations. The company expanded in-house battery services at its Lincoln, Nebraska, location in 2019, adding a new battery cooler, twice as much bench space and advanced test sets. Its recently opened hangar in Provo, Utah, also features a battery shop with dedicated rooms for lead-acid and nickel-cadmium battery services.

6. Transatlantic Battery Shops

Company: Satair

Product: Satair provides aircraft battery maintenance for airlines, MRO firms and operators from its facilities in Miami and at London’s Heathrow Airport. The Heathrow battery shop, which opened in March 2018, primarily services nickel-cadmium batteries as well as lithium-ion packs and lead-sealed batteries for approximately 180 customers. In addition to its battery maintenance programs, Satair offers battery leasing, battery maintenance training courses, and buy-back and total-service provision.

From enhancing emergency cabin lighting, to ultra-low maintenance batteries, take a look through our gallery roundup of some of the most important battery capability improvements that are currently occurring in the MRO industry. 

Read the Inside MRO article by Lindsay Bjerregaard in full here