Air Works Established: 1951 Number of Employees: 700 across 20 locations in the U.K., India and Southeast Asia Service footprint: Includes business and general aviation MRO, commercial aviation MRO, aircraft painting and avionics Maintenance Facilities: Authorized service facility for Agusta Westland, Bell Helicopter, Bombardier Aerospace, Gulfstream, Hawker Beechcraft, Embraer, Honeywell and Rockwell Collins. Qualified to maintain 50 aircraft types. Hangars at eight locations in the U.K. and India
The IBS Group appointed Rajiv Shah CEO. He will lead IBS' business providing IT systems to the global air transportation industry. Rajiv's last assignment was with Wipro Technologies, where he was the chief executive of the securities and capital markets business unit and later the healthcare and services business unit.
Canard Aerospace amended STC to install a communication management unit and VHF 3 data radio on Boeing 737-600, -700, -700C, -800, -900 and -900ER series aircraft, STC ST01938CH
What if an aircraft engine had a Facebook page? And what if that engine could update its status from the time it arrives in the overhaul shop until it ships to a customer? What if it could communicate how it's performing while it is in flight and let technicians know what needs to be done as it is coming in for a check?
Boeing expanded its landing gear overhaul and exchange program to cover the Boeing 777-200LR, -300ER and freighter. The program previously covered the MD-11, 717, 737NG, Boeing Business Jet, 747-400ER, 757-300, 767-300ER and 777-200ER.
Pratt & Whitney signed a memorandum of understanding with the Commercial Aircraft Corp. of China to cooperate on leadership training for senior executives and mid-level management, project management training and Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) training at the Pratt & Whitney Customer Training Center. Training is scheduled to begin at mid-year. IT
Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance & Engineering (Gameco) added Norbert Marx as general manager. Marx joins Gameco from Heli-One Inc. in Vancouver, and he formerly held leadership roles at Jet Aviation, Lufthansa Technik and Ameco Beijing. Gameco also named Wu RongXin deputy general manager. Wu joined Gameco in 2008, and has served as CFO for the last three years.
Chromalloy gained a new VP and general manager: Dennis Orzel, who most recently was COO of PAS Technologies. Orzel formerly has held leadership positions at Triumph and Pratt & Whitney.
At one point or another, we all find ourselves looking around the house for misplaced car keys or a business card with an important phone number on it. Usually, these things turn up, and the consequence of carelessness is no more than wasted time. But in a maintenance hangar, forgotten tools can transform into foreign object debris (FOD) that can cause serious damage if left behind in an aircraft.
United Airlines promoted Michael Lorenzini to managing director of United Technical Operations, maintenance control. He also serves as director of maintenance. Airframes
SR Technics inducted the 15th easyJet aircraft into its new, two-bay facility in Malta. The Airbus A319 came in for a 14-day IL check. SR Technics provides line, light and base maintenance, maintenance operations control, engineering and technical services, component repair and logistics management for easyJet's Airbus fleet under a $1.6 billion contract inked in November 2009 that extended work for the low-cost carrier through 2020 and made it launch customer for the Malta facility.
Simplified Safety distributes Gorbel's Tether Track fall protection anchorage system, which uses an overhead, shock-absorbing lanyard or self-retracting lifeline to keep workers safe while they carry out maintenance on top of aircraft fuselages. Simplified Safety also sells personal protective equipment and hazard-containment products for multiple industrial work environments. www.simplifiedsafety.com/store/fall-protection.html
The Persimmon Group appointed Ray H. (Tray) Siegfried director, aerospace services. Siegfried joins the Oklahoma-based business management consulting firm from The Nordam Group, the Siegfried family business, which he most recently served as vice chairman of the board.
Sargent Aerospace & Defense's aftermarket services group acquired more than 1,200 Boeing 737 line-replaceable units worth approximately $4 million in mid-March. Sargent's Miami facility was expected to receive the majority of these components—which range from avionics, fuel pumps, electromechanical actuators and engine components to landing gear top assembly units—in overhauled condition, ready for outright sale and exchange and lease programs.
Modern aircraft are generating much more data that can reduce maintenance costs by reducing downtime and improving repair efficiency. However, “there is more talking going on than listening,” stresses Peter Feldmann, VP of the Cavok division of Oliver Wyman. Translation: aircraft and everything on them talk, but systems are not fully exploiting the data because sometimes they are not even connected, and sometimes they speak in different languages.
In June 2009, the Air Transport Association published its Spec 2000 Chapter 9 data standard for the permanent identification of parts, the identification of receiving/shipping information and traceability. Contrary to popular belief, Spec 2000 Chapter 9 is strictly a “data standard”—not a technology standard. Fourteen required fields of information have been defined, including a small section providing an option to record additional information.
Complacency has been called “the silent killer” and “the greatest threat to the survival of organizations today.” It seeps quietly into maintenance hangars over time as technicians become more comfortable in their jobs and begin taking shortcuts, such as not using checklists or using an out-of-date tool rather than making the trek to get a serviceable replacement. And complacency spreads: other technicians witness these shortcuts and figure they can get away with them, too.
Solo Aviation in Ocumare del Tuy, Venezuela, became a GE Aviation authorized service center for M601 and H80 turboprop engines. Solo Aviation now offers line maintenance, removals and re-installations of engines and LRUs and engine spares for the M601 and H80 engine families; GE Aviation will provide Solo Aviation with comprehensive material support and training.
The lines separating major carriers from regional carriers continue to blur, and that's having an impact on the way the latter look at maintenance. Consider that larger regional jet aircraft such as the Embraer 170 and 190 family and Bombardier's forthcoming CSeries are—or soon will be—ranging farther afield. These types supplant major carriers' mainline jets on routes that were once a sole province.
Parker Hannifin has just started offering barcode and optional radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies to keep track of its hydraulic assemblies through the supply chain, as well as a new, on-site container service for emergency hose repairs. The hydraulic components manufacturer is adding these options to its network of 330 ParkerStore distributors near major North American airports.
Diversified Fall Protection designs, fabricates and installs custom fall protection systems for aircraft operators. Its rigid trolley beam fall arrest system is the most popular type of product for aircraft maintenance hangars; this system complies with OSHA standards. The company's Cartesian trolley system gives workers the freedom to move about on two axes. Diversified Fall Protection also supports fall systems for tarmac maintenance. www.fallprotect.com/aircraft-hangar.html
For life-limited consumables, more airlines and MROs are looking at small kit packaging as one approach to inventory control that saves money and reduces waste, says Randy Wilt, director of corporate marketing for Graco Supply and Integrated Services.
One of the most important safety concerns in the hangar is the risk of falls, especially when technicians traverse the top of an aircraft to perform maintenance duties.
