To make the concept of an inflatable hangar fly, first you've got to make sure the structure itself does not fly away. Jose Antonio Sanz insists his company's inflatable structures can cope with winds of 100 kph (62 mph), even 150 kph (93 mph). “We're talking to a customer who will require 180 kph,” protection, says Barcelona-based Buildair's commercial director. A telematic control system, coupled with multiple 20-cm (7.87-in.) screws drilled into the tarmac, is essential to a structure's stability.
The Integrated Vehicle Health Management Center at England's Cranfield University was founded five years ago, after a proposal for it won an international competition sponsored by Boeing.
Washington Cabin 'Crewmembers' Take Note The aviation maintenance world needs no introduction to the Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations. Typically, MRO-related OSHA rules are linked to hangars or back shops and associated with risks such as exposure to chemicals. But an FAA policy issued in August and effective Sept. 26 brings OSHA regulations to aircraft cabins and reads broadly enough to cover mechanics that work in them.
EASA Outlines Upcoming Rulemaking The European Aviation Safety Agency's (EASA) four-year rulemaking outlook includes little of significance to MRO in 2014, but work on several key initiatives with longer-term deadlines is featured prominently. Reviewed annually, the planning document sets deadlines for the following year and tentative schedules for the three subsequent years. EASA released the 2014-18 version in late August.
Merging companies, moving and culling unneeded inventories can be both energizing and stressful. There is the excitement generated from new opportunities and the prospect of creating something superior—but there is also the sheer hard work of overcoming unexpected obstacles to make this happen.
As aircraft increasingly depend on electrical power, sensors need to keep up with overheating-detection capabilities, and repair stations need new certifications. Here is a sampling of some new electrical components and services: 1. Let Me See Supplier: LoPresti Aviation Offering: The BoomBeams lighting system is designed to provide higher landing and taxi light output, and consume less power than stock lighting equipment, to reduce overall lighting and maintenance costs, according to the company.
If there are winners in a high-stakes, high-expectations program that generated a mere 262 orders in its first 13 years, then the engine OEM with a 55% share of the business would qualify. Measuring by total aircraft in service and awaiting delivery, the Engine Alliance (EA) GP7200 is the preferred powerplant for Airbus A380 customers, winning 134 of 243 orders with engine choices specified. (Three orders on the books—officially, at least—totaling 19 aircraft remain without engine choices.)
An oft-overlooked but crucial link in the MRO chain is tooling. Having proper tools—and keeping track of them—is a necessary element to every repair station's success. Here is a look at a few companies that are helping the industry get it right. 1. Safety First Supplier: CEJN
The aircraft brake market—like much of the rest of the industry—is changing rapidly. New materials and new technologies are allowing operators to gain improved useful lives out of lighter-weight products without sacrificing performance. Here are a few companies that are keeping the aircraft brake world moving forward. 1. Coast to Coast Supplier: Heico
On the sidelines of the Aviation Suppliers Association's (ASA) annual conference in Las Vegas this month, a few parts distributor executives told me that they have been receiving partnership, joint venture and/or acquisition offers in the last several months.
Landing gear overhaul is experiencing a spike thanks to aircraft delivery cycles. The aircraft made as a result of the 2004-05 order boom are coming due for gear overhauls. The Aviation Week commercial aviation forecast shows demand for overhauls of nearly 4,100 nose gear and more than 4,000 shipsets of main gear for that fleet through 2015. 1. Gear and More Supplier: Iberia Maintenance
Setting up a component repair facility halfway around the world is no small undertaking, but SR Technics is on track to open its new repair facility in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in December. The new shop will complement the company's existing repair network with locations in Switzerland, Spain and Abu Dhabi, as well as support the growth of its Integrated Component Services (ICS) business.
What started in the cockpit and on the hangar floor is now touching the tarmac, making its presence felt in line maintenance and ground operations. The migration of mobile information technology is something short of a torrent, but “I think it's going to accelerate very quickly,” says Freelon Hunter, Boeing's director of fleet and maintenance solutions for Commercial Aviation Services.
Congressionally mandated budget cuts that prompted the FAA to put a hiring freeze in place created an additional challenge for the safety agency's inspector workforce, which was already hampered by an ineffective staffing model, a government audit found.
Travel around the world, or even within a single country, and you'll find human factors principles applied unevenly in aviation maintenance due, in part, to uncertainties among maintenance leaders and inspectors as to what this field is all about.
The Transportation Department's June report on significant rulemakings revealed that the draft rule on drug-testing of certain foreign repair station employees is now expected to be released this week, pushed back from late May. And the FAA's projected publication date for a final rule on safety management systems for Part 121s slipped to early October from early September. Washington A Tough Transition
Embraer and Kenya Airways want to establish the airframer's second authorized service center in Africa for commercial aircraft, to specialize in E-Jets.
