More airlines are handing over the management of aircraft systems maintenance to the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The regionals are no exception: Continental Express has just signed a 10-year, $80 million contract with TRW which covers the management of 11,000 line replaceable units (LRUs) for its growing fleet of Embraer regional jets.
The deal is the largest asset management contract signed by TRW Aeronautical Systems (Lucas Aerospace) and is unusual in that it covers both LRUs owned by the airline and space to be leased from the manufacturers. "Deals tend to be with airlines starting out with a new type, but Continental Express is half way through re-equipping," says David Ashton, director, equipment services, for TRW Aeronautical Systems.
Under the deal, the US regional will pay per flight hour for access to spares and for anticipated repairs and overhauls. "Continental Express will manage line maintenance and TRW will provide replenishment services," says Ashton. "Within 24h of removal of an LRU from an aircraft at a line station, we will refill the hole on the shelf." TRW will also repair the removed LRU and return it to the pool of spares it manages on the airline's behalf.
The benefit for Continental Express is that maintenance costs become predictable. As they are based on hours flown, if there is a downturn and the airline does less flying its maintenance costs will also reduce.
The airline will also benefit from higher reliability, as the more TRW's LRUs fly and the less they break, the more profit the company sees. "This is an incentive to improve reliability, whereas in a traditional time and material contract the less reliable equipment was, the more money the manufacturer made," says Ashton.
The contract includes building a link between Continental Express and the company's TRW Aeroservices web-based spares service. This is a software tool which enables turn time for repairs to be optimised - and not just for TRW-built equipment. "When an LRU removal is logged on to Continental Express' system it will automatically go to Aeroservices with the reason for removal and a replacement request. We will provide an exchange unit and manage the repair process, with total visibility throughout the process," Ashton says.
If the LRU is a TRW-built item, it will be routed to the repair shop owned or authorised by the manufacturer which offers the best turn time. "If it is not a TRW item, we will work with other repair shops in a partnership," Ashton says. The aim is to reduce the cycle time for repairs. "There is typically a 45- to 60-day cycle time from an LRU coming off the aircraft to it going back on. Aeroservices will easily halve the turn time," he says. Aeroservices will also tailor turn time to the value of the item to be repaired. "It will keep high-value assets moving."
TRW is offering to provide the same service on behalf of other OEMs whose LRU content on the aircraft is not sufficient to justify their own equivalent. "We have one UK supplier in place and we are taking companies in the USA," Ashton says. TRW, meanwhile, is looking to expand its asset management business to other operators of Embraer regional jets. The company is also targeting operators of Airbus airlines and Rolls-Royce engines on which it has high LRU counts.
TRW Aeronautical Systems set up its equipment services business in October 1999. The business has grown at 13% a year over the past two years and is expected to grow at "10% plus" a year for the next five as more Airbus and Embraer aircraft reach their first maintenance cycle.
Source: Flight International
