Growth in market on continent spurs local manufacturers to press for production work
Eurocopter is finalising a plan to shift some of its parts production, and possibly assembly, to South America as the helicopter market grows across the continent.
The Franco-German company's Brazilian subsidiary Helibras has proposed sourcing subassemblies and components from Brazilian subcontractors working on Embraer aircraft, while Chile's national aerospace company Enaer says it has discussed a full-scale assembly line for one of the company's lighter models in its Santiago de Chile facility.
Helibras has assembled the AS350/355/365 Squirrel family at Itajuba, in Minas Gerais state from kits shipped from Marignanne, France. It also uses locally produced parts and has proposed to Eurocopter that it could co-ordinate the sourcing of more advanced parts for all Eurocopter types, to be sent back to France and Germany.
Helibras chief executive Jean-Noël Hardy says: "As a direct spin-off from the growth of Embraer, Brazil now has a network of aerospace suppliers able to provide subassemblies and components and Eurocopter is analysing some suppliers to see whether they are technically able to supply parts."
Hardy says the possibility of extending Helibras's own licence assembly line is slim, since any new line would have to provide a return on investment. However, Enaer says it is discussing with Eurocopter España a plan to bring the production of large structural parts to Chile and possibly locate a light helicopter line such as the EC120 in the country, for export markets in South America.
JUSTIN WASTNAGE/SÃO PAULO & SANTIAGO
Source: Flight International
