Engine MRO: Navigating the future with AI, robotics, and sustainability

Engine MRO: Navigating the future with AI, robotics, and sustainability

According to marketresearchfuture.com, the Aircraft Engine MRO Market industry is projected to grow from USD 24.1 Billion in 2024 to USD 34.5 billion by 2030, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.80% during the forecast period (2024 – 2030).

With a spurt in demand for commercial air travel and reinforcements in military might, fleet expansion, relentless maintenance of assets, and more critically the engines have – seen similar demand and growth in tandem.

Big players in the Aircraft Engine Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) space such as GE Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Rolls-Royce, can invest significantly in the areas of innovation in aerospace. These technological advancements bring forth advantages to providers of engine MRO, when they apply predictive maintenance technologies, additive manufacturing for component repair and prototypes in record time, as also data-driven analytics.

Cost control measures 

Aircraft turbines are one of the largest expenses incurred in aircraft maintenance. Concepts like Power by the Hour (PBH) where a customer pays an hourly rate per flight, for availing of services at actuals, can benefit substantially by way of cost savings.

Thorough technical staff training has proven to be imperative in streamlining processes, for accurate and timely decision making, and operations of equipment, so that such maintenance delays do not cause aircraft time on the ground. That is a cost-saving measure in no less terms. Well-trained staff can be efficiently deployed to work on aircraft engines, an efficiently run MRO shop can make equipment available at the right time, which can otherwise cause delays.

Pragmatic and realistic forecasting and stocking of inventory, also rule out the expense of holding on to unnecessary.

Advancements in Engine MRO – Cost savings, efficiencies, and safety assured

Predictive analytics

Once again, the importance and benefits of applying predictive analytics, where data is collected from the aircraft/engine sensors and analyzed to anticipate, likely engine/aircraft failures and prevent such occurrences, has come up trumps.

This is gaining quick adoption for safety in operations, optimizing performance, and finally reducing downtime. Predictive analytics quickly identify issues before they arise so a timely maintenance schedule may be planned and problems fixed on a need basis, rather than maintaining assets at fixed schedules, when they are not required. This ensures robust operations and savings on maintenance expenditure. It is no doubt a win-win situation for customers and service providers.

Additive manufacturing

The marvels of 3D or additive manufacturing allow customized parts and their designs to be fabricated using durable material in very little time. In aircraft engine maintenance, 3D-printed parts can be made that are complex or innovative and fitted to enhance engine performance. Reduction of waste is minimized, inventory held is rationalized, and the flexibility in the 3D manufacturing process can offer quick solutions at a greatly reduced cost, and produce material that are durable. Thus, repairs and replacements of parts can be done at a faster pace. Less time on the ground for an aircraft. Big saving again.

Digital twins

The marvel of Digital twins allows the creation of accurate, digital models or replicas of an engine that can be remotely accessed, monitored, and tested in real time. The cost and time taken to physically remove an engine for repairs can be thus avoided. This allows engine health monitoring, indications, and insights on engine performance and current state. These digital solutions can be used proactively to prevent failures. Remote monitoring also facilitates collaboration and communication between teams that are in different locations. Quick solutions can be arrived at, saving time and money.

Augmented reality

While Augmented reality (AR) provides transparency and visibility right through for all stakeholders, it is a technology that creates an enhanced, interactive, and immersive experience for an aircraft maintenance technician and work. By means of superimposed images and information onto a user’s view of the real world, one can access timely information and guidance while performing repairs and maintenance of aircraft engines. Real-time feedback offers accuracy in job performance. With efficiency and accuracy comes safety, and reliable maintenance services, and happy customers. Good for business.

Sustainable practices

Sustainability and its practice are a guiding force in aviation and all aspects of it, including aircraft engine maintenance. All stakeholders work jointly to reduce negative environmental impact, from their work output.  The aviation sector has its job cut out to reduce the carbon footprint attributed to the industry. Use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), reuse, repurpose material, and adding to the circular economy, are all in a day’s work or need to be quickly adopted. Energy-efficient and emission-reducing technologies, work practices, workplaces – all lead to cost savings. An aircraft engine maintenance entity complying with regulations is well-regarded by customers and the community.

Successful Engine MRO programs

Leading engine maker Rolls Royce has full faith in the marvels of Robotics in the realm of digital technology. The OEM along with the University of Nottingham and Harvard University, have carried out sufficient research and development and arrived at future technologies that can become a reality for engine maintenance services.

Robotics has already become a game-changer in addition to designing, testing, and maintaining engines that become more connected than ever.  Snake robots and swarm robots are the outcomes of such R&D.

While snake robots act like endoscopes that work their way through an engine, swarm robots crawl through the insides of an engine.

Where human access is a challenge, these robots can much improve, and more minutely so, aircraft engine maintenance systems. Inspections are not only quick but the incidence of removing an engine for maintenance and the ensuing downtime is avoided. The cost, time, and convenience benefits make this technology a winner!

CFM International’s CFM LEAP engine is a success story worth writing home about. The engine variant that caters to all variants of Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX, and COMAC C919 passenger jets, has kept pace with the growing worldwide demand and ramped up its services like never before – logged in 60 million flight hours on more than 3,500 aircraft with nearly 160 operators worldwide. So, what is their recipe for success? CFM naturally ensures that their engines operate in top form. To achieve all this, they have established an ‘open maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO)’ ecosystem for its LEAP engine variant.

By means of licensing third-party MRO workshops to provide services for this variant – growing with great acceleration. LEAP customers can choose from a wide range of workshops, offering a variety of scopes of work. These include a range of services such as line maintenance and manual repairs (cleaning, inspection, spare part replacement, and borescoping), right up to full performance restoration shop visits (PRSVs).

Customers who have opted for this ‘open MRO network’ are Akasa Air’s 15-year contract with ST Engineering for providing PRSVs for its LEAP-1B engines. Guangxi Beibu Gulf Airlines and KM Malta Airlines selected Lufthansa Technik for their LEAP-1A fleets, while Avianca and Corendon Airlines selected StandardAero for their -1A and -1B fleets, respectively. At the same time, Air France Industries–KLM Engineering & Maintenance and Delta TechOps marked milestones in LEAP engine overhaul activity.