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and ThrivingSurvivingAIN SPECIAL REPORT: Independent Maintenance Shops

by Matt Thurber

The manufacturers of business jets hold a lot of cards when it comes to mainte-nance of their products. Most of them prefer to be the maintenance provider for their aircraft that are relatively young, especially those still covered under warranty, but often even longer than that. But obviously factory-owned service centers can’t handle all of the business generated by their fleets. Even Textron Aviation’s large company-owned service center network would find it impossible to maintain every one of the 7,000 Citations that it has deliv-ered and that are still flying.

The ultimate goal, of course, is to keep the customer flying, and OEMs and independent maintenance shops spend enormous amounts of time and effort building expensive facilities, buying tools and training technicians. Yet a tug-of-war endures between OEMs and independent service cen-ters. The common complaint is that OEMs keep as much work as possible for themselves, and the pace of this practice picks up when sales of new aircraft drop, in an effort to restore lost revenue. Most OEMs promote the

concept of affiliated service centers that are authorized to work on their customers’ aircraft, and those without affiliation complain that they receive zero discounts on parts, which raises costs for their customers.

The business aviation mainte-nance segment is complicated, and the permutations of the relationship between OEMs and independent service centers are constantly chang-ing. For this special report, AIN sent a series of questions to independent service centers, both factory-affil-iated and non-affiliated types, to gauge the current sentiment among these companies. Following are summaries of comments from replies submitted by most of the companies that were contacted. Space doesn’t permit printing the full responses to every question, but readers who are registered with AIN can download the full Special Report from the AIN website (www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/special-reports). The full report has more responses about business activity, customer preferences and the growing shortage of technicians.

ExecuJet Aviation

What, if anything, has changed in the relationship between non-factory-owned service centers and the OEMs? AV8MROOEM practices are seemingly becoming more assertive and exclusive toward independent service centers. In many instances they are not selling parts to independent service centers, and have started issuing service bulletins that can “be accomplished only at factory service centers.”

Banyan Air ServiceOEMs count on maintenance as a profit cen-ter more today than they have in the past. It used to be that they would provide service as a means to sell the aircraft, and then realized

that it was a profit center that could help cover engineering costs. (These costs used to be con-sidered part of customer support.) OEMs also give up supporting legacy aircraft with mainte-nance and parts and let another facility handle that. The legacy aircraft owners are more price sensitive and are less inclined to pay the OEM pricing. This has led to the OEM looking at other options for support.

ComluxWe have a good relationship with Bombardier, even though it is integrating a lot of its busi-ness. The flexibility and ability of a company

like Comlux is of interest to airframers, to do certain jobs they are not tailored for. We’ve done four BBJ completions, and we work a lot on the relationship with Boeing. It’s quite a big investment in terms of the quality and track-ing system and availability of parts. Airbus is restarting its service center policy, and we are the first one on the list: we have a good rela-tionship and they trust us to be a good partner.

Constant AviationIt’s well known that the majority of OEMs have already pulled [most] of those independent service center authorizations away. They’ve partnered with only a few of the larger MROs. They have gone to a model where everything’s proprietary. Some of the first adopters of that philosophy saw an uptick in business, because they’re forcing customers to come in. But then they understood that there’s no competition, no fair trade, no options to get competitive pric-ing. They won’t allow things, like you can’t get service bulletins and STCs without their propri- ©

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etary data. It has forced the larger independent MROs to say, “We’ve got to be smarter and come up with our own innovative solutions.” Owner-operators have caught on to what the OEMs are doing, and they’re looking for large independent shops for value. In some cases it’s greater than a 30-percent discount from OEM pricing.

Duncan AviationThe years since 2009 have been difficult for business aviation, and especially difficult for most OEMs. New jet sales have rebounded some, but they have not met their pre-recession levels. As a result, some OEMs have had to critically evaluate their business models and adjust production. Partnering with the OEMs to provide the best support possible for our mutual cus-tomers is the only way to provide excellent service. Re-gardless of whether we are an authorized service cen-ter, OEMs prove to be excellent partners. We all have the same mission: to take care of our customers. In the case of OEMs and service providers like Duncan Avia-tion, we have the same customers and we want them to be happy with the product support on their aircraft.

ExecuJet AviationAlthough one can’t generalize as each OEM be-haves differently, there are some where the focus on customer service has changed to profit focus. They have implemented service center fees, in-tellectual property fees for using their brand, in-cluded royalty fees, and so on. This has resulted in eroding service center margins at a time when flying activity and maintenance inputs are down.

Innotech AviationWe have always viewed and valued our relation-ship as a complement to the industry OEMs. We have been in partnership with a number of OEMs for many years and we also offer our services as an alternate supplier to the OEM for operators and clients looking for high quality custom fin-ishes and craftsmanship.

Innova AerospaceWe have found that the OEMs have embraced the creativity and agility of non-factory-owned ser-vice facilities. Through our Sierra Industries and Sabreliner business units, we continue to work with the OEMs to bring new products and services to the business aircraft community.

Pentastar AviationOur industry has seen a multitude of changes as a whole, but we continue to focus on delivering high-quality ser-vice to our customers. The market for business aviation maintenance is as competitive as ever and has driven Pentastar Aviation to step up its customer satisfaction efforts. While we strive to continue to deliver the award-winning customer service on which we’ve built our rep-

utation, we have expanded our efforts to monitor our customers’ experience with us through a robust survey process. Customer feedback is one of our most valuable tools to help ensure our capabilities and services con-tinue to rank among the industry’s best.

Signature TechnicAirWe’re seeing a lot more aggressiveness in agree-ments and how they’re pricing parts. If you look back 10 to 15 years, you would not see OEMs marketing cockpit retrofits. However, we do have great relationships with OEMs such as Citation [Textron Aviation] and Embraer.

Spectra JetAccess to technical data is expensive and grow-ing more so. OEMs should try to make their data accessible to operators and maintenance [provid-ers] that specialize in their products. Also, parts

have become a source of concern for aging air-craft. The cost for parts has gone up too.

Spirit AeronauticsOEMs have tried to shut the doors on non-OEM service providers. By doing so, OEMs can drive up labor rates and drive business to their facilities. Unfortunately, this is a counter-intuitive maneu-ver for a free market system. OEMs are intention-ally restricting competition to drive more money to their operations.

StandardAeroOEMs continue to demonstrate increased inter-est in the aftermarket. Aircraft production isn’t what it used to be, and the search for revenue and profit leads them into that aftermarket. Some are more aggressive than others about

building their airframe business. We have been affected. In Houston, Bombar-

dier has rationalized its network. We had some authorizations in Houston it decided not to re-new. Companies are being more aggressive about the benefit of being channel partners and putting pressure on our profit margins.

When we renewed agreements at the be-ginning of this year, we had fewer of them, but then we added the Challenger 300 and 350 in Los Angeles.

Stevens AviationOEMs more and more have brought aircraft sales and aftermarket maintenance back in-house, which has reduced the interdependence of some OEMs and non-factory-owned sales and service centers.

West Star Aviation

The relationships between an authorized and an OEM service center haven’t really changed. We are partners and competitors. OEMs are putting more restrictions on what mods and service bul-letins can be done at an authorized service cen-ter vs an OEM factory-owned service center. This is the biggest issue.

Western AircraftIt depends on the OEM. The most radical change is the cancelation of authorized service centers or other agreements between OEMs and service providers. Others have changed the discount structures or the terms on which they do business. Even minor changes in ser-vice agreements induce adjustments in the way we do business with both the OEM and our mu-tual customers.

West Star Aviation

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AV8MROYes. The prices of piece parts are going up rapidly.

Banyan Air ServiceOEMs are making it more difficult and costly to pur-chase parts and service information for our custom-ers. Their parts are more costly and there may be a longer lead time on parts depending if it is in stock and what location it is coming from. The costs on service data are also high, and service bulletins may specify the work can be done only by the OEM. More and more we see them leaning toward prepaid parts programs or power-by-the-hour, which offers both a benefit and negatives to the customer. The benefit

is that the cost for these programs is a fixed amount for budgeting purposes and a negative is that they build a profit into the cost, which you might have been able to get less expensively. The other nega-tive is that you have to get the parts through them. If your aircraft is AOG you have to wait for the parts, when you could have them provided by the service center you are at. The tougher the OEM makes it on an MRO with qualified technicians and a first-class facility, the more frustrated the customers become.

Clay Lacy AviationWe have an advantage in that we’re able to exert some leverage with the size of our fleet. Our rela-tionship in the past months has been the stron-gest it’s ever been. We have not had any issues get-ting OEM support in any form, whether it’s aircraft we’re working on in-house or at a service center.

ComluxWe never say no to any business, but we concen-trate on [aircraft] on which we are trained. We

don’t close the door to anybody. But we try to stick to where we are most efficient. Of course there is a cost for that: we need people who are trained, and we need to manage the process. In the end we are willing to support their customers, but finally the OEMs support us.

Constant AviationOEMs have pricing advantages through their own shops, and this has pushed independent MROs to come up with other solutions.

We’ve had to build a parts distribution busi-ness and bought rotables to support our cus-tomers, so we can compete and provide value to our customers.

ExecuJet AviationNot directly, but by forcing us contractually to purchase all parts from the OEM we are re-strained from sourcing cheaper parts, which the customers are able to do. This sometimes renders the independents non-competitive in pricing.

FlightstarYes, the prices of parts and data have gone up.

Flying ColoursIn some cases yes, but we continually find creative ways to differentiate our services to make our of-fering more competitive. Ultimately our business is built on repeat customers. If we maintain the phi-losophy of satisfying them for the long term we are confident we will be successful, and we have done this to date.

Greenpoint AerospaceParts acquisition costs are higher if you are not a factory-owned or authorized service center.

Meridian Jet CenterYes, they are offering parts programs to their cus-tomers, thus it cuts into our profits. I have seen a significant increase in the price of service data over the past few years.

Spectra JetOur OEM [Bombardier] is undergoing changes in the organization and moving its parts ordering out of the U.S. Legacy aircraft parts (Learjet 20, 30 and 50 series) have been sold to a third party so we’ve had to deal with locating parts and ordering from them.

Spirit AeronauticsOEMs are constantly working with component manufacturers to keep service bulletins and up-grades proprietary to the OEM, which locks non-OEM providers out of the equation a lot of times.

StandardAeroI’ve been surprised in discussions with some OEMs, the parts opportunities we’ve been able to unearth with them. Where you don’t have autho-rization, you’re not going to get a parts discount. It doesn’t affect what the customer is paying; it’s just a margin opportunity for us. In some cases, maintenance data is hard to obtain. I can’t say this has had an impact on my business. Certain pieces of intellectual property you’ll not have access to.

Stevens AviationOEMs have reduced parts discounts available to non-factory-owned service centers.

West Star AviationThis is an age-old process that has gone on for years, especially on new aircraft. When aircraft are new the OEMs have to do warranty work as well as mainte-nance. So they try to keep new technology in-house as long as possible. As the aircraft ages and new pro-duction goes up, the OEM tends not to focus on the older aircraft to the degree of the new aircraft.

Western AircraftSome have and some have not. If you are asking for one answer that applies to all markets, our answer, in general, would be that we have not seen a signifi-cant change in cost or difficulty [obtaining main-tenance data] in the fixed-wing markets we serve.

Western Jet AviationWith my customers, they’re very good. They allow me to add a small markup for providing the service and ordering the parts. ©

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Innova Aerospace

Are OEMs making it more difficult or costly to purchase parts and service data for your customers?

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How have these changes affected your company’s business overall?

AV8MROThe business today is far more aggressive. It is not enough to simply compete and win the business. OEMs also put forth the perception that indepen-dent service centers are somehow inferior and not up to the highest of standards. This is done through perpetuating the myth that “not factory approved” in some way equates to inferior.

Banyan Air ServiceWe have to compete more aggressively for main-tenance business and for parts business. When a customer is a drop-in or has an AOG, the service might be delayed because we have to wait for parts from the OEM instead of getting the parts from us.

ComluxBusiness for us this year will be better than it was last year in the completion business. In the heavy maintenance and cabin upgrade business, compe-tition is tough. Everybody is working on this seg-ment, the only one that is really lively. We’re work-ing a lot on major upgrades, and we try to be a little ahead of the competition by proposing new things, like Ka-band satcom on the A330 and ACJ later this year. This is a major revolution on communication systems, and this has big potential for business in the next two to three years.

Constant AviationIt’s forced us to come up with innovative solu-tions, but customers are smarter today. After 2008 they had to dig in and understand pricing structures. What’s going on with the backlog of new production airplanes? It’s down, and people are holding on to used airplanes longer. They’re no longer turned in after the warranty period, so there are cost savings to be found outside of buy-ing a new jet.

ExecuJet AviationIn some regions there is less market share, and with the higher costs of representing some OEMs, there are lower margins.

FlightstarYes, the smaller margins have affected our com-pany financially.

Greenpoint AerospaceWe compete in areas that OEMs don’t. It is a high-ly competitive industry, and each client is unique. Our loyal clients stay with us because we treat them well, offer a highly capable staff and meet their expectations with schedule and cost.

Innova AerospaceOur business continues to grow, and the relation-ships with both our customers that are operating aircraft and the OEMs are our focus. With OEM support, we can bring great value to the business aircraft base.

Meridian Jet CenterWe have seen an increase in business. Teterboro is a busy airport, and we are fortunate to have both managed aircraft to maintain along with the transient aircraft that come to Teterboro.

MetrojetIn general, the support of OEMs provided to non-factory-owned service centers remains good as they continue to be an important part of a global support network. However, some OEMs have intro-duced more fees and charges for maintaining the OEM-approved status and the OEM products. The additional fees and markups have not been prob-lematical so far, but in the difficult time for the industry, the cost continues to create more chal-lenges for operations.

Signature TechnicAirWe’ve always had to reach out and sell our value. We’re uniquely positioned, the world’s largest FBO network and global MROs. It’s a compelling proposition for customers. They’re also able to take advantage of Signature TailWins awards when they do MRO at our North American bases.

Spectra JetSpectra Jet has tripled its revenue in the past 15 years.

Spirit AeronauticsIt has made it harder to retain customers even when the service is exceptional.

StandardAeroWe haven’t had to lay anybody off, and haven’t seen a huge dip in business. It makes it more com-petitive opportunity by opportunity, and we have to be more aggressive in pricing than we would otherwise have been.

Stevens AviationOur business has always been competitive, and it is probably as competitive today as ever.

West Star AviationFor the most part, no. We tend to focus on the older aircraft with new updated mods and heavy mainte-nance and refurbs. We have lost the opportunity to work with some customers/flight departments be-cause we are not an official service center for their airframe, but that has been only a few cases. If the service you provide is top-notch and you are de-pendable and you have expert technicians, those are the credentials the customers are looking for.

Western AircraftThe MRO business has become increasingly com-petitive. In addition to OEMs looking to take more market share, fleet utilization remains relatively weak, charter and fractional fleets are getting bigger and pre-owned aircraft prices remain low. These combined factors are significantly affect-ing demand and the way our customers are buy-ing or not buying. ©

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Are OEMs seeking more maintenance market share?AV8MROAbsolutely. It seems that the previous “symbiot-ic” relationships with independents are changing to a more exclusionary attitude across the board.

Banyan Air ServiceOEMs are seeking more maintenance market share. [In the past] they typically would focus on the warranty; now they are going after aircraft outside warranty.

They might call past customers and offer an incentive to get their maintenance work. It seems they are fishing for work when we didn’t see that in the past. They are also eliminating authorized service centers so they can be the authorized provider of maintenance of the air-craft in warranty.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupThe strategy is different for each OEM. Some are terminating service agreements to increase their market share in certain regions while others are remaining loyal to their independent networks.

Flightstar[They are] giving bigger discounts to attract more customers.

Flying ColoursWe are seeing the OEM-owned service centers try-ing to get more market share. We are regularly com-peting with the OEM-owned centers. I would cat-egorize it as more competitive than previous years.

Greenpoint AerospaceOEMs are seeking market share. For instance, Gulfstream opened an aftermarket paint facility in 2015 in Savannah.

Innotech AviationWe have noticed a more internally focused ser-vice center approach by a number of OEMs over the past decade.

Innova AerospaceThe OEMs are not unlike the independent service centers in the desire to grow services for the cus-tomer base. The great thing about a free market is the customer benefits from the competitive nature of this free market. It manages pricing and drives the value of the service offerings.

Meridian TEBThey are definitely trying to seek more market share. I see an increase in mobile repair teams that the OEMs have placed at various airports.

Spectra JetWe see OEMs putting road teams in specific ar-eas and flying parts to AOG jets when needed. And they are doing more in trying to direct the customers to come to their facilities.

Spirit AeronauticsOEMs are trying to drive business back in to their

service network as they typically service only their own types of aircraft and can’t branch out.

Stevens AviationThey appear to be [doing so].

West Star AviationIn periods of slower sales for new-production aircraft, the OEMs tend to try to bring the out-of-warranty customer back in house. In periods of higher production the warranty work on new aircraft tends to use up the excess capacity. It’s been this way for the 40 years I’ve been around.

Western AircraftMost of the fixed-wing OEMs are in pursuit of greater market share in the MRO environment. As an example, we have seen canceled OEM service center agreements, more OEM facili-ties, OEMs using more salespeople to pursue business and other strategies/tactics to drive business to their facilities. It would appear that much of this is being done to secure more busi-ness for MRO facilities.

Western Jet AviationYes, I think [they are] maxed out.

Greenpoint Aerospace

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Are OEMs adding more factory-owned service centers and competing with your company?AV8MROCertainly, with the consolidation of Beech and Cessna, Textron is cross training its service cen-ters so there is a significant increase.

Banyan Air ServiceWe don’t really see a major influx of factory-owned service centers in general, but we do know they are shutting down or eliminating au-thorized service centers.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupOne OEM is doing this to increase its market share, although the others are not.

FlightstarNot expanding, but more focused attention and

marketing on their own facilities, in our opinion.

Greenpoint AerospaceOEMs appear to be staying on course with the traditional authorized service center model to expand their networks.

Innotech AviationThe OEMs continue to add service facilities in re-sponse to specific geographic expansion. Innotech remains one of the few full-service facilities with Transport Canada, FAA, EASA, AS9100 and Nadcap certification for heavy, line and full refurbishment capabilities with all the work done in house.

Innova AerospaceSome OEMs have pulled back authorization of

independent service facilities, while others have formed strategic alliances to service the customer base. It is very specific to the OEM. However, there is always a viable choice for the customer.

Meridian TEBThe OEMs have added more centers; however, we have seen an increase in maintenance in the older aircraft (non-warranty).

MetrojetSeveral OEMs have openly stated strategies to capture a greater share of the maintenance market and are implementing those strategies aggressively with large investments in factory-owned MRO facilities in emerging markets, and technical or commercial constraints on certain types of work to factory-owned facilities.

Spectra JetOur OEM has closed service centers in the past 10 years. This is a positive for us especially since we’re “legacy” aircraft experts.

Spirit AeronauticsNot so much adding factory-owned service cen-ters as adding mobile repair teams at an alarm-ing rate. This mitigates the regional opportunity a lot of non-OEM facilities used to enjoy.

StandardAeroOEMs are stuck with having to do that in areas of the world where MRO [capabilities] are not there. Embraer is one that is still developing its net-work and putting together some new facilities. Embraer has a view of channel partners as true channel partners. Dassault similarly; Falcon is a core product line [for StandardAero], and we still have a quality relationship and partnership.

Stevens AviationWe haven’t seen any new factory-owned service centers that affect our business.

West Star AviationSome have and others are partnering with MROs such as ourselves and others to expand the footprint to enhance the customer experience. The OEMs have also consolidated and closed some operations.

Western AircraftIn the past few years several fixed-wing OEMs have added or expanded their footprints in mul-tiple locations and various markets.

Western Jet AviationIt would be nice if we could come to some kind of agreement, so no one is stepping on toes, nice to help the customers.

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Are business aviation customers spending money on specific areas, for example, avionics upgrades, heavy maintenance, modifications?Banyan Air ServiceWhat we are seeing right now is that avionics up-grades to meet the 2020 mandates, inspections and mandatory items are what aviation custom-ers are spending money on. We are also seeing in-flight connectivity for phones and comput-ers–especially for charter operators–are popu-lar now. Paint and interior upgrades are the last thing customers are thinking about.

Clay Lacy AviationWe are starting to see a move in that direction (NextGen upgrades), but most mandates are not hitting until 2020, and operators are usually hesi-tant and hold off till the last minute, but we’re

starting to see a few being proactive. We are trying to be proactive with our fleet to get those done. STCs could be part of our growth strategy; we’re looking at a couple, but that’s not a priority.

ComluxI think it’s always a balance. We try to make the best job of it, but we will not go under a certain level [below] our competition. We also want to have a stabilized workflow and business, de-pending on constraints.

Constant AviationThings to maintain on older airplanes, like in-teriors. Secondly it’s the FAA mandates; there

are a lot of people focusing on it. More owners are keeping their airplanes and want to update the cockpit to be safer, more efficient. More people are preparing, budgeting and discussing and want to understand the pricing for ADS-B; they’re in the beginning of that evaluation. There aren’t enough people and shops to support all of the airplanes in 2017-2019, so it’s going to be extremely busy.

Duncan AviationDuncan Aviation is still seeing consistent business in all areas of its facilities and han-gars. Consistent with the OEM deliveries over the last 18 months, we have seen a decline in

our international business that is being off-set by growth in business from the U.S. Ma-jor maintenance is based on flight hours or aircraft age and is fairly consistent. Opera-tors are still choosing to capitalize downtime and have flight deck and cabin avionics up-grades, interior refurbishment and paint work completed at the same time. There is lots of quoting activity and consultation regarding the NextGen mandates, and as more players come to market, these upgrades will have a big impact on the industry for several years. We are performing upgrades at our facilities, but as an industry, it is obvious that many operators have delayed implementation.

With fewer than 5 percent of ADS-B installa-tions completed on many fleets, customers who wait will f ind it diff icult in the future to schedule their upgrade as we get closer to the Jan. 1, 2020 deadline.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupIn our experience discretionary upgrades are few and far between. Only essential maintenance and upgrades are being considered at the moment.

FlightstarYes, to mandated upgrades. Yes, to heavy up-grades because the alternative is a new, more expensive aircraft.

Flying ColoursIt does vary but avionics upgrades such as ADS-B and authority-mandated modifications like this are popular at the moment. Normally they are combined with some level of maintenance, both major and minor depending on the client. We normally try and promote doing it all at once along with paint and interior refurbishment to minimize downtime and cost.

Greenpoint AerospaceEvery client spends money based on their own personal priority; however, safety is always first. Maintenance and FAA mandates are typically the main focus, which allows minor to major avionics or interior upgrades while the aircraft is down.

Innotech AviationInnotech is active doing 120- and 180-month Global inspections as well as ADS-B out, CPDLC and Batch 3 modifications for owners and oper-ators that fly across the Atlantic into Europe and Asia. We also see a lot of activity with Challenger Fans 1/A upgrades.

Innova AerospaceAbsolutely, yes. At Innova, the cornerstone of our business is modifications and upgrades. From the legacy Citation retrofits at Sierra Industries and the avionics upgrades at Sabreliner to our new programs that are being released this year, we see continued demand for these upgrades. The performance gains, situational aware-ness, compliance and safety bring value to the event that each customer is facing. With these upgrades coupled with a maintenance event, the customer receives tremendous value at an otherwise just-compliance event. Having an air-craft that you understand (its characteristics or quirks) and incorporating the performance gains gives you the aircraft of tomorrow today.

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Meridian TEBHeavy scheduled maintenance will always have to be done. Regarding the others, these up-grades are normally done [during heavy main-tenance events].

MetrojetNot at the moment in this local region [Asia-Pacific].

Pentastar AviationMany of our business aviation customers have a diverse range of needs within their mainte-nance budget. Required scheduled mainte-nance inspections remain unchanged; howev-er, cabin connectivity seems to be in growing demand as more options become available. Interior refurbishment demands seem to be trending with aircraft sale transactions as this remains the most popular point to make that investment.

Signature TechnicAirWe’re seeing a lot more interest in ADS-B as the [2020] deadline gets closer. There is always interest in cockpit upgrades with synthetic vi-sion and newer technology. We’re doing lots of proposals, and some turn into good jobs, others wait till fall.

The STC for the Pro Line Fusion upgrade on the King Air is not moving as quickly as we had anticipated. We did one, and the customer loves the system. We’re still waiting for that to hit as hard as we’re hoping.

Spectra JetWi-Fi is the new toy for the aircraft owners; also the ADS-B mandate is looming and we’re taking calls regularly with requests for quotes. We have scheduled several of these already.

Spirit AeronauticsIt keeps evolving. Last year discretionary spend dollars allowed for more specialized upgrades such as interior refurbishments, aircraft con-nectivity and cabin management systems. To-day discretionary spend dollars are down so they are focusing on required maintenance and some are beginning to focus on the required ADS-B mandate.

StandardAeroA lot of communications gear, anything they can do to increase bandwidth in the cabin. That’s a big focus, using the airplane as a productivity tool. We do have an agreement with SmartSky [a new air-to-ground telecom system] for STC development for some specific airplanes, and [we signed a] partnership with Flight Display Systems.

Stevens AviationWe are seeing more refurbishment and modi-fication work than three or four years ago, but otherwise mot much has changed.

West Star AviationMaintenance is a given; operators have to do their maintenance. So spending money on maintenance

is really not an option. Avionics is an area where customers are upgrading their equipment to the latest and most safety-oriented items.

Cabin entertainment is also a big item that customers usually elect to do while accom-plishing large maintenance packages. Modifi-cations to the interior and exterior paint are a continuing part of corporate aviation; these items are discretionary, and therefore, when the budget is tight sometimes these items are pushed back.

Western AircraftMaintenance, avionics upgrades, interior modi-fication/recompletions are all areas customers are spending money with Western Aircraft. There are new products that improve reliability or add capabilities, and where customers see the value they are spending the money.

If they do not have the need, most are re-luctant to invest in upgrades before they are required. The value of many older or used air-craft has decreased and the cost of the im-provements/modifications is now a greater per-centage of the total aircraft value, so it causes owners to think about how much they want to invest in an aircraft that isn’t worth as much as it used to be.

Western Jet AviationIf the airplane comes in for a large inspection where the interior has to be removed, and the owners are saying they don’t like color of the seats, that’s a stepping stone from being in there and [replacing] the item.

Duncan Aviation

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In terms of business activity, what are the strongest and weakest segments of your company’s retail maintenance business (line maintenance, scheduled maintenance, upgrades, AOG services)?Banyan Air ServiceThe strongest are scheduled maintenance and 2020 mandates; the weakest would be cosmet-ic items such as paint and interior mods. Also cabin management systems seem to be a weaker segment. The nice-to-have things are taking a backseat to the mandatory items.

ComluxPure maintenance is a competitive environment, and there is a lot of competition. Our current best part is major refurbs. Thanks to the fact that we are also selling aircraft and operating them, we can propose big cabin upgrades. Cabin upgrades is [the sector] where business is the most interesting. New airplanes, there are almost not any. It is the most interesting and rewarding [segment], but the mar-ket is almost zero. Airbus delivered one this year, Boeing maybe two. A few years ago they delivered 12 each. Now the most rewarding market is the sec-ond-hand market with major cabin upgrades, and we try to be positioned there quite heavily.

Duncan AviationSurprisingly, the weakest segment of our busi-ness in the first quarter has been upgrades for the NextGen mandates. With only 44 months un-til January 1, 2020, the industry should be busy installing this equipment now.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupThis varies considerably between regions, but generally scheduled inspections is the strongest segment.

FlightstarScheduled maintenance and upgrades would be the strongest areas and AOG the weakest.

Flying ColoursAt our Canadian facility we are focused on the heavy checks and major upgrades. We do com-plete line maintenance for some clients but it isn’t as strong. Our U.S. facility does heavy up-grades but is more focused on line maintenance and AOG services.

Greenpoint AerospaceThe strongest segments are scheduled main-tenance, cabin and system upgrades, paint and interior refurbishment with some AOG.

Innotech AviationWe are active in scheduled maintenance, refur-bishment and paint.

Innova AerospaceOur modification and upgrades are key to our business. However, we typically are complying with maintenance as well. Our commitment to customers continues well beyond the upgrades and MRO events. We dispatch teams around the world every day in support of our customers, both new and old.

Meridian TEBOur strongest are AOG, scheduled and line main-tenance. Our weakest are upgrades.

MetrojetMetrojet’s strongest areas are line and AOG maintenance in Hong Kong with scheduled main-tenance in Clark and Zhuhai.

Signature TechnicAirA lot of prepurchase inspections in the first quarter. We enjoy them; this always leads to new relationships and new opportunities with those customers.

Pentastar AviationOur strongest segments remain scheduled maintenance and upgrades.

Spectra JetWe have a good mixture of all these segments. Additionally we added Limited Radio and Lim-ited Instrument [to our repair station certifi-cate] last summer so we’re doing more in the avionics areas.

Spirit AeronauticsAvionics upgrades continue to be a strong seg-ment of our business.

StandardAeroSixty percent of our business is engine-relat-ed, Honeywell TFE731. We’re the market leader in TFE731 repair and overhaul; that’s core for us. About 25 to 30 percent is airframe, avion-ics mods and interiors. Our engine business is strong, as is our avionics business. Other elements are a tougher sell. They’re larger

complex packages of airframe mods and in-terior work, and scheduling them into our Springfield facility is a daily challenge, [trying to] get aligned with capacity.

Stevens AviationLine maintenance, scheduled maintenance and upgrades have kept a steady balance. AOG ser-vice is new to us in the last four years, so that is growing as part of our overall business.

West Star AviationOur strongest department/service would be maintenance in general. Our avionics and inte-rior/paint mods would be secondary. Our parts sales, and all of our miscellaneous services from landing gear overhaul and repair to window re-pair, and all our other services, are growing ev-ery year.

Western AircraftMaintenance, FBO and avionics segments are do-ing well while the interior refurbishment area has proven more challenging.

Aging fleets, the entry of new aircraft into service, service diversification and internal ef-ficiency and quality programs have produced positive results for us in maintenance. Avionics programs such as Honeywell Easy II, Internet con-nectivity and regulatory compliance (ADS-B, Fans etc.) have also kept us busy. We believe that our customers are generally deferring interior work to a later date, as customers often deem interior work nonessential.

Additionally, innovations in interior ma-terials and care are extending surface finish usable life. We believe diversification into markets such as the air-ambulance segment will help increase interior sales. Additional things we have done to boost interior sales in-clude offering our customers repairs instead of complete refurbishments, providing partial refurbishments versus whole cabin and even progressive refurbishments where the cus-tomer has work completed during different visits throughout the year.

Western Jet AviationIt’s maintenance, but now it’s scattering to more of avionics and we’re going to do inte-riors also.

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Is it difficult to find and attract technical personnel, and if so, what is your company doing about this?AV8MROYes. This is indicative of an industry-wide shortage. We try to attract experienced technical personnel, but again, we are specific in our services/products.

Banyan Air ServiceThis seems to be across the industry. Everyone is looking for qualified technical personnel. Ev-eryone is doing the same searches, using the same outlets, looking at tech schools and so on. Banyan is no different. If we find the right candidate from a technical school, even though they are inexperienced, we will bring them on and mentor them to success. We will teach them the Banyan way.

Clay Lacy AviationThat is an industry-wide challenge. What we are doing to attract capable craftsmen is to offer com-petitive pay and great benefits. In addition, we all understand that there are only a handful of good technicians to go around; everybody is fighting for the top 10 percent. Most are comfortable in their positions. They don’t want to move, and it’s really difficult to lure them, especially to a higher cost-of-living environment.

We’re starting to work hard with local A&P schools, we have two scholarships under the Clay Lacy Foundation, and we’re developing A&P tech-nicians through North Valley Occupational Center, which was on the brink of being shut down five years ago. Clay Lacy and Si Robin [CEO of Sensor Systems] stepped in [with large donations], and their efforts and continuing support helped enroll-ment continue to grow, and they are restarting the night A&P program. Without that you can’t work full time and go to school, and it’s an option for people looking to change careers. Last year we supported 23 students financially. We’re surprised by how many people are in the career transition phase; they’re working and want to switch to aviation.

ComluxFortunately it’s better now, but there have been a couple of contractions in the market. A cer-tain number of completion centers have disap-peared, and there are more people who are com-petent. We now find more people than we did three years ago. You need to invest in people. It takes a year in cabin completion or upgrade to get fully independent and autonomous. We need to anticipate that, it’s an investment.

Constant AviationWe have been partnering with local schools and local cities to attract that type of talent. We try to grow our own. Great mechanics are worth their weight in gold. They’re not looking to leave [their current job] unless something happened and they were negatively affected. At great com-panies, there is not a lot of movement. We need to build a system to grow our own talent. We started that a decade ago. The majority of our mid-level management team has been with us a lot of years, and they’ve grown into our culture.

Duncan AviationThere is a shortage of skilled technicians com-ing out of the core schools. They have book knowledge, but they need practical and on-the-job experience before they are able to per-form technical work at the level we require and our customers expect. So far, Duncan Aviation has been able to meet its staffing needs pri-marily through employee referrals and hiring entry-level technicians from A&P schools. The key is finding and selecting those candidates who have the right drive, interpersonal skills along with technical aptitude to be successful in our culture. We have also developed intern-ship programs for some of our technical areas, giving high-potential students the opportunity to see what it is like to work at Duncan Avia-tion and work in the technical field before they graduate. This program has worked well to in-troduce talented individuals to Duncan Avia-tion and motivate them to work hard acquiring the necessary technical skills to succeed here.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupSkills shortages are prevalent in some regions, but in the historical expat markets (Middle East) this is less of a problem. We have in-house train-ing programs to develop staff so we are creating skills where needed.

FlightstarYes. We’re using third-party, temp-to-direct op-tions. Trade shows, college campus visits are used as well.

Flying ColoursIt is always a competitive landscape when it comes to finding maintenance techs. We regu-larly recruit via our own internal methods. We

also use outside firms to recruit when needed. We work on expanding our brand so that people want to work for us. If we take care of our team then they will in turn also become a recruiting tool by advising other people that it’s a great environment and company to work for. We also have incentive packages to offer techs.

Greenpoint AerospaceThe difficulty is not finding technical personnel, but making sure they are a good fit for our team and company. We seek those interested in devel-opment, innovation and growth. Our continuous improvement culture, accountability and lean operations aren’t for everyone.

Innotech AviationMontreal is an aerospace cluster in Canada so we have access to many talented and skilled em-ployees in the region. Innotech also has internal training programs to ensure our staff are skilled to meet the specific needs of our clients.

Innova AerospaceWe are always recruiting, trying to find the best. We work well with the local and state leaders to create programs to develop opportunities in our communities for employment and career devel-opment. Our team makes sure that we continue to have a positive impact on the communities in which our facilities are located. It is a deliberate focus on our communities to create opportunities.

Meridian TEBThere is definitely a shortage of qualified techni-cians. We have found word of mouth or job place-ment companies the best way to find technicians.

Pentastar AviationPentastar Aviation has a highly experienced maintenance team, many of whom have been with the company for several decades. It can be a challenge to find new technicians with a high level of experience, but we have offset that challenge through internal training, mentoring efforts and by maintaining relationships with quality technical schools and colleges develop-ing the next generation of technicians.

Signature TechnicAirIn the Midwest we don’t have nearly the turnover that we do on the coasts. We’re able to retain most of those people. We have competitive benefits and wages, and we’re making sure we keep good people. The coasts are much more challenging. It’s harder to find experienced technicians. We’re see-ing people moving out through retirements and into other industries, and we’re not seeing [new entrants] coming from below. We’re in the middle of a lot of planning with our two organizations

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coming together, and our talent acquisition team is putting things into place for the next five years. [Our parent company] BBA Aviation is big on tech-nical training and leadership development.

Spectra JetWhenever we’re asked this question I have al-ways answered no, but now we too are feeling the pinch trying to find good technicians. We have to compete with GE and the airlines in our area.

Spirit AeronauticsIt’s nearly impossible for certain skills. Like most of our competitors, we are offering sign-on bo-nuses and enlisting the support of local aviation education programs to help us attract new talent.

StandardAeroIt is a challenge. We have sought alternate sources for talent, mainly the military. We’ve had some good luck going to alternate sources because we have to. In addition to our partnership with A&P schools, we’re also looking at community colleg-es. We can help military technicians get their A&P. Or hire avionics technicians who don’t need [the A&P]. We’re losing people to railroads and indus-tries we wouldn’t have thought of before.

Stevens AviationIt has always been difficult to find high-quali-ty technicians, but no harder today than in the past.

West Star AviationIt’s always a challenge to find the right players who have the same focus and passion for cus-tomer service as we do. But the culture and vi-sion of our employees is key to our success. We continually work with tech schools and colleges to build programs that enhance our business model and produce qualified candidates.

Western AircraftYes, recruiting is difficult. The Western Aircraft team does several things to encourage people to consider our industry and the company as a career choice. Starting at the high school and college level, we participate with several schools and organizations in efforts that show young adults why this could be a rewarding career choice. Job fairs and career days are just a few examples where we participate and provide information about our industry and our company. Additionally, we have donated several pieces of equipment, parts and tools to help those who have selected an aviation-related career learn.

Western Jet AviationIt’s difficult. But we do know that the North Val-ley Occupational Center A&P school [near our base in Van Nuys] is booming. Two or three years ago it had a class of 90, now it’s 150 or 160, and it is talking about opening a night class.

Meridian TEB

Pentastar Aviation

Western Aircraft

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Has the shortage of technicians caused your company to improve benefits and raise wages? What are some of the improved benefits that have been implemented? AV8MROIn the last year we have increased vacation time, added major medical insurance and implement-ed a retirement plan.

Banyan Air ServiceWe continually evaluate our benefits package to ensure we are at the upper end of the industry.

Clay Lacy AviationThe industry is doing it to itself because of how competitive it has been. MROs continue to battle with each other, creating an environ-ment with little margin left. That in turn—and even the OEMs are struggling with this—is pre-venting the MROs from paying the technicians what they should be getting. If you consider the amount of risk we are taking even with the smallest inspection, there’s no margin left in the labor side of the house, and benefits costs are going up every year. I’m not sure how we’re going to recoup.

ComluxWe try to keep the people local because it’s bet-ter for stability, but when needed we move peo-ple around. We have a location in Indianapolis and in Europe we have more operations. When we need tech guys, we move people from vari-ous entities. It’s bringing cross-culture, and it’s beneficial for the group.

Constant AviationBenefits are important. We’re fortunate, we haven’t increased our medical benefits costs in 10 years, to our employee base. We’ve always of-fered great benefits; it’s been part of our funda-mental principle. We never took away the 401K or reduced benefits, even [during the recession in 2008-2009]. We’re offering personal develop-ment, and giving people opportunities to ad-vance their careers.

Duncan AviationWe have a company culture that shows concern for our team members, their health, careers and family. We recognize that health care and retirement plans are important to our team members who want a career at Duncan Avia-tion. We are constantly evaluating the benefits and pay we offer to our team members. We compare pay and benefits to other companies within the industry and large employers within our geographic regions. It is our goal to ensure that our team members have an attractive em-ployment package that allows them to contin-ue employment with us for their entire career, and not treat working here as just a job they perform. We invest not only in pay and ben-efits but also in the company culture, facili-ties, tooling and training. In addition, we have a strong wellness program with growing ele-ments such as two wellness sites, health fairs,

healthy vending food choices, fitness rooms and workplace health challenges.

FlightstarYes, we raised wages.

Flying ColoursWe are always looking at ways to provide our technicians with improved benefits and wages. We regularly look at the industry wages and strive to increase them. We have a complete benefit package that is always being improved on by having the technicians provide us with feedback on what they want. Some examples include more vacation time, creative shifts that work for our technicians and their families, relo-cation packages (including finding spouses em-ployment), better medical and dental coverage and so on.

Greenpoint AerospaceAs Greenpoint’s founder always says, “I know that if we take care of our team, they will take care of our customers.” Greenpoint offers one of the best compensation packages in the industry for employees and their families.

Innotech AviationInnotech has always provided its workforce with market-competitive wage and benefit pack-ages and in return our workforce has provided Innotech with greater flexibility to ensure we work as efficiently as possible. This helps us en-sure schedules are achieved.

Innova AerospaceWe strive to create value with our employees, just as we do our customers. Offering indus-try-best benefits and promotion opportuni-ties, hosting a monthly employee appreciation event and transportation programs to name a few. Wages are constantly monitored to ensure competitiveness, and we have created incentive programs that are specific to the roles and ex-pectations of each position.

Meridian TEBWe participate in salary/benefit surveys with other companies so we can be competitive with other service centers.

MetrojetWe operate in three different MRO locations and the situation is different in each of those loca-tions. In Hong Kong in general it’s relatively easy

Meridian TEB

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to find personnel; the Philippines is more dif-ficult for type-rated experienced engineers. We introduced a competitive pay and benefit pack-age and a scalable system to reward engineers for increasing their capabilities and aircraft type coverage. We have long-range recruitment and development plans to locate, develop and retain technical staff and we are heavily com-mitted to training our engineers on current and new types that are being introduced. In addition we can transfer engineers between locations as work demands and skills requirements develop.

Pentastar AviationWe have maintained our commitment to provid-ing competitive wages and excellent benefits to our employees before and during the techni-cian shortage. Our human resources department constantly evaluates the marketplace to ensure we remain competitive in these areas within the industry.

Signature TechnicAirAs we battle for the same technicians—and we’ve seen that on the coast—if a new startup corpo-rate operator moves to Teterboro or Dulles, we’ll lose a good technician or two. They’ll pay what they think they need to pay. This sparks interest in the area and people start talking about wages. If we’re staying diligent we can stay on top of it. What we are doing long term is to make sure we develop more technicians.

Spectra JetWe try to pay based on skill, experience, etc. We give raises to the deserving. We are constantly working on making this better and adding incen-tives to retain our work force.

Spirit AeronauticsWe have raised wages slightly but benefits are a part of our evolution that has nothing to do, at least intentionally, with attracting new tal-ent. We, as a company, have an obligation to provide for our employees and we have ag-gressively worked toward improving our bene-fits every year. In the last three years we have kept our medical insurance flat, improved our dental coverage while lowering our employee monthly premiums, provided short-term and long-term insurance at no cost to our em-ployees, increased company-paid insurance

to multiple times the individual’s salary at no cost to the employee, increased our company HSA contributions, added a gym and tool re-imbursement program and a host of other em-ployee benefits without adding any additional cost to employees.

StandardAeroOutside of normal parameters of year-on-year increases, we haven’t had to enhance our offering packages yet. So far so good. If it gets to be tight, then money starts to come into it . The challenge with technicians is that they look at the hourly rate, but they won’t look at the total compensation package like others might. When the oil business is good we get heavily recruited in Houston. A guy goes and gets 50 percent more to run an oil company flight department.

Stevens AviationWe haven’t seen a shortage of technicians.

West Star AviationOur wages and benefits are competitive with those elsewhere within the industry. We work closely with tech schools and colleges to iden-tify qualified candidates. Our company has been attending more job fairs and reaching out to technical schools to help set up programs for aviation technicians.

There is not much that can be done be-cause of the shortage. If good, reliable, peo-ple aren’t out there to be trained, you have to start at the ground level and train. Our ben-efits and wages are some of the best in the industry, [and the opportunity to] be part of one of the leading MROs in the industry helps us attract employees.

Western AircraftWestern Aircraft cares about its employees and we ensure our wages are competitive by being proactive. We continuously evaluate in-dustry data to guarantee wages are in line with the specifics related to individual positions. Because of the competitive and changing in-dustry, wages continue to be adjusted regu-larly. Skilled and experienced technicians are hard to find, and it is an increasingly alarming problem in our industry. Western Aircraft has a comprehensive and competitive benefit pack-age for our employees so although there have been minor changes, the fundamental struc-ture of our benefits has remained consistent year-after-year.

Western Jet AviationWe pay pretty fairly. We don’t want to en-tice people; we want employees to want to be here, not have to be here. We have a stable workforce.

StandardAero

Pentastar Aviation

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What other issues is your company facing?Banyan Air ServiceThe high cost of certifying foreign repair stations is an issue. Since we have 11 repair station [cer-tificates], it’s quite an investment and it’s quite costly. Another issue is the consistency in imple-mentation of regulatory requirements across the industry. We may interpret the regulations based on guidance in our region and find a competitor is working on different interpretation of the reg-ulations. The most unfavorable issue is the cost of the aircraft manufacturers’ manuals to meet the repair station requirements. When the MRO is qualified on a large variety of aircraft, the cost of current maintenance manuals is outrageous.

Constant AviationEmployment is the big issue. It’s not finding qualified people; it’s [finding] people who fit our culture, great people with good work ethics, that is what is important to us. Finding the right talent to buy in and that wants to be here for the long run. We rarely ever hire for the short term. We hope you retire here, and we will put you in the system to be successful and mentor you. We’ve always taken that approach. It’s not 100 percent of the people you hire or interview that fit that mindset, but finding enough that fits our mind-set and culture [is the challenge].

ExecuJet Aviation GroupLonger-range aircraft do not necessarily use lo-cal facilities for larger work packages as they have a choice of facilities anywhere in the world.

FlightstarCustomer loyalty and an aging workforce.

Greenpoint AerospaceGrowing to meet market demand.

Innotech AviationBusiness aviation has always been a cyclical in-dustry affected by world markets. As a comple-tions, maintenance and paint facility we focus on delivering cost-effective and superior quality services, workmanship and finishes.

Innova AerospaceAs the economy contracts from time to time, the customer’s normal reaction is to stall the decision on maintenance to control spending within the company. This creates short-cycle planning and puts pressure on material purchases, personnel and so forth.

Meridian TEBOur biggest challenge is hangar space to perform maintenance, especially with our growing fleet of managed aircraft.

Pentastar AviationPentastar has received more requests for flex-ibility in the services we provide, including a la carte options for aircraft owners. We have the diversity in our service capabilities and the agility in our service delivery to accommodate those requests.

Spectra JetExpansion and growth induce their own problems. Construction of a second hangar and more office, parts and work space is planned (and has been for some time) but is dictated by the flow of work.

Spirit AeronauticsThe economic impact of a flat world economy and an unstable presidential election has hit busi-ness aviation hard, and we are feeling it. We are investing more sales dollars to capture work than we did in the past and we are seeing our com-petitors go to below-cost labor rates just to keep their shops busy. One particularly large organiza-tion has dropped its labor rates to $45 an hour just to offset its losses. Unfortunately it is a non-recoverable position because it drives customer behaviors and prevents use of capital for growth. Everything gets tied up in sustainment.

StandardAeroThe market itself is just schizophrenic. One quar-ter it looks like it’s coming back, the next quarter it’s right back where it started. It’s really hard. Our benchmark is 3 percent GDP growth; that’s when the industry starts to rebound. But getting consistently 3 percent is challenging. We’ve had a phenomenal run since 2009, where [our busi-ness was] $225 million, and we closed in on $400 million last year, with 15 percent year-over- year grown between 2014 and 2015. We would like to see GDP at 3 percent, and then we could do some consistent growing.

West Star AviationFinding people to work split shifts, odd work weeks and with experience in all facets of the business.

Western AircraftThere are many issues facing the MRO industry that affect Western Aircraft. One is the number of skilled and experienced technicians in our industry. Technicians are leaving our industry for other fields, and experienced technicians are retiring, and when those two factors are combined with the number of people coming into aviation there is the concern that there will not be enough technicians to serve future needs. Additionally, Western Aircraft has been proactively preparing to meet customer de-mand related to various mandates, and if there is no extension on certain equipment requirements it will be hard for the industry to satisfy those customers who are waiting for the tasks to be performed in a timely fashion that meets their desires and needs.

Western Jet AviationAlways, the economy. We go into recession in the aviation world usually later than the normal world. Always doing your best, making the cus-tomer happy, that’s the constant scenario you work with. We’re proud to have the customers we have and the employees we have. Customers keep coming back; we really don’t have a sales force.

Meridian TEB

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Has your company expanded recently, added locations or facilities? Banyan Air ServiceWe are currently developing the north side of Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport and we have expanded our capabilities and product line. We are now sales and service centers for HondaJet and Quest’s Kodiak. We have expanded into Chal-lenger maintenance and extended our shifts. We are open until midnight. We also have a mobile maintenance team to provide service in Florida.

Clay Lacy AviationWe are expanding; we just announced our Part 145 repair station in Seattle. We’re working on expanding footprint in Carlsbad, Calif. We just brought in a new general manager to expand that station, and we’re in the process of getting Part 145 approval there. We continue to expand here [in Van Nuys], but the footprint is kind of limited with the existing hangar here; there are plans to expand the maintenance side in the near future.

ComluxFor the time being we will stabilize. We have opened a facility in the Middle East and have expanded our hangar [in Indianapolis] by 35 per-cent. It’s time for stabilization, being sure that Indianapolis and Bahrain are successfully stabi-lized at the end of this year. Probably next year or 2018 we will think about more expansion. Having something in Asia will probably be a target, not for the short term. From time to time it’s good to take a pause to have everything in place.

Duncan AviationDuncan Aviation has been growing and expand-ing. We have seen growth in the larger business aircraft segment for several years now and that was a major reason we decided to invest in new facilities at our Lincoln, Neb. location. In 2012 we opened a 45,000-sq-ft paint facility in Lincoln. In 2014, we opened an additional 175,000-sq-ft maintenance facility in Lincoln that includes two 40,000-sq-ft maintenance hangars and office and shop space. We look forward to developing more services and larger spaces at our Provo, Utah location, which we anticipate becoming a full-service location in the next few years.

FlightstarYes, a new 31,000-sq-ft maintenance hangar and an interior shop that we just broke ground on and an interior/completions addition.

Flying ColoursWe just celebrated one year in Singapore. This was a big investment for our company in 2015. We have expanded the back shops, customer of-fices and paint facilities at our Canadian center, with an investment of $2.5 million. We will also be adding another hangar next year at our Canadian facility to accommodate future growth.

Greenpoint AerospaceOur team is growing and we are hiring at multiple locations to meet customer demand.

Innotech AviationWe built a 35,000-sq-ft hangar in 2014.

Innova AerospaceWe recently added SkyPlace, a facility located di-rectly on San Antonio International Airport. Sky-Place has added a tremendous amount of capac-ity and growth opportunities for us.

MetrojetAt ABACE 2016 Metrojet announced the formation of a joint-venture company with a Shanghai cor-poration, aiming to obtain an AOC for business jet management and charter services. In the mean-time, we will also set up an office in Singapore catering to the needs of management businesses within Southeast Asia.

Signature TechnicAirThat’s something you’ll have to watch as we grow. In our recent acquisitions there are a lot of syn-ergies from the FBO and MRO side. That’s a great part of this transition and this organization.

Spirit AeronauticsWe are in the middle of a large expansion right now, with the final details on a 140,000-sq-ft facil-ity nearing final agreement. We have expanded our service capabilities and added aircraft model types to our capabilities, which we plan on continuing.

StandardAeroThis year we focused on the Honeywell HTF7000. Honeywell issued an RFP in November for single overhaul authorization license for the HTF series on six aircraft types, including the Challenger 300/350. That was our big strategic investment, and we were successful. Now that we’ve won that, we’re starting to look at other types of growth

and expansion. Probably we can achieve growth by changing the shift schedule, going to more of a 24/7/365 basis, so we don’t need more physical capacity. We won’t rule out facility expansions ei-ther, but there are no firm plans.

Stevens AviationWe are planning to build a paint hangar at our Greenville location.

West Star AviationOur most recent addition has been our Chatta-nooga, Tenn. opening. We held our open house in May, where we announced that we are going to expand beyond our 20,424-sq-ft heated hangar to include a paint facility similar to the one at our Grand Junction, Colo. location. We are confident this location will be a good addition to West Star as it has room to expand as needed.

Western AircraftIt’s been nearly two years since we had a major expansion of the MRO facility, over-the-counter parts call center, material control and the parts inventory warehouse. Currently phase two and three of our expansion timeline is still to be de-termined. In light of current market dynamics, we have put our focus into increasing efficiencies within our organization. For example, we have re-cently streamlined the way 100-hour inspections on the PC-12 are done. Before the team started this project, these inspections were scheduled for three days of downtime. To date, Western Aircraft has taken an entire day off the three-day sched-ule and is on track to reduce the time further, with a goal to complete 100-hour inspections in a single day. The Western Aircraft Pilatus team has achieved this by putting the entire inspection process under review, starting with the input call to the aircraft’s customer, down to the final wash and return to service. Similar techniques have been applied to the Falcon 7X C-check and they are already starting to produce results.

Greenpoint Aerospace

Will your company add locations this year? Banyan Air ServiceWe are currently evaluating options of another location and are always open to new locations should the opportunity be right for us.

Constant AviationWe don’t believe in having a lot of smaller MROs; we believe in having full-service capability, a few larg-er MROs, locations that can provide full capability. If you have an interior issue, a component break or need a part, there’s an advantage to having re-sources in your backyard. We can resolve the issue the day of. With the low price of fuel, airplanes are used to traveling, and our Cleveland base is quite central to the U.S. In the grand scheme of things it’s not significant [to travel there]. We have three locations, and if you draw circles they’re within a couple of hours of the majority of states covered. We’ve got 15 AOG hubs, and will expand those fur-ther, but not hugely.

Duncan AviationWe are constantly evaluating the best way to sup-port our customers. Strategic placement of our teams, tools and facilities is part of that evalua-tion. One of the most exciting prospects for 2016 is the opening of a satellite facility in San Anto-nio, Texas. Duncan Aviation technicians from Aus-tin are already serving customers in the area and plans are in work to bring a team to San Antonio Airport permanently. We are also staging engine tooling in Mexico so these items don’t have to go through Mexican customs, speeding response for AOG service calls from operators traveling in and around that country.

ExecuJet Aviation GroupNo plans at the moment, but that’s not to say this won’t happen.

Flying ColoursI don’t see us adding a location in 2016.

Greenpoint AerospaceNone at the moment.

Innotech AviationNo immediate plans for expansion.

Innova AerospaceWe have nothing to announce at this time.

Meridian TEBWe are currently adding an FBO in Hayward, Calif. Our plans for the facility are to have managed aircraft based there along with maintenance in the future.

We just recently hired a technician for our Citation Excel based there. He will also be re-sponsible for minor maintenance on transients when the facility opens in September.

Pentastar AviationWe do not have immediate plans to expand our physical footprint.

Spectra JetWe’ve been talking for a while about opening a shop out west where we could try to gather some more market share. Phoenix is the most likely location.

Spirit AeronauticsWe are looking to add two locations this year.

StandardAeroWe don’t have firm plans.

Stevens AviationUnlikely this year.

West Star AviationThis year we do not plan on adding any loca-tions, but strengthening the locations we have.

Western Jet AviationI wouldn’t mind looking into the East Coast; the two main business aviation hubs are Cali-fornia and New York. We’re playing with some-thing like northern Florida, where taxes are a little better. o

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