Yemisi Izuora
Aero Contractors has spent well over N200 million into its Maintenance Repair and Overhaul, MRO facilities over a period of five years.
The Managing Director of the airline Captain Ado Sanusi said on Monday that the airline is partnering RAMCO, a software company based in Chennai India to further improve digital solutions to its MRO operations.
Sanusi during a press briefing in Lagos stated that with the partnership, every aspect of the airline’s MRO services can now be accessed and tracked real time for enhanced efficiency.
Sanusi observed that while the partnership commenced July 2019, the airline’s MRO operations went live in December 2019.
He said Aero now automates its partnership using Ramco Systems thus achieving first paperless check in West Africa.
Aero boss stated further that in the last three years, Aero MRO has performed C checks up to 6 C on Aero Contractors and other customers aircraft, performed landing gear replacements on numerous customers aircraft locally which include Azman Air, Max Air, while the other airlines on the international scene include: Swift Air in Spain, Passion Air in Ghana, GOMAIR DR Congo, PTY Indonesia.
He said the company has also performed reactivation maintenance for many operators aircraft that have been grounded for over five years and such aircraft flew to as far away as Indonesia and Canada without problems, got Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, CAA approval and became the technical partner of DAC International Airlines now known as Passion Air of Accra Ghana in 2018, got CAA approval from DRC in May 2019 and is currently performing 1C check on GOMAIR, a cargo Airline in Democratic Republic of Congo, and will soon send engineers to run line maintenance in Kinshasa, has assembled AW139 helicopter in a short time that the manufacturers recommended Aero MRO to another Nigerian customers that bought a brand new AW139 which it expected to assemble in the coming days.
Other include, installation of state of the art lightening in its hangar in Lagos and Port – Hacourt and acquired ultra modern and technologically advanced weighing machines, borescope equipment, shoring and other equipment as part of its preparation to seek the approval of other countries in West and Central African sub region, including European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA and US Federal Aviation Administration, FAA approvals in the coming year.
Aero CEO said discussion and arrangements have reached advanced stage to make the MRO free zone.
In his words: “With this development in just two years, local airlines no longer need to fly their aircraft out of Nigeria for heavy maintenance of their aircraft thereby saving huge foreign currency that they would have expended of fuel, overflight charges, and allowances. As our services increased in scope, there was need for improved streamlining of our operations through digitalization . The management of Aero Contractors therefore contracted Ramco, an aviation soft ware solution provider to offer a soft ware solution that covers everything monitoring services from the time we enter into a contract with a client all the way to the time the job is concluded.”
Sanusi said the relationship with Ramco is expected to be expanded to include the AOC FW and AOC RW Operations in the near future.
In her remarks, the general manager aviation EMEA and South India of Ramco, Mrs Menaka Sinha said the successful implementation of Ramco aviation Suite at Aero will automate manual work execution processes and enable organisation wide visibility.
Sinha noted that with modules for planing, work execution, stores, procurement, MRO sales, and billing process, Ramco’s Integrated Aviation M&E MRO solution automates and optimises Aero Contractor’s MRO Services.
She said the solution will help the organisation optimize employees utilization and improve efficiency and accuracy in billing process.
The general manager of Ramco noted that with the addition of Aero Contractors, Ramco now counts on the likes of leading industry players like Caverton Helicopters in the rapidly growing Africa region which is now a focus geography for Ramco Aviation, adding that the company is excited to add Nigeria’s leading and oldest MRO to its clientele.
Speaking also, the head of Aero MRO, Mr James Ominyi said within two and half years, Aero has done 20 checks and now catering for airlines in West Africa.
He said the training for 20 Aero staff on the use of paperless C check has been conducted in the country by Ramco.
Ominyi said the deployment of the software will not lead to cut in manpower but will rather make sure manpower is used expeditiously .
He noted that for there to be sustainable MRO, there must be the numbers.