28 November 2022
Blockchain, Maintenance 4.0, Robotics.
How is technology disrupting MROs?
Emerging technologies are unleashing a wave of change across the aerospace industry – and MROs have not been left unscathed.
An interesting time to be an MRO
Aerospace companies of all types and sizes recognize the opportunities that innovation offers. But harnessing new technologies is sometimes a bumpy ride. The Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul (MRO) sector – still recovering from the beating it took during the pandemic – will feel these bumps perhaps more than most. It must juggle the consequences of disruptive technological change (often introduced by others, e.g., OEMs and airlines) while charting a way back from the pummeling it took during the pandemic.
Although global MRO demand should recover to 2019 levels by 2024, recovery will be regionally patchy, and growth will be more lethargic out to (at least) 2030 than had been expected. According to industry consultancy, Oliver Wyman, MRO demand will reach USD118 billion at the end of the decade, 13% lower than the USD135 billion it was predicting before the pandemic hit.
There are five emerging technologies that are having or are likely to have a significant impact on the MRO sector: Blockchain, Maintenance 4.0, composite manufacturing (3D printing), robotics, and the evolution of avionics.
Blockchain
Many industries are waking up to the possibilities of blockchain. By providing a shared and unalterable way of recording transactions and tracking assets, blockchain is the definitive tool for securely managing assets – be that a cryptocurrency transaction or the maintenance log of, say, an aeroplane engine.
According to Honeywell Aerospace, blockchain can be used to replace ‘the databases, spreadsheets and, yes, paper logs used today. [It] creates an immutable digital record of scheduled and unscheduled maintenance activities on each plane. The operator knows which task was performed, on which aircraft, by which technician at every maintenance interval’.
Blockchain therefore offers an indisputable source of truth, starting with the OEM and going on through distributors, operators, and MROs. This has the potential to improve collaboration between industry participants because anyone can trace the history of any single component.
It should also establish greater trust in the used and spare parts markets – with the potential to help lower maintenance and repair costs. As Honeywell puts it, blockchain ‘establishes a pedigree of each part’, and not just the big-ticket items that have traditionally received such scrutiny.
Maintenance 4.0
We live in a world awash with data: it is one of the defining features of Industry 4.0 ecosystems. But having data is not the same as using data. There are several issues here. Most significantly for MROs are issues around data ownership and accessibility.
As one MRO executive notes, ‘when you have data, you find defects […] data makes the job much easier’. But getting access to data can be fraught with issues, notably around IP. The challenge facings MROs is to persuade airlines and OEMs that certain data can be shared– such as data on component stress and strain – without compromising IP or the commercial sensitivities of the airlines.
When data is available, the opportunities to improve maintenance practices are significant. One of the most notable of these is predictive maintenance, which utilizes AI-based data analytics to determine when maintenance is required. This allows time between maintenance to be optimized, without the risk of component failure or damage to the aircraft.
Digital twins build on predictive maintenance to provide fresh perspectives when it comes to assessment and maintenance of aircraft and their component systems. For example, digital twin specialist, Challenge Advisory, argues that the technology could reduce the need for manual pre-flight inspection of aircraft engines ‘down to zero’. Moreover ‘by having complete vision on the part durability of an aircraft in real-time, the overall lifespan of a plane or its engines can be determined within seconds – the accuracy of the lifespan estimates can be down to minutes’.
Composite manufacturing
Composite manufacturing (3D printing) is used to significantly reduce the number of parts, weight and assembly times required to make aircraft components. All good things for OEMs and their customers – but it can cause problems for maintenance.
The complexity of composite parts and use of special tools or proprietary bonding techniques makes repair much more expensive than parts made with traditional materials, such as aluminum. The trend toward consolidating multiple parts into single pieces is another complicating factor. In traditional engine designs, for example, it was possible to replace individual fan blades that had been damaged, e.g., by a bird strike. But fan sets in some of the latest engines are manufactured as single units; to replace one fan blade, it thus becomes necessary to replace the complete fan.
These issues can profoundly increase the cost of maintenance. And in some circumstances, there can be no other option other than to return to the OEM.
Robotics
Robotics is often talked about as a solution to labor shortages and way of improving the efficiency of maintenance.
Potential uses for robotics in the MRO sector is significant: from single parts repairs and precision carbon-fiber machining to miniaturization (e.g., Rolls Royce’s so-called SWARM robots) and drones to aid inspection of difficult to reach areas. ‘New age robotics are driving an array of exciting developments in the MRO world – all of which can save you time and money by reducing turnaround times’, conclude AFI KLM E&M, whose MRO Lab programme aims to push innovative solutions to the challenges of aircraft maintenance.
But despite some embrace of robotics by the industry, e.g., to better detect damaged parts, aircraft maintenance is ‘still overwhelmingly human and dependent on touch maintenance’, according to aerospace services provider, Satair
The evolution of avionics
The evolution of avionics leads back to a wider point on the adoption of technological change and the insurance implications thereof. A range of trends are involved here:
- The transition to integrated chip-based circuits and surface-mount/solid state componentry
- Increased digitalization and miniaturization leading to the creation of entire systems on a chip
- The combination of chip-based circuits into circuit card assemblies
And as we have seen, these innovations pose challenges for maintenance. For example, software upgrades are now an important task in avionics repair and testing – both because software is inbuilt into integrated circuits and as software vulnerabilities are now discovered on an increasingly regular basis. Patching such vulnerabilities is relatively easy for ground-based systems; not so for software installed on aircraft, which must go through a set certification process that can prevent expedient action.
The insurance implications
There is no doubt that emerging technologies have the potential to bring huge advantages to the MRO sector. Blockchain and Maintenance 4.0 will improve asset management and maintenance practices, as well as reducing risks associated with the purchase and use of used parts and planes. Robotics will improve service efficiency and help ensure the sector can meet demand for its services. These in turn will provide safe and solid foundations for an aerospace industry set for significant growth over the next decade. Other technologies – such as 3D printing and the evolution in avionics - look more problematic from the MRO perspective, raising both the complexity and expense associated with aircraft maintenance and repair.
This ambivalence makes it all the more important for MROs to continuously and individually assess the risks and opportunities associated with each emerging technology, and so to position themselves for success in the changing environment. Skills availability will be particularly important, as many new technologies will either require additional training of existing staff or bringing in new skillsets into an organization. Competition for these skills is likely to be fierce so identifying at an early stage what skills are needed, where, and when, will provide a key competitive advantage.
Robust change management and planning processes will also be crucial, as new technologies enter the market and overlap with more familiar processes. There is a huge fleet of older planes that will continue to need servicing for many years yet, even as the latest models incorporate state-of-the-art innovations with new service needs. Charting a positive way through the transition will therefore require pro-active engagement of both human and capital resources.
The use of emerging technologies also brings with it insurance implications, as risk profiles of MRO activities change and evolve. With one of the largest aerospace and aviation insurance brokerage teams in the world, Gallagher maintains an intimate understanding of new and emerging technologies, and how the rapidly evolving technological landscape impacts risks. Our team of more than 300 specialists is therefore ideally placed right insurance is in place to protect your business and assets.
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