The aviation industry is like equal parts mysticism and puzzle for Jason Barrett, an allure that sucked him in.
“The aviation industry has complex systems and problems. To work with aircraft engines/APU’s is serious, thus meaningful. It is a large industry with technology that spans from historical to cutting edge and I’ve always been fascinated by the romance of flight. Even after understanding the physics it seems magical,” he explains.
Barrett holds a BSE in Mechanical Engineering Systems with a secondary emphasis in Physics from Arizona State University, and it was while in college that he got into the aviation field.
“The summer before and throughout my final semester of college, I was an engineering intern at TurbineAero. I was then brought on in a permanent position in March 2018 and was moved from the APU MRO shop to the component repair shop that June. I am responsible for process improvement, development of repairs, dispositioning of non-conforming materials, quoting new processes, and providing technical support to special processes and machining operations, but I consistently step outside my role to offer assistance in any way needed to improve the business, such as quality, operations, etc.,” Barrett said.
“One of Jason’s best assets is his intellectual curiosity. His drive to seek out the root cause of a problem and ensure sustainable solutions to maintenance issues has contributed to significant improvements and improved levels of customer satisfaction. For example, when asked to support a 60-year-old legacy part for a critical customer, he worked with the customer to better understand their needs and worked with operators to gather tribal knowledge in effort to explore improvement options. His efforts resulted in a TAT reduction of 70 percent and 15 percent labor and cost reduction,” said Chuck Ayala, Director of Engineering at TurbineAero Engines Technics, when nominating Barrett.
Barrett says his career goals are to, “continue to learn and feed my insatiable curiosity. I will progress in my role and will go on adopting more responsibilities as available. With my commitment to my profession, coworkers, and customers I will persist in strengthening TurbineAero.”
And he says he gives back to the aviation industry by “seeking out young engineering talent, innovate using creative solutions to new and existing problems, contagiously spread my enthusiasm for the industry, and also support encourage and recognize the talent and efforts of my coworkers. I consider everyone a mentor. Whether it is an operator on the shop floor, a more seasoned engineer, or someone in a functional role, I actively seek out learning opportunities that will enrich his understanding of the business and industry.”
