The booming Chinese express delivery industry brings more engine and conversion workload to Ameco.
From last October, Ameco’s engine overhaul workshop in Beijing is witnessing the workload increase and it is in a peak period in the beginning of 2017.
Up to Jan. 9th, the engine types under repair involve in Pratt-Whitney PW4000, International Aero-Engines V2500 and Rolls-Royce RB211, with around 50% workload from the last type. But it forecasts the new product V2500 will gear up and be a new star of this year.
The increasing RB211 workload is driven by Chinese air transportation market as well as the new contracts signed last year. RB211s from Chinese freight carriers include SF Airlines, and China Postal Airlines. In the sideline of 2016 Zhuhai Airshow, Ameco inked a ten-year RB211 contract with SF Airlines for the carrier’s Boeing 757 fleet. New workload is also secured by Ameco from international customers of the Americas and Europe. For example, Ameco has become a Rolls-Royce approved RB211 repair station and began to provide service from last year for this engine OEM.
Ameco is speeding up the in-house parts repair capabilities on V2500 for a strong support on both domestic and international customers. As an authorized repair station of Pratt-Whitney, Ameco is overhauling V2500s for IAE.
The freight market requirement also brings more conversions to Ameco. The MRO provider is performing passenger-to-freighter conversion on two Boeing 757 aircraft in its Chengdu facility, and one of which is already in the final phase of completion. In addition to the two aircraft in progress, another two more Boeing 757s for conversion are already listed on schedule. In order to provide more competitive service and shorten TAT, Chengdu facility optimized its working processes by Lean project. What’s more, the Beijing Base skilled mechanics injection to Chengdu facility shows the positive result of Ameco’s integration.
Ameco developed Boeing 757 freighter conversion in 2014. By the end of 2015, it has completed conversions on five 757s. The business is growing and Ameco expects a continuous workload of more than ten aircraft within the next two years.
Company Profile
Ameco is a joint venture between Air China Limited and Lufthansa German Airlines with Air China hold 75% and Lufthansa hold 25%. It is a comprehensive major MRO provider in China. Headquartered in Beijing, Ameco consists of a Beijing Base and nine branches dotted in Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Tianjin, Hohhot, Shanghai, Guiyang, Wuhan and Guangzhou. It has more than 160 maintenance stations at home and abroad, forming a large maintenance network worldwide. It is licensed by CAAC, FAA, EASA as well as the regulatory authorities of near 30 countries and acts as a Designated Modification Design Organization (DMDOR) authorized by CAAC.
