TVA Selects GPMS’s Foresight MX Helicopter Health Monitoring System for Its Bell 407GXis and New MD530 and Bell 429 Aircraft

The Tennessee Valley Authority has selected GPMS’ Foresight MX Helicopter Health and Usage Monitoring System, to provide service on current Bell 407GXi aircraft as well as on planned fleet additions, including an MD530 and Bell 429.

Jed Kalkstein, President of GPMS, said, “We are pleased to announce our agreement with the TVA. This contract shows continued success in the utility market where uptime and safety are high priorities. We’re proud of Foresight’s remote helicopter monitoring capabilities, particularly the predictive Remaining Useful Life estimates so critical to enhancing readiness and availability.”

The Tennessee Valley Authority is the largest public power provider in the US with an approximately 16,300-mile corridor of transmission lines. The TVA utilizes helicopters for, among other tasks, power line inspection critical to transmission and grid reliability.

GPMS is certifying Foresight MX on a range of Part 27 platforms. With STCs complete on the Bell 407GX/GXi and the AS350B3/H125, the company is pursuing certifications on the MD530, the Bell 212/412, and the Bell 429 making it an ideal mixed fleet solution. Foresight is available on the 407 exclusively through Aeronautical Accessories, a Bell Brand.

Foresight MX provides engine and drivetrain health monitoring, rotor track and balance, and flight data monitoring with exceedance alerting. The Foresight HUMS captures parameter and sensor data onboard the aircraft and automatically transfers it to the cloud for analysis using Wi-Fi or cellular. The application is then accessible to the operator on any browser-enabled device.

Chief Engineer, Dr. Eric Bechhofer, one of the world’s foremost experts in machine condition monitoring, has reduced onboard kit weight while improving fault detection capability. The company employs a HUMS-as-a-Service pricing model to make HUMS accessible and ensure positive ROI.