What it takes to be agile, flexible and timely in a time of crisis

During times of crisis, military aerospace maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services have to adapt, this is true of all crises, even those as severe and unexpected as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. For us at Honeywell, this comes down to three key factors: proximity, efficiency and flexibility.

For more than 100 years, we have supported armed forces around the world with technology designed to improve mission-readiness, operational efficiency and safety.  All of which is underpinned by our commitment to deliver the services our customers need.  We have partnerships around the world with a wide range of MRO providers, both third-party independent entities and government-owned facilities.  It is through these partnerships we provide spares, parts and components for engines, avionics, airframes and other systems.

Today, it is too early to establish the impact of COVID -19 on military MRO services around the world, as there is generally a lag between changes in flying rates and scheduled maintenance events.  However, operators anticipate a spike in demand for MRO in the coming months, as air forces have adapted their routine tasks and missions to conduct a series of roles connected to the pandemic: for example, flying long distances to collect personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers. There is also likely to be an increased need for humanitarian relief services.

However, it requires a very close watch on our customers operations and a close and constant contact with the MRO providers to ensure we know when customer’s flying rates change, and then Honeywell can act accordingly.

To respond to a crisis like COVID-19 – and to provide the service MRO operators demand on a daily basis Honeywell has built our offering on three key pillars:

1. Proximity, both geographically and in terms of responsiveness. By ensuring we have the right people, with the right expertise, located in the right places, we are there alongside our customers.  In addition, MRO providers can now become official channel partners and certified installation centers for our connected portfolio.
2. Honeywell Aerospace Trading – our pre-owned equipment specialist. During times of crisis MROs often demand an immediate solution to the requests coming from their end users.  With stock on shelves and immediately available, the highest quality standards and competitive pricing, HAT is an attractive option.
3. Flexible support – Many air-force’s scale their facilities and resources based on flying hours.  But if that flying rate increases, more maintenance events will naturally be required.  This is where our flexible support can add value, with favorable commercial terms for direct parts supply; direct access to technical documentation and intellectual property; bespoke training packages; direct OEM technical support; and a single point of contact business manager.

By working extremely closely with MROs to understand their demand, we are able to forecast the right amount of spares required to deal with any surge.  We can’t expect our customers to hold massive amounts of stock on the shelf, but we can work with them to anticipate demand and cut long lead times as much as possible.

Ultimately the success of supporting the unique requirements of our military customers relies on communication.