The race is on for manufacturers to reduce customer costs as government budget cuts, unfavorable exchange rates, and a softening oil-and-gas industry put pressure on the helicopter industry. Ahead of HAI Heli-Expo 2016, Vertical spoke with Pratt & Whitney Canada to find out how the engine manufacturer is looking to respond to customer needs in this challenging environment.
“Our theme this year is technology and innovation to support customers and increase their cost savings,” said Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) vice president, marketing, Irene Makris. “We’re finding ways to increase savings for our customers through reduced costs and enhanced aircraft availability. We’re achieving this through developing new engines and control systems while offering new customer service solutions.”
One of these solutions is to increase basic time between overhaul (TBO) for several engine types. All PW210A and PW210S engines, whether currently flying or new, have a 10 percent increased TBO from 3,500 to 4,000 hours. Additionally, the PT6-B37A TBO has increased 50 percent from 3,000 to 4,500 hours, while clutch interval inspections for PT6T-9 engine increased 60 percent, from 1,250 to 2000 hours.
In addition to these engine life extensions, P&WC is highlighting a number of programs and services for customers designed to reduce overall costs.
The company’s PW&CSMART program, introduced last year, offers tailored maintenance programs with fixed pricing to assist operators in budgeting for the exact expense of overhauls and other services.
P&WC also offers FAST, an inflight diagnostics, prognostics and health monitoring program designed to reduce costs and increase efficiency, and it is working on an oil analysis technology (PWCOAT) which analyzes oil samples for minute metal traces, enabling proactive maintenance intervention.
Future Engines
P&WC prides itself in being a leader in engine research and development, said Makris. The company is currently focused on dual goals: modifying its tried and true designs to increase costs savings, while simultaneously developing entirely new engines for the 1,800- to 2,000-shaft-horsepower envelope.
“We work closely with our OEM customers, and while we see that they are not yet ready for a brand new engine, we know the future is now,” Makris said. “So while we make modifications to our current engines to offer an immediate cost solution, we’re already designing and testing parts and rigs for a brand new engine that will revolutionize the industry. The tests we’ve done to date are already in line to meet our expectations for an engine that has a higher performance, lower fuel consumption, increased range, and higher dependability, all for a lower cost.”
P&WC is focusing on a common core approach as part of both next generation modifications of current models and future engine designs. By developing a scalable core, the engine manufacturer can economically serve multiple markets and aircraft types, scaling up and down based on power needs, Makris said.
Additionally, all next generation engines will include updated full authority digital engine control (FADEC) systems to reflect faster and more stable response. P&WC has already tested FADEC improvements in the H175, where the first PT6 with a dual channel FADEC is installed. The FADEC allowed for two time climb records during aircraft testing, according to Makris.
So far, next generation engines are performing well for P&WC, Makris said. While the PW210E didn’t work out for Airbus in the H160, P&WC continues to work with Airbus and support aircraft testing with the engine until one that produces Airbus’ new power requirements is identified. However, other PW210 engines in the Sikorsky S-76D and the Finmeccanica AW169 have been performing well, she said.
