Aerospace |
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In an expansion of services to the world's airlines, Pratt & Whitney and SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, have agreed to form a joint venture to overhaul commercial aircraft engines in Singapore. The new venture, outlined in a memorandum of understanding signed in Singapore last week, will be built around SIAEC's current engine overhaul shop, one of the most modern in Asia. Pratt & Whitney. Asia Pratt and Whitney is a United Technologies company, which will own 51 percent of the venture. SIAEC will provide most of the work force and management staff and no change in current staffing levels will be incurred. Karl J. Krapek, president of Pratt & Whitney, said, "SIAEC has an outstanding reputation in the airline industry for the skills of its people and the quality of their work. We are excited about combining resources to build a Center of Excellence in Asia-Pacific, the fastest growing market in the world. Pratt's strategy for engine services has always been to team with the best in the world and that is exactly what is happening in this case." The initial focus of the joint venture will be on Pratt & Whitney's PW4000 and JT9D) series engines and the CFM56 engine built by CFMI, all engines currently in the Singapore Airlines fleet. Once the venture is established and running, it will expand into servicing other engine models. Annual revenue is expected to be $300 million by the turn of the century. Pratt & Whitney's Eagle Services offers tailored packages of aftermarket products and services including parts, component repair, engine overhaul and fleet management programs. In addition to this new venture, Pratt & Whitney and SIAEC already jointly operates three component repair centers in Singapore and Taiwan. Eagle Services also has facilities in Ireland and Netherlands as well as in the United States. "Through our agreement with Pratt & Whitney, we shall have access to the most advanced technology available in the engine overhaul business,'' said Robert Tan, chief executive of SIA Engineering Company. "This will enable SIAEC to provide better and more cost effective services to our customers, not only in engine repairs, but in total fleet support. This joint venture will allow us to grow at a faster rate and obtain synergy in the engine overhaul business that we cannot achieve on our own." |
