All-time high shop visits for MTU Maintenance in 2023
MTU Maintenance has announced that 2023 was a bumper year for the company, with over 1,300 shop visits recorded network-wide – the highest number in its history.
On-going business expansions and historic milestones within its network also contributed to a strong year for the provider of customised MRO solutions for aero engines.
The company says the high volume of shop visits was largely driven by a growing demand in MRO services for CFM International’s CFM56-5B/7 (+91%), GE Aerospace’s GE90-110/115B (+38%) and Pratt & Whitney’s PW1100G-JM (+19%) engines.
The latter was helped by the continued ramp-up of EME Aero, a 50/50 joint venture between MTU Aero Engines AG and Lufthansa Technik in Rzeszów, Poland, which focuses on the maintenance of Pratt & Whitney GTF engines and whose shop visits doubled year-on-year.
However, MTU Maintenance says its largest engine programme was for International Aero Engines’ V2500 with a 29% share of the total recorded shop visits, followed by the PW1100G-JM and CFM56 programmes with 23% and 15%, respectively.
Michael Schreyögg, chief programme officer at MTU Aero Engines AG, said: “MTU Maintenance’s continued growth is the result of the entrepreneurial attitude and mindset our people bring to work each day.
“2023 was the strongest and, at the same time, the most challenging year in the history of our MRO business. Last year’s accomplishments give me confidence that our on-going and planned projects will bring even further benefits across our network, enabling us to serve both our customers and the strong global demand for MRO.”
New contracts
The service provider also won a total of $4.6 billion USD in new contracts. The firm says that engine MRO alone brought in $4 billion USD of that figure.
The largest contributors of new contract wins were the V2500 and GE90 engine programmes at 28% each, followed by the CFM56 engine programme with a 21% share of the total volume.
The company continues to grow not only in its core engine MRO business, but also at MTU Maintenance Lease Services B.V., which offers engine leasing and asset management services. The Amsterdam-based lessor’s revenue increased by 50% compared to 2022 figures, driven by a strong recovery in demand for leasing (+35%) and robust growth in its asset management service (+54%).
The current lease pool is comprised of roughly 150 engines and modules. As of January 2024, the company also expanded MTU’s SERVICEPlus portfolio with engine stand leasing.
In cooperation with engine stand manufacturer Advanced Ground Systems Engineering (AGSE), MTU now offers a broad selection of engine OEM-approved transport stands for most popular engine models.
Further operational expansion
Last year, MTU Maintenance Dallas, the network’s main ON-SITEPlus service hub for North America, relocated to a 440,000 sq ft facility at Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport. The location is ramping up capabilities for several current and new-generation engines and also boasts a test cell capable of 100,000 lbs of thrust.
MTU Maintenance Service Australia received Part 145 approval from the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) for the CF34-10E engine and can now perform inspection, repair and modification work, as well as borescope inspections and borescope blending.
MTU Maintenance do Brasil, which had been already certified by the Brazilian Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for V2500, CFM56-3/5/7, CF34-10, CF6-80 and GE90 engines, was approved by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) for the CFM56 engine family.
MTU Maintenance Zhuhai is scheduled to finish construction on its secondary location in Jinwan by the end of 2024, following the completion of an additional test cell in June 2023. This will greatly increase the location’s capacities for its engine portfolio consisting of CFM56, LEAP, PW1100G-JM and V2500 engines.
In total, MTU Maintenance’s network now employs over 6,000 engine experts spread across four continents.
Other highlights in 2023 included MTU Maintenance Canada celebrating 25 years of operations, and MTU Maintenance Lease Services’ marked 10 years since its founding.
MTU Maintenance Hannover completed its 10,000th shop visit in September, while the CF34 engine programme at MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg entered its 20th year since introduction.
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