Helicopter engine condition monitoring program growing rapidly in US

Citation

(2006), "Helicopter engine condition monitoring program growing rapidly in US", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 78 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2006.12778dab.001

Helicopter engine condition monitoring program growing rapidly in US

Helicopter engine condition monitoring program growing rapidly in US

Keywords: Helicopters, Aircraft engineering

Demand for Jet-Care International's helicopter engine condition monitoring program in the USA is reported to be rapidly growing as manufacturers and operators recognize its potential to diagnose a problem before it becomes an expensive maintenance issue.

“Unscheduled engine removals are unwelcome,” said Jet-Care Founder and President David Glass. “Even the most advanced power plants are susceptible to wear and erosion. Our value to operators is in being able to identify situations before they become expensive or contribute to operational delays.”

“In the past year Jet-Care has seen a large increase in operators and maintenance organizations selecting the company due to its proven quality, expertise and dedication. These include service centers, law enforcement and fire departments, offshore oil and emergency medical services.”

Today, Jet-Care based in Cedar Knolls, NJ and its sister-company Spectro in the UK and Switzerland are monitoring the health of more than 13,000 engines, in over 72 countries, seven days per week, 24 h a day, 365 days a year. With a 30-year history in fluid analysis, Jet-Care has built up an incomparable amount of experience, providing the technology, data quality, timely response and cost effectiveness necessary for today's competitive engine business environment.

All three of the company's laboratories routinely analyze samples from all major original equipment manufacturers and operators.

In commenting on Eurocopter Mexico contract, Eduardo Mendoza, Eurocopter Mexico's Quality Manager, said “Jet-Care's software enables us to have an historical knowledge about all the aircraft we manage. We receive detailed information via the Jet-Care ECHO program; for here we can view the results and review the trends for each piece of equipment we monitor. That improves our reactivity skills towards our customers better than ever.”

Mendoza said Eurocopter Mexico has been impressed with the speed of Jet- Care's response. “As soon as Jet-Care receives an oil sample from us, the analysis is quickly performed and we're quickly informed about the results.”

“We provide our customers with more than just numbers and graphs, but analysis borne of an extensive knowledge of all types of helicopters and aircraft engines,” said Glass. “Our experience with both wet chemistry and debris analysis helps our customers efficiently maintain their engines.”

Eric Galas of Helicopters Italia said a deciding factor in selecting Spectro in Europe was the short delivery time and speed in which Spectro performed and responded with an analysis.

US Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer Michael Fannin said the US Coast Guard was impressed with the analytical tools made available by Jet- Care. “One of the key reasons that the Coast Guard chose Jet-Care is its proven track record in providing analysis which can improve long-term efficiency and maintenance of engines.”

Operators are taking advantage of Jet- Care's oil analysis reports through Jet- Care's Engine Condition Health Online (ECHO) software. The reporting program allows operators to receive a small data file from Jet-Care by e-mail and when samples have been analyzed and go on to review the alert category, results and trend the data. The system offers fast response trending. If particular concerns are raised from a specific analysis result, Jet-Care warns operators immediately by telephone. Jet-Care technicians are available 24/7/ 365 to speak to operators. Jet-Care has a policy of having no answer phones during normal working hours.

Fleet operators are said to have found ECHO particularly useful in comparison studies that permit them to make long- range plans regarding overhaul, maintenance, parts procurement and other planning and purchasing decisions. In addition, a chief engineer who is responsible for a diversified fleet with aircraft in different locations, for example, can forward graphs and results to key personnel requesting data on an engine's condition.

Jet-Care's oil analysis program provides a highly reliable means of checking the metal content and other contamination within the oil system. Jet-Care uses the industry's most advanced techniques and equipment including scanning electron microscopes and inductively coupled plasma spectrometers and analyzes not parts per million but down to one part per 100 million.

“Studying turbine engine oil for microscopic metal debris, oxidation and other contaminants allows operators to catch potential problems early,” said Peter Smith, Jet-Care's Head of Technical Services. “This prevents excessive wear in one subassembly from damaging others.”

He said that by taking oil samples and trending raw data on a routine basis allows helicopter flight departments not only to save on engine maintenance costs, they can search for signs of imminent failure, making it possible to schedule aircraft availability around any AOGs likely to arise.

Smith explained the specific benefits of rotorcraft engine fluid and chip analyses. “We are constantly looking for changes in the elements of oil that are related to wear such as wear of casings and bearings. You can get magnesium in a casing or titanium in a shaft. We look for hydraulic fluid contamination and fuel in the oil. We check for viscosity. Leaks in a fuel- cooled oil cooler can be found from changes in viscosity. We also look at wear elements in the oil and the physical properties of the oil.”

Smith said chips are basically anything you can see. “We might be able to tell customers it's from the gearbox or the shaft. We can see that it doesn't even belong in that gearbox and that the customer shouldn't be concerned. Sometimes we see debris that has oxidized. That could indicate that it's debris from an old failure. Because this a nondestructive test that is repeatable, we can inform a customer that there is new damage.”

Details available from: Jet-Care. Tel: +1 973 292 9597; Fax: +1 973 292 3030; E-mail: enquires@ jet-care.com; web site: www.jet-care.com