Satair Powers Into Engine Material Services

In a landmark deal announced at the recent MRO Europe exhibition, Satair Group has for the first time entered the aero-engine aftermarket through a transaction with Pratt & Whitney.

Under this deal Satair Group has taken over responsibility for the exclusive distribution of PW4000 100-inch thrust reverser spare parts.

This engine is one of three engine options that power the Airbus A330 wide-body and some 250 aircraft are equipped with this engine. The final delivery of this engine to power a new-build A330 takes place in the first quarter of this year.

With production of the PW4000 100-inch engine coming to an end, the time was right for the company to divest its thrust reverser aftermarket distribution for what is about to be an out of production engine.

Adam King, General Manager Asset Management for Pratt & Whitney, said: “In taking this decision we are very happy to go with Satair Group who are globally positioned to service our customers.”

Satair Group commenced its distribution duties in mid-December and Steen Karsbo, Vice President of Business Development at Satair Group hailed this new deal, saying: “We made our heaviest ever investment of some US$100 million to acquire these thrust reverser spare parts so that we were able to deliver a very high level of service performance from day one.

“By adding the thrust reverser component distribution into our spare parts portfolio we can provide an even broader product scope offering to our customers. We look forward to the expanded relationship and the opportunity to provide great value-added service to both our customers and Pratt & Whitney.”

Steen added that Satair Group’s first entry into the thrust reverser and aero-engine aftermarket is part of the company’s strategy to broaden its reach by looking at different market segments where it can expand.

He added:” Forecasts show that the world market for the aero-engine aftermarket sector is worth some $6-8 billion a year and before we entered into this agreement with Pratt & Whitney our share of that market was 0%. In order to reach our growth goals for the business we can’t rely on our traditional markets, so we have been looking at different market segments where we can expand.

“We have plans to expand our presence into this part of the market which has significant revenue growth potential. We are studying several potential scenarios which could take us into supporting core engine parts. This could involve partnership programmes with other companies and Satair Group making investments in parts inventories.

“We have found a new model for this market so watch this space because further advancements into this market by us are planned.”

This deal with Pratt & Whitney has a historic precedent. In the late 1950s and through to the 1980s Satair sold Pratt & Whitney R885 – R2000 series WASP radial aircraft engines and spare parts that powered scores of different aircraft types, to many operators across the world. Steen Karsbo, during his early tenure with Satair in the early 1980s, remembers these large engines lined up in the warehouse ready to be sold.