GPMS International has secured FAA supplemental type certificates for the installation of its Foresight MX HUMS aboard Airbus EC135s and AS332 Super Pumas. Metro Aviation and operators Blackcomb Helicopters and Precision worked with GPMS on the latest STCs, which brought the total number of Airbus models approved for the health monitoring unit to five.
GPMS v-p of marketing Ronnie Ries said demand for the Foresight MX units is being driven by customers wanting to monitor their entire fleet, operators needing to meet contractual requirements, and operators looking at ways to mitigate significant business challenges.
“We’re finding external demand for HUMS has increased substantially because of new and evolving contracts requiring HUMS (like the U.S .Forest MATOC), BARS compliance requirements, and especially because of the impacts of supply chain and manpower challenges. They need HUMS to win contracts in this super competitive era,” Ries said.
He further noted that operators are recognizing that the impact of unscheduled maintenance goes beyond the price of an AOG part. “The stress to their already shorthanded maintenance team and the lost revenue from an easily detectable bearing that’s going to make metal is having skeptics take a closer look at why their peers are adopting Foresight MX HUMS.”