Story ID: 
Wichita Aviation Testing Firm Expands Facilities
By: Jerry Siebenmark
Caption: Aviation Consulting & Engineering Solutions held a grand opening this week of its new facilities.
Word Count: 232
Twenty-one years ago Kevin Campbell formed Aviation Consulting & Engineering Solutions (ACES) from a spare bedroom of his house. This week, Campbell’s ACES held a grand opening of a new campus housing 20,000 sq ft of facilities near northwest Wichita, nearly quadruple the size of its previous facility.

The aviation engineering, design, certification, and testing company’s new facilities accommodate seven different laboratories, including for flammability and structures testing. Sitting on nine acres in the Wichita suburb of Maize, the company performs testing on a variety of aircraft components such as lithium-ion batteries, seatbelts and shoulder harnesses, seats and cabinets, and cargo pallet covers. Its customers include business, general, and commercial aviation OEMs, as well as helicopter manufacturers, MROs, and suppliers.

“We’ve had literally hundreds of clients that we have worked with over the last 21 years,” Campbell told AIN. “I used to count the number of clients we had…I remember when we hit 40 I quit counting because they were coming in so quickly then it was like every week you picked up a new client and it was just word of mouth, people [found] out what we did and what we could do for them.”

ACES employs 16 and has a number of designated engineering representatives on staff. Its work includes testing for parts manufacturer approvals, supplemental type certificates, and new aircraft programs.