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Issue link: http://amt.epubxp.com/i/954735
tenance technicians) since [U.S.] government education policy and funding moved away from technical schools/training and to four-year colleges." Like others, AAR "has done our best" to partner with community colleges and tech schools near its seven U.S. facilities. "People, people, people," laments Richard Kendall, CEO of HAECO Americas. It's the dominating issue of our times when it comes not just to qualified technicians but pilots as well. Both are in strong demand and short supply. How to get the numbers needed without sacrificing quality is critical. Kendal believes "advances in technology will help, [but that] MRO will remain a very labor-intensive industry for the foreseeable future." HAECO Americas spent the last year updating processes and implementing technology to better equip its technicians. Kendall says the MRO is also "reviewing employee engagement and retention best practices to secure stability within our workforce." THE HIGH TECH IMPERATIVE Change may be good, but it can also be a pain. CAVOK's Marcontell asserts, "MRO industry leaders are going to have to figure out their technology roadmap and how to fund, develop, and manage large-scale change and technology implementation projects." Here comes the pain part: they're going to have to do so "at a pace they have never experienced before." This is going to require a completely new set of skills that most organizations are struggling to find." MROs are going to have to deploy those skills on top of outdated MRO information technology, and do it in a highly regulated environment that manifestly is not accustomed to rapid change. GAMECO's Marx says, "Linking numerous data sources from the aircraft, airline, logistics, suppliers, and MRO into a smart maintenance solution is recognized by many as the way to go and is in different stages of realization." There's a price to be paid in digitizing MRO, one in treasure the other in shedding old ways of thinking. David Doyle, vice president of business development, innovation management and product development at Lufthansa Technik, says, "We're preparing ourselves for a major transformation of the MRO industry." The reasons behind preparations are "well documented: digitization of the airline/MRO interface, artificial intelligence, new technologies, and consolidation of OEMs." Sophisticated technology is evident in an increasing array of MRO arenas. AFI KLM E&M; is a good case-in-point. The MRO's head of strategy, Vincent AAR LANDING Gear Services AAR CORP.