Rolls-Royce has opened a new Defence Service Delivery Centre
(SDC) in Asia, located at the Manyata Embassy Business Park in Bengaluru.
Co-located with the Rolls-Royce Engineering Centre, the SDC will offer
localised engineering support to improve frontline capability of Indian Air
Force (IAF) and Indian Navy (IN) aircraft, and to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
(HAL).
The Centre was
officially inaugurated by Dominic McAllister, British Deputy High Commissioner,
Bengaluru, in the presence of Rolls-Royce executives including Kishore
Jayaraman, President – India and South Asia; Lee Doherty, Senior Vice President
- Defence, Asia Pacific; and Shaun Agle, Vice President Customer Services India
Defence.
According to Doherty: “We put our customers at the heart
of our business, and the opening of our first Service Delivery Centre in India
demonstrates our commitment to be closer to our customers to ensure they get
the best possible aftermarket support and outstanding customer service which they
have come to expect from us. With a highly skilled team, fully trained in
engineering services, supply chain and operational support, we will continue to
provide maximum engine readiness and availability.”
The Centre will be providing
defence customers in India with services such as fleet management, services
engineering and supply chain co-ordination. It will also be the base from which
Field Service Representatives can be rapidly dispatched to frontline bases,
subject to contract coverage, to provide on-ground technical support. The aim
is to deliver the optimum support possible to over 750 aircraft engines which
power the Indian Armed Forces, including: the Adour, which powers both the Hawk
Advanced Jet Trainer and the Jaguar combat aircraft; the Gnome engine, which
powers the Sea King; and the Dart, which powers the HS748. It also provides
coverage for AE2100 and AE3007 engines that power the C-130J and the Embraer
145, respectively. The SDC also will have the capability to support new engine
fleets.
Additionally, the SDC will
support HAL by enabling “state of the art” supply chain management that will
also combine with improved in-country support for manufacturing, assembly and
test & repair capabilities.
This SDC is based on a highly
successful model operated by Rolls-Royce at Royal Air Force Marham, UK for
RB199 and also in use for the US Navy Adour F405 in Kingsville. The support
system puts engineering and services staff on-base, working closely and
collaboratively with the service to increase efficiency and
communication.
Agle explained “This Service Delivery Centre has
been configured specifically for the Indian Armed Forces and HAL with Bangalore
being a logical location close to Engine Division. Overall this contributes to
the broader Make in India agenda through skills development and increasing
self-sufficiency. The overriding goal is to improve availability of
‘engines-on-the-wing through a step change improvement of in-country
responsiveness for current fleets as well as for future Defence programmes.”
Jayaraman explained what it means
to India’s growing aerospace capabilities: “The opening of this Service
Delivery Centre marks the beginning of a new chapter in the strong partnership
that has existed for over eight decades between India and Rolls-Royce. It
demonstrates our commitment to support India’s growth capabilities by
encouraging knowledge transfer, building highly skilled teams and developing
the Indian aerospace ecosystem.”
No comments:
Post a Comment