The tension is so thick you can cut it with a knife. The stands are filled with people and you can still hear a pin drop. Six technicians stand in the starting gate, reviewing their strategy in their minds, teeth clenched, and palms sweating. Suddenly, a shriek pierces the air as the starting horn sounds and the contest begins.

In May, six teams competed at the Professional Aviation Maintenance Association’s Second Annual Aviation Maintenance Olympics. The venue was Las Vegas, home of heavyweight title fights and wedding chapels. The events were what you would expect to find in an aviation maintenance setting; safety wiring, troubleshooting, data research, rigging, electrical connectors, hardware identification, and hydraulic line fabrication. The competitors were from all segments of aviation, all across the nation. The goal: to be named the best of the best.

For the past two years, PAMA has held both team and individual Olympics competitions after premiering the individual events at its annual trade show in 2001. In both team competitions thus far, the top three teams have been Bombardier Aerospace, Delta TechOps, and Midcoast Aviation. In the individual competition for TechnAthlete and Troubleshooter of the Year, the majority of those in the rankings were from Olympic teams. Does this mean that there is a winning formula to ensure Olympic success? What do the Olympics have to offer to the competitors and their organizations? And, how can your organization become part of the competition? Here’s what the Olympians have to say.

"Competing in the Olympics is an experience of a lifetime. They allow you to prove something to yourself, your peers, and the aviation community. However, there are many talented AMTs out there who aren’t competing yet. We’d like to see more participation from around the industry to see how they compare." These comments from the Delta TechOps Maintenance Craftsmen of Orlando, gold medallists in the 2003 team competition, are typical of the experiences encountered by the competitors in the Olympic events.

In the months before the competition, the gold medal team prepared for the events by studying the materials on the official Olympics website and fabricating their own training aids. However, all of their studying was unable to prepare them for the experience of the competition itself. The Olympics imitate reality by constantly changing the scenarios that competitors encounter. For example, this year’s final round between Delta TechOps and Midcoast Aviation was focused on a single task: complete the safety wiring event in the least amount of time with the fewest number of infractions. The twist: the three-person teams were only allowed to use one set of tools to complete the task.

"The events this year were more challenging than last year. The scenarios were realistic, with changing parameters, just like we encounter in the field," said Ed Ryan, team captain for the gold medallists. "The variety of events covers all aspects of aviation. It shows us that we have skills that are usable in other organizations. Our performance means that we are at or near the top of the industry with respect to our abilities," said Doug Bartolett, a member of the Delta TechOps team for two years and the Second Place TechnAthlete both years. Henry Mercado, the third member of the championship team, put it this way: "Competing in the Olympics gives you a different outlook about yourself, your company, and your profession. I feel that we have gained respect from our coworkers and peers because of our dedication to the competition and our performance for the past two years."

The competitors and others also believe that their participation in the Olympics is a great opportunity for their companies to capitalize on the quality of their personnel. "Organizations should realize what a great marketing tool this," said Alex Honig of Gold Aviation Services in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. "Imagine a marketing campaign for maintenance services based on a medal-winning performance in a national competition." Honig was a New York state finalist in the VICA aviation maintenance competition during his high school years and is now Gold Aviation’s director of maintenance. "Even the teams that didn’t place in the medals have bragging rights. They were willing to put their skills on the line, which takes pride and confidence. As our organization grows, we would love to send a team to the Olympics to see how we stack up."

Barry Griffin, a lead inspector for Midcoast Aviation in Cahokia, Illinois is one of those with definite bragging rights. He is this year’s TechnAthlete of the Year, Troubleshooter of the Year, and a member of the Midcoast "Arch Rivals," which placed third in last year’s competition and took home the silver medal this year. "The Olympics, in my opinion, are completely awesome. You get to experience the pressures of aviation, a chance to use your knowledge and wits, and an opportunity to meet other competitors and their companies," said Griffin. "If you truly have pride in your organization, a commitment to the training and development of your technicians, and a desire to promote the professionalism of the AMT, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be there."

To find out more about the Olympics, including information about fielding your own team, go to www.pama.org/olympics. – By Bob Haines

Customers Head North for Cascade’s 737 Service

Build it and they will come: as clich� as this phrase from the film Field of Dreams may be, it neatly sums up the success of Cascade Aerospace in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

The reason? Less than three years ago, Cascade opened a 250,000-square foot dedicated Boeing 737 MRO facility at the Abbotsford International Airport east of Vancouver. Today, this facility provides maintenance, repair, and overhaul support to Southwest Airlines (largest 737 fleet operator in the world), Continental Airlines, and Aloha Airlines, among others.

So how did Cascade become a 737 MRO star? It started with Conair Group, an aerial fire-control company founded in 1969. As its British Columbia fire-fighting business grew, Conair ended up supporting 90 aircraft in fire-suppression and related tasks. Not surprisingly, Conair management wondered if their in-house MRO knowledge could be marketed to other carriers. So the company started offering third-party MRO support in 1993: first for Fokker F27s, then Bombardier Dash 8s, and then Boeing 737s in 1998.

Why B737s? "We did a market study and found that the Boeing 737 was one of the most popular aircraft in North America," said Cascade president David Schellenberg. "Being as close as we are to Boeing in Seattle, supporting 737s seemed a natural start for us in the heavy maintenance business."

To capture this market, Cascade opened what it calls "North America’s first B737-dedicated MRO facility" in 2000. Capable of servicing eight narrow-bodied aircraft at a time, each 737 bay is divided into function-related work cells. Each work cell contains the appropriate tools, equipment, and resources needed for Cascade’s 500-strong workforce to service 737s efficiently.

Of course, it isn’t possible nor prudent to stock every possible part and tool on the shop floor. This is part of the reason why Cascade has equipped its 737 service bays with on-dock computers. Connected to the company’s flow-through inventory, these computers allow technicians to search, select, and order parts quickly. Moreover, components under seven pounds are sent directly to each bay via a pneumatic tube system. The time between an order and delivery on the shop floor is typically eight minutes, thanks to the pneumatic tube system’s ability to move objects at 35 feet per second.

And consumables? In an approach that combines convenience and cost control, Cascade’s shop floor is equipped with special vending machines. Loaded with consumables such as gloves and drill bits, these machines are filled on consignment by a Cascade supplier. Whenever a technician needs something from the machines, they scan in their badge number, immediately linking their purchase to the job they’re doing at the time. The result is precise materials tracking for Cascade’s customers, and reduced inventory overhead for Cascade itself, which also reduces customer costs.

On a larger scale, Cascade extends this level of precise management to all aspects of its MRO work. For instance, "every task card is bar-coded and tracked, so that technicians record exactly when they start and finish on each job," Schellenberg said. "Our goal is to only charge clients for what they’re having done to their aircraft. Using this homegrown system ensures that we do so."

Add overhead cranes for safe, easy removal of major aircraft systems, in-dock painting, and support shops for avionics, interiors, and machinery and one can see why Cascade Aerospace is able to service 737s efficiently and cost-effectively. "Customers look for three things: quality work, minimal downtime, and reasonable cost," explained Schellenberg. "We’re very high on quality, competitive on turn-times, and competitive on cost ."

As for the future? With Airbus airliners grabbing an ever-larger share of the market, Cascade has designed its 250,000-square foot facility to handle Airbus narrow-bodies as well. In the meantime, Cascade continues to build its reputation for quality 737 support. "Honesty and integrity are huge for us," Schellenberg said. "A reputation takes a long time to build, and very little time to lose." – By James Careless

Cascade Aerospace
Abbotsford, British Columbia (Canada)
Phone: 604-850-7372
Web: www.cascadeaerospace.com